Archive for the ‘Solutions’ Category
« Older Entries

Server Virtualization Best Practices

Monday, November 22nd, 2010

With server virtualization now firmly embedded in the data center mainstream, a growing number of businesses are focusing on how to squeeze the greatest value out of their virtualized investments. Since server virtualization is based on the proposition that enhanced utilization will inevitably lead to improved efficiency, enhanced performance and lower costs, it’s only natural that virtualized server users will seek to reach a stage of optimal equilibrium. In a data center using virtualized servers, equilibrium is reached by hitting the sweet spot where systems run at maximum utilization levels without creating any instabilities or performance issues.

Here’s look at best practices followed by successful virtualized server adopters:

Do Your Homework. Performing some basic research, including initiating in-house discussions among stakeholders and approaching vendors for their suggestions, is a good way to guard against unexpected surprises. To keep your discussions on target, you should create a broad set of requirements that address short- and long-term goals.

Accept Reality. The projected consolidation rate affects just about every aspect of a virtualization project, including capacity, budget and executive buy-in. Unfortunately, when it comes to planning a virtualized server deployment, expectations have a nasty way of outdistancing reality. As they say in those diet commercials: “individual results may vary.” Try to be honest with your partners, and yourself, as you calculate your project’s estimated returns.

Remember, too, that even the most impartially developed consolidation estimates often fall short in the real world. So, no matter what your projection shows, don’t place more virtual machines onto your infrastructure than it safely can handle. A good rule of thumb is to add more infrastructure once server utilization hits 70 to 75 percent levels.

Temper Your Expectations. Too many CIOs and IT managers, even if they won’t admit it to themselves, view server virtualization as a gift from the blue that will turn their cash-strapped, barely functional data center into a streamlined powerhouse. While it’s true that reducing the number of physical servers needed to handle a given amount of work will help lower an array of data center expenses, server virtualization alone won’t fix fundamental data center deficiencies.

Don’t Forget the Support Resources.Virtualized servers still require real world support resources. High utilization levels leave almost no wiggle room for sub-par performance from power, cooling, networking and other vital services. Redundant resources and continuous service availability should be givens. If your current data center falls short in any of these areas, it’s time to make changes or find a new home.

Plan and Test. Don’t skimp on capacity planning and testing before rolling out virtual machines or assigning new applications to your virtual infrastructure. Thorough testing will also help your staff understand which virtual workloads are best suited to co-exist on a physical host.

Monitor and Record Everything. While businesses with non-virtualized servers can often sail through life using only rough estimates on server numbers and usage levels, the same attitude can lead to disaster in a virtualized data center. Virtual machines, by their sheer number, can lead to gross mis-estimations and confusion unless they are continuously monitored and recorded. You may also want to use a capacity analyzer to prevent virtual machine sprawl and to curb spending on licenses and support resources for unused machines.

Treat Your Mission Critical Applications With Respect. There’s a good reason why some applications are described as “mission critical”: it’s because your business can’t survive without them. Mission critical apps tend to consume the largest amounts bandwidth, memory, CPU cycles and storage, and will compete with other top apps for these core resources. While you may be able to get away with cramming dozens of lightly-utilized apps onto a single virtual machine, your most important and frequently accessed apps should be treated with more respect.

Don’t Forget the Human Factor. IT and data center staff members can provide valuable advice and insight on virtualization issues and challenges. Be sure to bring these people into your loop.

Keep Looking Forward. Advancements are still being made in server virtualization software and practices. Turn to thought leaders, including virtualized technology vendors, data center experts and staff members, to stay informed on new developments that can help you increase consolidation rates and get more value from your virtualized server environment.

Tags: ,
Posted in Info, News, Solutions | No Comments »

Tips to Improve Network Performance

Tuesday, November 16th, 2010

It’s no exaggeration to state that networks lie at the heart of every data center. Without fast, efficient and reliable network support, servers and storage systems become little more than expensive pieces of metal furniture. Obtaining the best possible network performance is an important first step toward ensuring overall data center excellence. But where to begin? Consider focusing on these vital areas:

Build a Solid Network Core.All types of networks, from WANs to SANs, depend on a solid network core. If the data center’s network core is inadequate, outdated, flawed or deficient in any significant way, network performance will suffer. As you begin working to enhance overall network performance, start at the network core.

