DEPLOYING FLASH IN THE ENTERPRISE

Flash technology is changing the way that enterprises approach storage. After years of use in the consumer market, flash has reached a price point and level of maturity at which it is being actively deployed to address the needs of business-critical applications. Hard disk drives (HDDs) have some nagging deficiencies that make provisioning storage for applications with high-performance demands difficult. Because HDDs are capable of performing no more than 300–400 random I/O operations per second (IOPS), a storage system capable of delivering tens of thousands of IOPS requires hundreds of disks—even when the capacity is not needed. Over provisioning disks to achieve performance goals is a significant capital expense and wastes rack space, power, and cooling. High-performance workloads increasingly require 100,000 IOPS or more, further exacerbating the problem. 

Flash is quickly emerging as the preferred way to overcome the nagging performance limitations of hard disk drives. However, because flash comes at a significant price premium, outright replacement of HDDs with flash only makes sense in situations in which capacity requirements are relatively small and performance requirements are high. Deployment approaches—including hybrid storage arrays, server flash, and all-flash arrays—that combine the performance of flash with the capacity of HDDs can be cost effective for a broad range of performance requirements. Some storage companies offers a full range of flash solutions, including server flash, hybrid storage arrays, and all-flash arrays. We’ve done a careful analysis of the cost of each solution at various combinations of performance and capacity to help you understand how to choose the best solutions to address your storage challenges based on your performance needs (IOPS and latency), capacity requirements, working set size (amount of hot data), budget, and data protection objectives.  

The fastest HDDs have access times of 3–4 milliseconds, resulting in latencies much slower than flash-based SSDs, which have latencies measured in microseconds and perform thousands of IOPS per device. HDDs alone may no longer meet the needs of latency-sensitive applications.  Because of clear performance advantages coupled with significantly lower power consumption, flash SSDs and other flash devices are beginning to take the place of high-performance HDDs. However, because SSDs currently cost more than 10 times as much per GB of usable storage, IT teams are still  searching for the best strategies to deploy flash technology to deliver performance where it’s needed while minimizing overall storage costs.

There are a number of options for deploying flash in the data center:

• Hybrid storage solutions combine the performance of flash with the capacity of HDD by targeting hot data to flash using either migration or caching.
• Server flash solutions may provide persistent solid state storage or cache data from HDD storage onto flash devices installed in servers, delivering extremely low latency for data accessed from cache.
• All-flash arrays provide maximum performance and a high level of consistency for business-critical applications.

WINDOWS XP AFTER APRIL,2014

April 9, 2014, is the real red-letter day in the history of Windows XP. On that day, any zero-day exploit released into the wild will run rampant on Windows XP systems while Microsoft watches and says "I told you so." When companies beg for a fix, Microsoft will hold one document in each hand: the life-cycle information for Windows XP with a Post-it note that says "You had four years to move to Windows 7," and a contract for custom support.

As Windows XP comes to the end of its life, applications in enterprise desktop and virtualization environments everywhere will feel the effects. Luckily, there are a couple things you can do if your applications depend on XP: You can use a very old Windows Server platform or jump on the virtualization bandwagon. Microsoft isn't the only company ditching XP. Not only can Microsoft wash its hands of Windows XP support, but so can all the companies that made software for XP.

Assuming those companies stopped actively developing for the OS years ago, they are likely still supporting the applications that run on it. After Windows XP end of life on April 8, 2014, they'll have no reason to continue. The implications of this reality run far and wide. Line-of-business software is surely affected, as are any of the random applications you are using. What really is cause for concern for desktop and virtualization administrators, though, is that security software vendors will likely stop patching, updating and supporting their software.

Why would companies such as McAfee, Symantec, Kaspersky or Trend Micro bother maintaining a product for an OS that is, for all intents and purposes, dead? Those applications might still run, and it could be that their definition files will be updated with the latest viruses for a time, but do you think those companies will pay attention to viruses targeted toward XP after it's gone? Probably not.

What about activation servers?

There is one other question that has yet to be answered, and that is in regards to Microsoft’s activation servers. What happens to the part of the system that activates Windows XP? Does it go offline? Is it somehow protected and only available to people that have paid for custom support? Existing machines will no doubt work just fine, but what about rebuilds or new machines?Of course, Microsoft could simply validate all existing keys and let anyone that wants to use XP use it. There’s no precedent for this because XP was the first Microsoft OS that required activation. We may just have to wait and see.The bottom line is that running Windows XP in your organization on anything other than a desktop with no network connection, floppy drive, USB ports, or CD drive is an outright liability, bordering on irresponsible. Yes, there are situations that will require it, but if you determine that your organization can't afford to get off Windows XP on the basis of cost alone, you are wrong.

