How to Clean Up Your IT Infrastructure in 2026

Quick summary for busy teams:

• Cleaning up IT this year means fewer systems, fewer risks, clearer ownership and predictable costs.

• Start with identity, devices, email and backups, then move line‑of‑business apps into safer patterns such as virtual desktops or SaaS.

• Track simple metrics such as incident volume, patch compliance and backup restore time to prove progress.

What Does “Cleaning Up IT Infrastructure” Mean in 2026?

It means untangling years of add‑ons, quick fixes and forgotten tools. Most small and mid‑sized companies now carry a mix of on‑site servers, cloud apps, personal devices and old file shares. Accounts linger after staff leave. Licences overlap. Backups exist but no one has tested a restore in months. Cleaning up is a structured effort to reduce this sprawl, close gaps and make day‑to‑day work calmer and safer.

In 2026 the clean‑up focus sits in four places: identity, devices, data and access. Get those right and everything else becomes easier to manage.

Why Should Your Business Prioritise an IT Clean‑Up This Year?

Three reasons stand out. First, risk has shifted from hardware failure to account compromise. Threat actors target email, identity stores and file sharing. Second, remote and hybrid work mean more sign‑ins from more locations, which raises the impact of weak controls. Third, costs rise when you run duplicate tools or keep buying hardware to prop up old systems. A clean‑up reduces incidents, cuts wasted spend and makes future projects less painful.

How Do You Audit Your IT Without Technical Jargon?

Think people, devices, apps, data, access and cost.

Start with a single list of users and roles. Match each person to a device, a mailbox and the apps they need. Note anything unmanaged or unknown. List storage locations for working files and archives. Record who has admin rights and where multi‑factor authentication is missing. Pull current licence counts and support contracts. This gives you a plain view of what exists, who owns it and what you pay for it.

Keep the language simple. If a control or system does not help staff do their job or keep data safe, it belongs on the cut list.

What Should You Fix First?

Tackle the highest‑reward items that do not require a platform change. The table below helps you pick early wins.

Priority area	What to do first	Why it matters	Typical effort
Identity	Turn on multi‑factor authentication for all accounts. Remove unused accounts.	Most breaches start with a stolen password. MFA and hygiene block this.	Low
Devices	Enrol laptops and mobiles into device management. Apply monthly updates.	Unpatched devices are an easy path in.	Low to medium
Email	Enable phishing protection, safe links and attachment scanning.	Email is the main entry point for attacks.	Low
Files and backup	Pick one primary location for files. Add cloud‑to‑cloud backup. Test a restore.	Sync is not backup. You need both.	Low
Admin access	Separate admin accounts from day‑to‑day accounts. Log admin activity.	Reduces blast radius if an account is compromised.	Low

How Do You Standardise Identity, Devices and Access?

Adopt an identity‑first model. Use Microsoft Entra ID or Google Workspace as the single source of truth for user accounts. Connect your main apps to this directory with single sign‑on so you can add and remove access from one place. Apply conditional access rules so risky sign‑ins face stronger checks. On devices, use a management tool such as Microsoft Intune to push updates, settings and required software. This replaces ad‑hoc fixes with repeatable policy.

Standardising here does not mean less flexibility for staff. It means the same sign‑in, the same desktop policies and the same update rhythm for everyone.

How Do You Fix Files, Email and Backups Without Disruption?

Pick one home for working files. If you use Microsoft 365, use SharePoint and OneDrive. If you use Google Workspace, use Drive with shared drives. Archive old folders instead of dragging them around forever. For email, apply modern authentication, phish filtering and strict forwarding rules. Treat backups as a separate system. Back up mailboxes, SharePoint or Drive, and any key SaaS apps. Run a test restore every quarter and record the time it took. This single exercise turns theory into evidence.

Which Workloads Belong on Virtual Desktops or SaaS?

Some apps expect a Windows desktop close to a database or dongle. Pushing those across flaky office internet is painful. Virtual desktops place the desktop next to the app in a managed environment, then stream the screen to the user. Staff get the same setup from any device, and data stays inside the environment. For web‑friendly tools, consider true SaaS. Both patterns reduce the need for on‑site servers and late‑night patching.

How Do You Build a 12‑Month Clean‑Up Plan That Sticks?

Break it into quarters.

Quarter one focuses on identity, MFA, device enrolment and email protection.

Quarter two moves files into a single home and adds backup with a test restore.

Quarter three addresses admin separation, logging and decommissioning of old servers or shares.

Quarter four tidies licences, moves legacy apps into virtual desktops or SaaS, and documents steady‑state operations. Share a one‑page plan with owners, dates and success measures so everyone knows the path.

What Metrics Prove Your Clean‑Up Worked?

Pick a small set that anyone can read.

Track the number of security incidents per month, mean time to resolve tickets, patch compliance percentage for laptops, phishing click rate from staff tests, backup restore time, cost per user for licences and support, and the average age of devices. When these numbers move in the right direction, staff notice smoother work and leaders see value.