Use Quality Hardware.The network hardware market has become increasingly commoditized over the past several years, with vendors and customers both seeking ever lower prices. Yet cutting corners too deeply can lead to serious equipment quality issues, resulting in sub-par network performance as well as high rates of equipment failure. The best approach is to make sure that you’re using “name brand” hardware, which over the long run is almost always a better value than “white box” equipment.

Opt for Fiber. Use fiber whenever and wherever possible for long-distance, high-demand applications. Fiber’s quality and performance benefits over copper cables, including lower attenuation rates and high interference resistance, are well known and documented. Whenever there’s a choice, opt for fiber.

Seek Network Diversity. Expecting a single network carrier to provide optimal service continuously and over every possible route is sort of like trying to fly around the world on a single airline—potentially convenient, yet realistically impossible. Network diversity, in the form of blended bandwidth, gives you multiple carrier and routing options that are critical for ensuring network performance excellence.

Monitor Performance. You can’t accurately judge network performance or quality without first gathering and analyzing relevant data. If don’t have the time, manpower or equipment to fully monitor network performance, it makes sense to get a qualified outsider to do the job. In fact, if you aren’t positioned to handle monitoring on your own, you’re probably failing in other network areas as well. If this situation describes your data center, consider using in a capable provider to manage your network services.

Don’t Forget the Apps. Most network data traffic originates and terminates at an application. Having apps that use data efficiently is an important yet often overlooked key to optimal network performance. Vendor-supplied configuration settings, for instance, may not match your particular needs. Check your apps’ network settings today and make whatever adjustments are necessary.

Embrace the New. It’s easy to fall into a rut and rely on the same network technologies and practices year after year. Businesses tend to get into this position by exercising excessive caution. While it’s difficult to abandon a functional network strategy in favor of something that may, at least at first glance, seem somewhat strange and risky, failing to innovate means that your organization may be failing to embrace performance enhancing and cost cutting new network approaches. Addressing this situation leads us to our next point…

Create a Test Bed. In a world of rapidly expanding and evolving network options,  accepting or rejecting new technologies without on-site testing reduces a key part of network planning to the level of throwing darts at a dartboard. Dedicating just a single server to testing new or enhanced network approaches will let you create accurate real world performance forecasts at a relatively modest cost.

Learn From Others. While imitation is the sincerest form of flattery, it can also be a great learning tool. Looking at how businesses similar to yours deploy and use their network services can help you improve your organization’s network performance. On the flip side, studying businesses that have experienced major network meltdowns can provide object lessons in how not to manage network operations.

Tags: , ,
Posted in Info, News, Solutions | No Comments »

How to Tell If Your Data Center Is Losing Momentum

Monday, November 8th, 2010

Every business wants to have the best possible data center. Yet perfection, and even “really good performance levels,” are elusive goals. Furthermore, many organizations that do manage to reach a state of data center nirvana eventually discover that they’re unable to stay atop the pinnacle for very long.

Pushing a data center to new heights, achieving increasingly higher performance and efficiency levels, requires both hard work and constant vigilance. Fortunately, data centers don’t usually slide off the peak overnight. Subtle warning signs indicating that dry rot is beginning to set in can often be detected weeks, even months before the damage becomes obvious (such as when overburdened systems lead to costly errors or missed project deadlines).

As you strive to keep your data center up to speed and on track, here are five warning signs that indicate the wheels may actually be starting to spin off your operation.

1.  Complacency. When data center management and staff feels that things are rolling along “well enough,” there’s a good chance they really aren’t. To maintain operations at optimal levels, data center administrators should always be looking to improve services, systems and business practices. Like a shark, the only way a data center can survive and thrive is by continually moving forward.

2.  A Lack of Innovation.Trends like virtualization and cloud computing are sweeping across the IT landscape. But if your data center hasn’t even started evaluating these important new technologies, or has reflexively rejected them, it’s time to take a closer look. While you certainly don’t want to leap onto every emerging trend or fad, failing to take advantage of important new tools and practices is bound to lead to data center stagnation and, inevitably, backsliding. Promising new approaches need to be fully evaluated and tested. Technologies that are deemed premature for immediate adoption should be placed on a schedule for future consideration.

