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I ran into another strange doesn't-work-at-this-time issue at my first job, network/systems admin in the early 00s. We had a point to point microwave link that

I ran into another strange doesn't-work-at-this-time issue at my first job, network/systems admin in the early 00s. We had a point to point microwave link that would go down at about 4:30pm every day. It was really bizarre; this was on kit on the roofs of two hospitals, and a pain to physically access. We spent quite a bit of time chasing down various options for it to be a software issue. Someone went and checked the kit and visually saw that we had clean line-of-sight for the link. It kept happening. Eventually, a colleague went out while it was down. It turned out that there was a crane on a building site, and when they parked it stationary it blocked line of sight.

buckminster 7y ago
A friend's company routed a microwave link through an open plan office in a taller building. It worked fine until the third party remodelled their office.
mark-r 7y ago
I once worked with a guy who had been a computer tech early in his career. He told a story of moving a computer on a military base up one floor. After the move, the tape drive stopped working - it would glitch every few seconds. He tried everything he could to diagnose the problem. Then one moment while deep in thought he wandered over to the nearest window, where he saw a radar antenna sweep around. Sure enough, the glitches were occurring when the antenna was pointed his direction. The location on the lower floor didn't have direct line-of-sight to the antenna.