Alternatives for application support

Windows Server 2003 R2 is essentially Windows XP Server, and while the Windows XP end of life date is April 8, 2014, the end of life for Server 2003 R2 comes 15 months after that: July 14, 2015. Since they are roughly the same OS, based on the same kernel, it's likely that anything you require XP for will work on Server 2003 R2 -- and that will buy you more than a year to figure things out.

There are two ways to keep apps running with this approach.

The first is to move those troublesome applications into the data center and use Remote Desktop Services (RDS) to deliver the application. This, of course, requires that the application is capable of running on a terminal server. In fact, this is also a viable means of preserving some of those oddball applications in your RDS environments.

If the application just won't work or has to run on its own system, you have the option of installing Server 2003 R2 on the physical computer. This solution is costly, because you need to purchase server licenses for each of these machines -- but it could cost significantly less than a Custom Support Agreement. Granted, it only buys you 15 months, but you can consider that to be additional motivation to switch platforms.

The bottom line is that you're running out of both time and options when it comes to removing Windows XP from your company.  If you feel more comfortable using physical desktops, go for it. Use VDI if you can (those extra management features will help in the long run); use application virtualization and user environment virtualization, too (it will make it easier to migrate OSes in the future). But, whatever you do, make sure the OS is gone by the time of Windows XP end of life next year.

ECONOMETRICS

Econometrics is nothing but application of mathematics, statistics, and computer science to economic data. By using the theory of Econometrics, CIOs can save costs to make a strong business case to gain management support for investments in innovation. Econometrics is the overarching business theme when an organization is trying to spur business transformation and turn the current datacenter into a next-generation information center. Convergence is the key accelerator of business velocity. Consolidation has given way to convergence to reduce opex.

Tough economic times require new perspectives and strategies for reducing the cost of infrastructure. The past several years   have left many IT organizations with over-provisioned and under-utilised IT capacity. Now, with a squeeze on capital and credit, many organizations are faced with diktats to do more with less. It is time for CIO's to understand, how they can save costs to make a strong business case to gain management support for both strategic and tactical investments.

Today, organizations should evaluate new technologies on the basis of how they can contribute to business performance. However, this is becoming increasingly difficult to do. The average IT expenditure to just keep the lights on was about 80 percent, with many of them spending over 90 percent, leaving no room for innovation. The biggest factors contributing to this is difficulty in convincing top management that a transformation project is required and that is difficult for the IT team to demonstrate the value that can be generated in terms of ROI.

One way out is applying the principles of Econometrics. Cloud computing, VM Sprawl, and capacity on-demand architectures sometimes call for a review of existing IT ecosystems especially storage. One of the first steps is to define and measure current costs. We cannot improve what we cannot measure.  This is the core of econometrics and key to providing continuous improvement of storage estate.

When seeking to control storage costs, an organization needs to determine which types of costs are most relevant to control and measure them. Reducing costs is often not simply a matter selecting products, but of designing a storage architecture that is more supportive of the organization's cost-reduction goals. Organization should use econometrics to follow the money spent on IT assets over their lifetimes, and map IT investments to business benefits and cost improvements.

VIRTUAL DESKTOP INFRASTRUCTURE (VDI)

Virtual Desktop Infrastructure or VDI is a computing model that adds layer of virtualization between the server and the desktop PCs. By installing this virtualization in place of a more traditional operating system, network administrators can provide end users with ‘access anywhere’ capabilities and a familiar desktop experience, while simultaneously heightening data security throughout the organization.

VDI Provides Greater Security, Seamless User Experience Superior Data security: Because VDI hosts the desktop image in the data center, organizations keep sensitive data safe in the corporate data center—not on the end-user’s machine which can be lost, stolen, or even destroyed. VDI effectively reduces the risks inherent in every aspect of the user environment. More productive end-users: With VDI, the end-user experience remains familiar. Their desktop looks just like their desktop and their thin client machine perform just like the desktop PC they’ve grown comfortable with and accustomed to. With virtual desktop infrastructure, there are no expensive training seminars to host and no increase in tech support issues or calls. End- user satisfaction is actually increased because they have greater control over the applications and settings that their work requires Desktops can be set up in minutes, not hours. Client PCs are more energy efficient and longer lasting than traditional desktop computers. IT costs are reduced due to a fewer tech support issues. Compatibility issues, especially with single-user software, are lessened. Data security is increased. A virtual desktop infrastructure (VDI) environment allows your company’s information technology pros to centrally manage thin client machines, leading to a mutually beneficial experience for both end-users and IT administrators. 