3.  Poor Data Center Planning.Data centers are usually designed to scale to an organization’s anticipated requirements over several or more years. Yet even the most carefully considered projections often fail to match long-term reality, falling victim to unexpected new technologies and practices. After all, how many data center planners in the 1980s or early 1990s anticipated advancements like cloud computing or virtualization? Back then, it was easy to find experts who viewed the Internet as an unimportant technology with relatively little commercial potential. Today, with a growing number of former data center-based services now heading directly into offices and onto the factory floor, it’s important to view the data center in a new light. Fresh approaches, like modular data centers based on a service-oriented model and data centers in multi-tenant facilities, with fast, easy access to enhanced network services and other essential resources, help businesses improve IT performance, scalability and flexibility while lowering costs.

4.  Failing to Automate. Inefficient data centers waste staff time on routine tasks that could be easily and cheaply automated. Automation and remote monitoring and management are now accepted IT practices. Besides allowing staff members to focus their efforts on business-critical work, automation and remote management services let businesses explore the possibility of creating data centers positioned at less costly and more efficient sites and to develop remote backup facilities that require only minimal human supervision.

5.  Inadequate Strategic Analysis. If it’s been years since your company’s management has taken a serious look at its data center strategy, including the role IT plays in both supporting business operations and creating new revenue opportunities, it’s time for a fresh start. IT leaders need to interact with other company managers and officers to alert them to future needs and opportunities. Most successful business have standing IT strategy committees or hold planning sessions at least once a year.

Tags:
Posted in Info, News, Solutions | No Comments »

Cloud Computing: What Does and Doesn’t Fit

Monday, November 8th, 2010

Running applications in the cloud can save your business both time and money, but only if you know what you’re doing. The truth is, not all business applications are equally suited for use in a cloud environment. That’s because the cloud works better with some types of applications—such as virtualized apps—than others.

Confused? Don’t know what to do? Don’t worry. Here’s a quick look at today’s leading application families and how well they fit into a cloud environment.

Virtualized Applications. Excellent fit.The cloud not only likes virtualized apps, it thrives on them. The best way of ensuring cloud success is to only use applications that have been optimized in terms of CPU, storage, interface and network performance. In fact, it’s best to conduct a data center-wide virtualization effort before even considering a move into cloud computing.

Database Intensive Applications. Good fit (But be careful.) Databases and cloud computing are compatible, but in some situations the two technologies don’t play well together. The cloud is highly suitable for storing large volumes of unstructured data and archival material, such as credit card and mortgage applications medical records and general file archiving.

On the other hand, high velocity database applications, running hundreds of thousands of transactions per minute—as database apps run by banks, retailers and other businesses often do—can struggle within the cloud. Such applications are governed by hardware limitations that exist inside all IT environments, so there’s often little or no benefit to sending them into the cloud. Check with your provider to see if your database application can thrive in the cloud.

Disaster Recovery Applications. Excellent fit. Cloud computing provides an ideal data recovery platform. Information stored safely in the cloud can be accessed anytime, anywhere. If a fire, flood or any other calamity strikes your business site—or even your entire community or state—your data will always be safe, undamaged and ready to use the instant you’re ready to restart operations.

Disaster recovery/business continuity experts have always advised businesses to regularly store a set of data backups at at least one remote location. Cloud storage takes this practice one step further by eliminating the need to find and pay for a secure storage facility while removing the cost and trouble of physically transporting backup media to the remote site. Cloud storage also allows data to be backed up continuously rather than periodically, greatly lessening the chance that any critical data will be lost forever.

Regulated Industry Applications. Good fit. (But be careful.)Businesses in tightly regulated fields, such as finance and healthcare, are increasingly using cloud technology to satisfy mandated data storage and data integrity requirements. Yet using the cloud to meet regulatory mandates requires using a provider that’s mindful of its customers’ demanding compliance needs. Not all cloud providers are able to meet industry-specific requirements, so you’ll need to discover how a provider will address your particular needs and responsibilities before committing to a service relationship.

Network Intensive Applications. Good fit. (But be careful.) You’ll need access to the fastest and highest quality network resources when moving a network-intensive application—one that frequently sends large amounts of data to or from other apps or services—to the cloud. Play close attention to network attributes such as capacity, latency, redundancy and routing flexibility when investigating a cloud services provider.

Bottom line. Cloud computing is arguably the most powerful and useful IT technology to arrive within the past decade. Cloud computing’s potential to help your businesses achieve new levels of cost and process efficiencies is virtually unmatched. What’s left for you to do is to use cloud computing in the areas where it’s most effective and while steering away from potential roadblocks.

