As COVID-19 spreads and wreaks havoc on our way of life, more and more people are staying home. That’s in part because companies like Apple, Google, and Microsoft are taking leadership roles. First, the companies asked employees to work remotely. Then, Apple and Microsoft closed up retail stores. Other companies have followed suit. However, a side effect has started rearings its ugly head: the services we rely on can’t handle the load of everyone who is home.
It started with Xbox Live, a service that provides online multiplayer access. The service went down, and players were unable to sign into their accounts or start online matches. Around the time that Xbox Live came back online, Teams went down. On pretty much the first day of Europe working from home, Teams went down for hours.