Adoption rates of desktop virtualization or VDI based BYOD deployments are on the rise thanks to the advantages that virtualization offers for more sophisticated use cases. The virtual deployment model centralize and simplify security and provide users with easier access to more applications, to more diverse end-points. However the virtual model also requires more infrastructures.

Pros and Cons of VDI

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Pros:

• ·         Less expensive than a desktop PC
• ·         Energy-efficient
• ·         Highly secure
• ·         Centralized management

Cons:

•    Expensive back end
•    Limited peripheral support
•    Higher level of IT skill needed to build and support back end
•    Additional licensing may be required 
•    Limited support for advanced multimedia

BIG DATA

Just like Cloud Computing, Social Media and BYOD. Big Data has fast emerged as one of the most popular IT terms of today. But does the expression (used to describe the explosion in the growth of data and its availability and usage) have any significance or is it just big hype? While critical data and information are getting generated at a mind-boggling pace in enterprises, it still cannot be dubbed as Big Data – massive volumes that are growing beyond the performance capacity of traditional database management systems and data warehouse. Some sectors not only generate humungous amounts of data but also need to run this data through analytics for continuous growth and performance. It is no longer a subject of debate that Big Data enables enterprises to become more productive. It helps corporate become smarter by exploiting data in a hitherto unavailable manner thereby presenting newer growth opportunities. At the same time, however, technology leaders in most sectors need to carefully evaluate whether their businesses actually demand Big Data solutions or not. They should cautiously assess vendors pushing Big Data solutions.

First Big Data solutions are expensive. Secondly, it impacts the traditional approaches to Enterprise Architecture (EA).While Big Data (both from a management and implementation perspective) could be a challenge. It is also an opportunity for technology leaders. Big Data demands new business models. Some define Big Data in terms of being larger than a certain number of terabytes. As technology advances overtime, the size of the datasets that qualify as Big Data will also increase. Also, the definition can vary by sector, depending on what kinds of software tools are commonly available and what size of datasets is common to particular industry.

Staffing could be one of the biggest challenges for big data deployments. For a large scale deployment, enterprises would need to invest into training the staff on Big Data technologies. Moreover, cultural mind mindsets need to change to allow use of open source technologies as many Big Data tools are open source.Big Data can turn into opportunity if handled well. The data can be segregated under three buckets:

Customer Centric – Required for customer services.

Business Data – Required for analytics, trend analysis and business forecast etc.

Legal Data – Managed for regulatory requirements.

Adoption of Big Data analytics will lead to faster rollout of many customer-facing services and by applying analytics one can really change the game in the market. Analytics plays a major role in making the business enlightened on the power of information that can be carved out of the Big Data mart.In the last 6-7 years, advancement in Big Data technologies has considerably improved analytics on extremely large datasets. Enterprises need to think how data in their company is getting created and how it is being stored. Storage tiering is required to get optimal level of performance before adopting Big Data analytics. The success rate of a Big Data deployment does not depend on the scale of deployment rather it is more to do with the alignment of IT and business. Value of Big Data deployment can be measured in terms of accuracy of analysis of data. IT can also be measured in terms of business efficiency improvement and insights that it offers.

ENTERPRISE MOBILITY MANAGEMENT OPTIONS

These days, most organizations are a mobile enterprise, whether their IT departments want them to be or not.

As end users rely more on tablets, smartphones and even their personal laptops, IT needs to keep up with the latest mobile computing definitions and trends. Devices, operating systems and apps evolve quickly, so IT pros in a mobile enterprise must stay on top of the latest software and strategies for managing, securing and taking advantage of new technologies.
Enterprise mobility

With enterprise mobility, end users aren't chained to their desks and PCs anymore. More employees do work outside the office with smartphones and tablets, sharing and accessing data via cloud services. Enterprise mobility can improve employee productivity but also create security risks

Mobile operating system
A mobile operating system is software that lets devices run apps, connect to cellular and wireless networks, and perform other tasks. Popular mobile OSes include Apple's iOS, Google's Android, Research In Motion's BlackBerry OS and Microsoft's Windows Phone.
Mobile browser

Smartphones and tablets have much smaller screens than desktops and laptops, so they run Web browsers that render websites for optimal viewing. Mobile browsers also utilize lightweight software to address mobile devices' memory and bandwidth limitations. Most browsers display the mobile versions of sites by default but can display regular HTML sites if mobile versions aren't available.