Tags: , ,
Posted in Info, News, Solutions | No Comments »

Making it Modular

Monday, November 8th, 2010

You’ve probably heard by now how a modular data center can provide a fast, flexible, reliable, cost effective and energy efficient way of deploying an always-on IT and network facility.

Modular data centers are gaining popularity because they can help any business gain more compute and network capacity without having to build or expand a traditional data center. You can put a modular data center almost anywhere, such as next to your headquarters building, on a spare piece of land, on a company parking lot or inside a warehouse. The costs are low and the benefits are high.

For the money, a modular data center lets you pack a lot of computing power into an often surprisingly small space. But what you may not have heard is how there are two basic ways of creating a modular data center, one of which provides many more benefits than the other.

Compare these two approaches:

Approach A

This is the original way of deploying a modular data center. You go to a provider—typically a major IT systems vendor—that offers a pre-built structure that’s fitted out with racks and a central aisle for servicing. Two or more of these structures can be “snapped” together to provide as much capacity as you require.  The power and cooling units are also modular and attach directly to the structure (often to its roof).

With this approach, the modular solution is really little more than a piece of hardware supplied by the vendor. As the owner, you’ll be expected to handle all of the necessary ownership obligations, such as arranging financing and figuring out depreciation. You’ll also be responsible for the modular facility’s placement, maintenance and management. In other words, you’re more or less on your own.

Suddenly, the benefits associated with having a modular data center don’t seem quite as compelling.

Approach B

A better, more modern and efficient approach to modular data center deployment is to turn to a provider with multiple years of experience supplying data center services to enterprises of all types and sizes. By licensing your modular data center as a service, you can take advantage of all of the concept’s benefits—such as fast, convenient and strategic deployment, easy scalability and integrated power, cooling and network systems—while effectively shedding upfront acquisition costs in return for a pay-as-you-go service. You’ll also be able to shift data center management responsibilities to the provider while you focus on business operations.

Unlike a hardware or software vendor that suddenly decides to get into the data center business, a service provider understands that customer support doesn’t end on the day the modular facility is delivered. By partnering with a skilled and dedicated data center specialist, you’ll always get the support you need when you need it.

Unfortunately, most data center providers haven’t yet fully embraced the modular concept; many industry players even view the trend as a direct threat to their core business model. So when looking for a modular data center service provider, make sure that the company offers a custom, integrated, modular structure that can be scaled to almost any capacity. Also check to see that vital support resources such as power, cooling and networking are integrated into the structure and not supplied as afterthoughts. The modular unit should also be able to accommodate any IT infrastructure.

Next, check the provider’s commitment to long-term support. The critical infrastructure services required to operate an always-on data center—including primary and backup power generation, power conditioning, cooling and network connectivity—should all be supplied by the provider. Finally, be sure that the modular offering is supported by a service level agreement (SLA) that guarantees 100 percent uptime.

Bottom Line

Along with virtualization and cloud computing, the modular data center model is a top-three data center trend. In fact, it’s generally believed that the modular concept represents the future of all data centers.

If you haven’t already started about thinking about deploying a modular data center, there’s a good chance you may find yourself doing so sometime in the future. When that day arrives, be sure you follow the right approach.

The following pages are related to Modular Data Centers which may help you learn more

Modular Data Center Services
Modular Data Center Platform
i/o Anywhere video

Tags: ,
Posted in Info, News, Solutions | No Comments »

Transitioning To a Virtual Data Center

Monday, November 8th, 2010

The data center is dead! Long live the data center!

A major benefit of virtual machines and cloud computing is that businesses no longer have to fret about where their servers are located. Your organization can be based in Arizona, New York, the U.K. or even Antarctica and have the same level of server access and availability as a company that has a traditional data center sitting in its basement.

Yet even virtualized servers accessed via the cloud still have to exist somewhere in the physical world—and that “somewhere” is almost always a data center. Sound confusing? It’s not. While virtualization and cloud computing may be killing the data center as we’ve all come to know and love it over the past couple of decades, it’s also giving birth to a new type of data center, a virtual facility that efficiently serves multiple customers located just about anywhere.

Virtual data centers take nearly all of the work of out designing, equipping and managing a data center. All that’s left for you to do is contact the provider and order a specific amount on processing, memory and network bandwidth resources.

