HVAC

Heating, Ventilation Air Conditioning

In plain language

Heating, ventilation and air conditioning, the systems that keep a building comfortable.

The metaphor

Like the building's lungs: they keep air moving and temperature steady, and they matter to server rooms too.

Going deeper

How it works

Modern units connect to the network.
A hot equipment room shortens hardware life.
Contractors sometimes get network access to manage them.
Keep these on their own network.

What can go wrong (example scenario)

A six-person office gave its air conditioning contractor a login to the office network and never removed it. Years later, that shared password was guessed and the attacker reached the file server.

How WILDCARD handles it

Network covers the firewall and switch where building systems are kept on a separate network.

In practice

A clinic puts its thermostat on a separate network.
A server closet gets a small cooling unit.
A vendor receives limited, time-bound access.

A question owners ask

Why does IT care about the air conditioner?

Because connected building systems can be a way in, and heat kills hardware.

Where WILDCARD handles this

Network

Firewall managed and monitored
Switches kept current
On-prem Active Directory auth

Start with Network

Related terms

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