Mobile device fragmentation

When there are different versions of the same mobile operating system in current use, that's known as mobile device fragmentation. Android provides the best example of a fragmented operating system: Wireless carriers control the timing of OS updates to different devices, so there are often delays (deliberate or otherwise) in delivery. Some devices in a mobile enterprise may be on Android 4.1 Jelly Bean, while others may still run Android 2.3 Gingerbread, and there's nothing IT can do to standardize.

Mobile device management

Mobile device management (MDM) software lets IT deliver apps, data and configuration settings to smartphones and tablets. A mobile enterprise typically deploys MDM for security reasons; most commonly, MDM lets IT see what users are doing on their mobile devices, blacklist and whitelist apps and remotely wipe devices in case of loss or theft.

BYOD policy

A bring-your-own-device (BYOD) policy governs how employees may use their personal smartphones, tablets and computers at work -- and the extent to which corporate IT will support these devices. BYOD policies vary widely between organizations, because no two companies will have the same use cases, IT resources and security concerns. A BYOD policy will typically state who can do what with particular apps on certain devices.

Device-agnostic

Apps and websites that work with most operating systems and device types are device-agnostic, but the term also applies to any hardware or software that is compatible across different systems without special adaptations. App development has begun to lean toward device agnosticism to help IT departments avoid unmanageable support demands. When apps work across a broad range of devices, they're better for users and for IT.

Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP)

There is no business today, without an ERP application. Many companies now are shifting their focus on ERP, including Small and Medium Enterprises. An ERP software solution seeks to streamline and integrate operations, processes and information flows in an enterprise, to synergize the resources of an organization namely men, material, money and machine. In other words, ERP systems integrate all data and processes of an organization into a unified system. A typical ERP will use multiple components of computer software and hardware to achieve the integration. A key ingredient of most ERP systems is the use of a unified database to store data for the various system modules.

Most organizations across the world have realized that in a rapidly changing business environment, it is impossible to create and maintain a custom designed software package which will cater to all their requirements and also be up-to-date. Realizing these requirements of organizations, companies have designed and developed ERP software, which offer an integrated software solution to all the functional processes in an organization.

Although, in the initial stage ERP originated in the manufacturing environment, now ERP software solutions typically cover all basic business process/functions of any organization, regardless of the organization's business or charter. A typical ERP module include: Manufacturing, Supply Chain, Financials, Customer Relationship Management (CRM), Human Resources, Warehouse Management and Decision Support System. These solutions are often incorrectly quoted as back office solutions indicating that customers and the general public are not directly involved. This is contrasted with front office systems like Customer Relationship Management (CRM) systems that directly deal with customers, or ebusiness systems such as eCommerce, eGovernment, eTelecom, and eFinance, or Supplier Relationship Management (SRM) systems. In reality, ERP modules are cross-functional and enterprise wide software solutions. All functional departments that are involved in operations or production can be integrated in one system using it. In addition to manufacturing, warehousing, logistics, and Information Technology, it also includes; accounting, human resources, marketing, and strategic management.

There are many different flavours of ERP that serve businesses' varying procedure types. An ERP solution has numerous benefits depending on the type of business that it serves; these are business solutions and industry solutions. The industry solutions are designed for people who are working in specific industries, like finance, communications, education, healthcare to name a few.

Importance of ERP software for businesses:

ERP software business solutions are designed for companies that work in a wide variety of areas. IT combines a large number of different elements into a single unit. Three of the most important ERP tools available today are manufacturing, human resources, and finance.The finance tools allow companies to successfully maintain their financial information like that of the assets, accounts, budgets and cash. ERP can also assist a company in managing internal as well as external factors affecting it. A company that uses ERP financial products can save a great deal of money over the long term, the reason being, the productivity of the organization will be improved. Enterprise Resource Planning is instrumental in getting rid of time consuming activities as paper management. A company is able to study their processes, earnings, and performance by merging their operational information with their financial information. Once this information is connected together, a company can become more competitive and productive. Synergy is an important part of ERP solutions. The concept of combining multiple processes into a single whole will allow the company to become successful in the long term.

In addition to finance and business processes, it is also important to look at materials maintenance. Enterprise Resource Planning will allow a company to successfully automate the process of buying materials and maintaining them. There are modules that track the supplies that are purchased and can also make calculations about how these materials should be distributed. It also becomes possible for a company to predict the demand of the market based on history, economic statistics, and data from their employees. They can even decide when a product should be produced, and they can do this based on the raw material that is available.