Considering the convenience and cost savings a virtual data center creates, it’s no surprise that providers are now popping up all over the place. Finding the right provider for your business, however, requires both careful research and some introspection.

Since a virtual data center can exist almost anywhere, location usually isn’t an important decision factor when choosing a provider. And price can’t be the sole determining factor, since it’s very easy for a provider to drive down costs simply by supplying inferior service. Actually, the only way of ensuring that a virtual data center will perform better than an on site facility, at an equal or lower cost, is by verifying all of the critical details beforehand.

Here’s what you need to understand and look for:

Scalability. Using a virtual data center is all about scalability—being able to dial resources up and down in synchronization with business needs. A good provider will let you buy service in small chunks at reasonable price points. While larger customers that order more resources typically receive quantity discounts, the provider shouldn’t hit you with special fees when you need to occasionally raise or lower a service setting.

Availability.You undoubtedly want your virtual data center to be available on a 24×7 basis. A good sign that a provider is committed to consistent availability is the use of industry-leading, “name brand” products, including servers, storage systems, network equipment and virtualization software. Also check to see if the provider is using state-of-the-art and redundant power, cooling and backup technologies. Finally, don’t settle for anything less than a 100 percent service level agreement (SLA).

Flexibility. Is the provider willing to work with you to meet your specific needs, or does the company simply offer a menu of “take-it-or-leave-it” package deals? An unwillingness to accommodate your requirements and preferences is a sign that the provider is putting profit before service.

Network. A virtual data center’s value hinges on the quality of its network service. Expect the provider to offer carrier-neutral access to a wide selection of networks. Remember, however, that network support is more than a simple numbers game. Make sure that the provider has made arrangements with an array of tier-one carriers, the ones you are most likely to use.

Support. Who will you go to when you have a problem with your virtual data center? What types of support are available? What’s free and what costs extra? You’ll want to know the answers to these questions before you sign the deal.

Security. How will your data be protected in both the virtual and physical worlds?  Make sure that the provider takes security as seriously as you do. Ask the company to describe the exact measures it uses to protect your data.

Commitment. Consider the provider’s overall commitment to service and stability. Any hot new technology—and virtual data centers are certainly hot—attracts its share of quick buck operators. Before aligning with any particular provider, examine the company’s track record, physical infrastructure and client list. Major deficiencies in any other these areas should raise a giant red flag and motivate you to look elsewhere.

Tags: , ,
Posted in Info, News, Solutions | No Comments »

The Data Center and the Data Warehouse

Monday, November 8th, 2010

A growing number of businesses are creating data warehouses—or expanding existing data warehousing deployments—to gain a variety of benefits, including data mining, data visualization, online analytical processing (OLAP) and improved decision support capabilities.

A successful data warehouse’s foundation resides on performance, availability, scalability, communications and cost. Deficiencies in any of these areas can undermine a data warehouse’s power, usefulness and overall value.

Performance. Exploding information growth threatens to overwhelm data warehouses as well as their operators and end users. The amount of information stored inside a data warehouse spirals upward as content accumulates over time. Meanwhile, as more enterprise processes are instrumented and recorded, enterprises face a growing avalanche of data that must be organized and analyzed for possible future use. To keep pace with growing performance demands, your data warehouse must be located inside a data center that’s easily scalable and provides a full array of support resources.

Availability.Many data warehouses are at risk of becoming victims of their own success. As more departments and business partners learn how to use the technology, a flood of new requesters and sources can slow performance to a crawl. Data warehouse operators need to be able to maintain access and stability in the face of growing system loads without sacrificing either speed or security.

Data center infrastructure plays a major role in data warehouse availability. A data center containing redundant power, cooling, networking and other vital resources ensures that data warehouse information and insight will be available to users whenever and wherever they need it.

Scalability.With data warehouse capacities skyrocketing, access to easy, pain-free scalability is essential. The key requirement for scalability is that the data warehouse must be able to support larger volumes of data and more users by adding additional hardware—without degrading performance. Server and storage virtualization can help you accommodate data warehouse growth without breaking your budget. Having the ability to quickly add floor and rack space as soon as the need arises is another plus. If your current data center can’t fully support rapid growth, you need to move into a facility that’s more scalability oriented.

Communications. With data warehouse end users—including employees, customers and suppliers—scattered all over the place, connecting your system to a high-quality network is essential. End users expect nothing less than fast and reliable performance, which means using the best and shortest network path. A blended bandwidth service, which optimizes network routing by utilizing paths supplied by several different carriers, is the ultimate way of ensuring optimal data warehouse connectivity.

