Safety, Security, and Compliance
This domain covers protecting people, data, and the facility. Safety: electrical hazards (arc flash, lockout/tagout, PPE), battery hazards (UPS batteries store large energy and can vent), fire suppression (clean agents, not water, in white space), and safe lifting and ladder practices. Know emergency procedures: emergency power off (EPO), evacuation, and incident reporting.
Security: physical access control (badges, mantrap, visitor escorts, camera coverage), logical security basics (least privilege, separation of duties, secure management networks for BMCs), and media sanitization before disposal. Compliance: know that standards and frameworks exist (e.g., uptime/availability tiers, environmental and safety regulations, and data protection obligations) and that audit evidence comes from documented procedures and logs.
Traps: assuming a BMC on the production network is safe (it should be on a segregated management network); treating physical security as separate from logical security; and forgetting that compliance requires evidence, not just intent. Also watch for questions that confuse EPO with a normal shutdown.
Worked example / rule of thumb: before any work in a live electrical panel, apply lockout/tagout, verify de-energized, and wear appropriate PPE. Rule of thumb: if it is not documented and logged, it did not happen for audit purposes; and never disable a safety interlock to save time.