How to clean up a digital workplace before firing

When dismissing you should clean up your workspace. This applies to both paper files and all digital luggage that you have accumulated. Layfhaker recalls the six steps, which can not be forgotten in its last working day.

Two weeks ago, you wrote notice of resignation. So it is this day. Today you will be given work record with a mark of "voluntary redundancy". Some of the colleagues stranglehold shrug your hand, well, someone with ehidtsey smiles on the sidelines.

But this is the past, which you probably do not want to come back. And to the ghosts of the past days did not appear in your present, should properly clean up after themselves. In particular this applies to cases of paper, well after - all digital luggage that you have accumulated. On it will be discussed.

1. Make a backup of data

Before you delete the data from your computer, backup the most important files that you worked on. If the amount is small, it will approach the usual USB-flash drive. They can be purchased at every corner. Even kopeck option 4GB for office documents will suffice.

Another option - Google Drive cloud storage, Dropbox, OneDrive. Just note that the account has been linked to your personal mailbox, because the work will soon be closed. So at your disposal will be at least 5 GB of free space remote. For really large files require external hard drives.

Of course, this raises the question of trade secrets. We do not encourage you to take risks and expose themselves to prosecution. Photos from the evening gatherings at work and e-mail correspondence with friends, you can take without a twinge of conscience. But backup of financial and other sensitive documents can not take away, if you do not explicitly allowed.

2. Check the USB-ports

Charge your phone at work - a sacred thing. Many people do not even take home the cord and leave it hanging around your computer. But it is your property, which will be useful for the same purposes, but in a new location. So you should carefully inspect the system unit or a notebook on all sides. Thoughtfully and carefully. It may be that somewhere in the sticks forgotten flash drive and a mouse and do you buy for their money.

3. Turn off voice and e-mail

For many years the book was filled with hundreds of names of contacts. Ring up all and sundry, to prevent his departure, very difficult. Simply record the answering machine or configure your voicemail to listen to all incoming callers.

Since e-mail is still easier. Send out emails to partners with gratitude for his work and leave the address of the person to be contacted after you leave. Then you can get out of the desktop or browser-based client.

Do not be amiss to delete all conversations. Although caution is needed here: some companies require that all external communication is stored for several months (s), including after the dismissal of the employee.

4. Reset the operating system

You do not know about the fate of the computer after you leave. It can be left in place for a new employee, to write off the scrap or sent for a good cause. Whatever it was, it is worth spending some time and sweep all the digital tracks.

Suppose you have administrative rights in the workplace. This means that you possess unlimited possibilities for setting up and cleaning the computer. It is a sin not to take advantage of the latter, of course, after the backup cherished files. At the same time, keep in mind that the removal and reinstallation of the system can take several hours. So plan the event in advance.

If you have a Mac, you can erase the data by reinstalling OS X. Apple Support Center provides clear instructionsAs crank case without difficulties.

For machines with Windows has thousands of utilities to remove the information from the hard drive. One of the most simple, reliable and convenient you can call Darik's Boot and Nuke (DBAN). The program is run from a disc or USB-drive and offers several options for cleaning the system or custom sections.

5. Clean your mobile phone

Does someone need to know about calls parents from your mobile phone? This bonus is not established in the corporate rules. Take a couple of minutes on the phone returns to its original state.

On iPhone and iPad, go to the general options, the last section of which is responsible for the dumping. Select "Erase All Content and Settings", and then retrace the gadget to its factory state.

For Android in fact the scheme is not changed. The only difference is that the reset function on different firmware may be called differently. As a rule, this is the section "Backup & reset", although it may be a "Backup and reset."

If you can not find, we recommend a web service Hard ResetWhere thousands of instructions gathered as crank hardware rollback.

6. Erase the maximum digital footprint

Not all occurrences in the IT-department, and even fewer people feel the subtle nature of the network administrator. Therefore, to reset the working environment on the computer is unlikely to happen. In this case, you need to break as many strands as possible. We must start with the desktop software uninstall such as application Instagram for Windows 10.

Then switch to your web browser and make sure you have removed all of the passwords it stores. Actual version of Chrome, Safari or Firefox associate them with your Google Account, iCloud, and Firefox Sync. Delete a profile, you are in one fell swoop close access to all other resources. If your account is working, and you can not get rid of it, you will have to cover their tracks in the browser options.

In other Chrome settings, there is a section "Passwords and forms" - click on the link "Configure" and scrub too much. In Safari, the codes are stored on the tab "Password", and Firefox - including security settings.