Cost.As data warehouse technology continues its relentless push into the business mainstream, development and deployment costs are falling rapidly. The increasing commoditization of data warehousing tools, meanwhile, means that the custom-designed data warehouse is quickly fading into history.

Today, a growing number of enterprises are turning to warehouse appliances and industry-specific data models that allow a data warehouse to be created in days or hours rather than weeks or months, usually with less effort and at a lower cost. Supporting these tools requires a data center that accommodates virtualization, cloud computing and other advanced cost cutting and time saving technologies.

Another way of pushing down data warehousing expenses is to base operations inside a multi-tenant facility that enables users to share the costs associated with building, operating and maintaining expensive power, cooling, networking, security and other essential technologies and services.

Bottom line. A data warehouse helps your business fully exploit the value contained inside all of its accumulated information. Don’t let an underpowered or outdated data center get in the way of driving your data warehouse to its maximum potential.

Tags: ,
Posted in Info, Solutions | No Comments »

The Heart of Cloud Computing: Networks

Wednesday, October 6th, 2010

The National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) defines cloud computing as “a model for enabling convenient, on-demand network access to a shared pool of configurable computing resources (e.g., networks, servers, storage, applications and services) that can be rapidly provisioned and released with minimal management effort or service provider interaction.”

Notice the word “network” at the heart of NIST’s cloud definition. It’s important, because when you cut through the smoke and fog, cloud computing is all about network availability, security, performance and accessibility.

Here’s what you should know:

Availability. Without networking, cloud services can’t be made available to end users. Yet from an end-user perspective, the cause of application non-availability or sub-par performance is indistinguishable regardless of where the problem actually exists in the application delivery chain. While the difficulty may lie in the cloud, at the provider’s data center or in the end user’s client, the network presents the most opportunities for problems due to its scope and complexity. That’s why it’s important to have the greatest number of carrier and routing options at your disposal.

Security. Accessing public cloud services creates a stress point between performance and security. Not all cloud computing providers support encrypted tunnels, so your business-critical data may be sent in the open on the Internet where it can be viewed by almost anyone. Where encryption is available, using it will undoubtedly increase delay and may harm performance. The only bulletproof way of cutting delay without compromising security is by minimizing transit hops, which is another reason why you want to have access to multiple carriers and routes.

Performance. Reaching a particular cloud computing service may involve moving information over several different networks. Having multiple carriers at your disposal will enable you to complete the path using smallest number of hops.

Geographic location can exert a significant impact on cloud application performance. In most situations, the farther away the end-user is from the application, the longer the response time. Circuitous routing can actually add extra distance between users and applications. To fix routing problems before they can hurt your business applications, consider a blended bandwidth service that automatically provides the optimal network path.

Accessibility. Another important network consideration is private cloud access. Gartner predicts it will soon become the norm for large companies to have their own highly automated private cloud networks in which all resources can be managed from a single point and assigned to applications or services as needed. Businesses typically reach into their own private clouds with the same technology they use to access to their data centers, such as an Internet VPN. Therefore, a fast, reliable connection is essential.

Private intra-cloud networking is often conducted over a point-to-point connection between data center sites, so it’s important that these links have enough capacity to ensure minimal network delays regardless of where in the private cloud a given application is run. In many respects, a business’ ability to tap into a comprehensive and efficient private cloud hinges on the quality of the network connections between the data centers that comprise the cloud. A data transport network service using dark fiber and Dense Wave Division Multiplexing (DWDM) technology to ensure fault tolerant connectivity between data centers provides an ideal solution.

Final Point. There’s no question that network availability, security, performance and accessibility are essential to business-quality cloud computing. That’s why it’s important to take the time to create a strong, flexible and scalable network base that will meet your business’ cloud application needs today and for many years to come. You won’t regret the effort.

Tags: , ,
Posted in Info, Solutions | No Comments »

Visiting the Physical Layer

Monday, September 27th, 2010

Networking is all about moving data quickly, safely and efficiently. But in a world that’s focused on data structure, compression algorithms and other higher concepts, it’s easy to forget that data also requires a physical level. In everyday life, data needs to ride on a reliable transmission medium, such as a wire, cable, optical fiber or wireless link.

Inside and beyond the data center, the network physical layer forms the basic hardware transmission infrastructure, including the medium itself. The physical layer creates a working foundation for the network’s logical data structures and higher level functions.

When looking for a new data center location, it’s essential to ensure that the facility will be able to access, leverage and manage a full array of physical network resources. Here are the key points you should look for:

Location. We’re all familiar with the real estate mantra: location, location, location. Well, the same basic idea applies to data centers. To provide the widest possible selection of carrier and network service choices, a data center must be situated in a place where networks from multiple carriers converge. This is one reason why rural data centers, for all of their cost and space benefits, often present serious network connectivity challenges. Having your data center positioned at a network nexus also eliminates the need to insert a local loop or third party between your data center equipment and your preferred carrier.

Routing. The cardinal rule of networking is that performance hinges on using the shortest and highest quality routes. Every carrier has an occasional bad day, so it’s important that your data center can spot service outages and deficiencies as soon as they appear and then has the ability to quickly and seamlessly switch between different carriers and routes.

Like a major airport, a very large scale data center serves as a traffic aggregation point. The value of an O’Hare, LAX or JFK is not just that it has flights, but that it has efficient connections to international, national and local carriers that can take you to any point in the world.

Pathways. Long-haul networking lures people into thinking in abstractions, visualizing network pathways in terms of straight lines drawn on a map. Yet real world network paths are rarely built in direct lines over level ground. Mile after mile, the network medium must accommodate the natural terrain, going over or through mountains, across rivers and around various other natural and manmade obstacles.

Carriers route their media in various ways, such as by following existing highways or rail lines, hitching a ride alongside oil or gas pipelines or via purpose-built conduits. While there are plusses and minuses to each approach, the important thing is that your data center has access to multiple pathways. This way, if something like a gas leak or train derailment knocks out a key route, an alternative path is immediately available to take its place.

Resiliency. Network backbones are vulnerable to an almost endless series of threats, including cable cuts, flooding, equipment failure, software glitches and human errors. While carriers strive to make their networks as reliable as possible, there’s always the chance that a connection could go dark at any moment. This is perhaps the most important reason why you need a data center with as many carrier and routing options as possible.

Blended Bandwidth. While having multiple carrier and routing options is essential, so is the ability to leverage this powerful resource pool. Multi-homed blended bandwidth optimizes transit paths efficiently and transparently, enabling network services to function reliably and responsively. Blended bandwidth is the key to network resource management and sustained performance.

Tags: ,
Posted in Info, Solutions | No Comments »

Finding the Right Cloud Storage Solution

Monday, September 13th, 2010

With all sorts of business applications and services heading into the cloud, a growing number of IT managers are considering cloud storage as a way of expanding their storage capabilities without the expense and trouble of acquiring additional storage hardware.

Cloud storage—also known as virtual storage—provides an extensive array of potential benefits. Besides relieving businesses of the upfront costs associated with acquiring hard drives, storage area network (SAN) components and related technologies, cloud storage can deliver fast and painless storage scalability, easier data synchronization and an end to maintenance headaches.

With demand rising, the number of cloud storage providers is expanding almost exponentially. With so many companies pouring into the market, there’s now a great deal of confusion surrounding cloud storage services and practices, which can make it difficult to find a service that’s reliable, safe and affordable. Here’s what you need to look for:

Storage Approach. The public Internet is useful for many things, but data storage isn’t one of them. Even if you use both encryption and secure connections, you can’t tell where your data will eventually end up. Uncertainty isn’t a good data storage characteristic. The better, safer approach is to use a private cloud service operated by a trusted provider that will store your data on its own reliable and secure systems. Storage capacity can be quickly and easily increased simply by requesting additional gigabytes.

Data. Cloud storage is most suitable for large volumes of unstructured data and archival material, such as credit card and mortgage applications or medical records. Data backups, file archiving and disaster recovery are three great cloud storage uses. Additionally, enterprises in tightly regulated fields like finance and healthcare can more easily meet mandated data storage requirements with redundant virtualized backups that are both secure and instantly available.

Bandwidth. For many adopters, cloud storage is as much a network activity as an IT operation. Cramped bandwidth will significantly impact the amount of time required to upload and download files, so be sure that your network service is up to the job. Better yet, consider collocating your servers—or moving your entire data center—to an off-site facility with its own private cloud environment.

Encryption. A big drawback to using a remote cloud storage service, rather than basing your servers on site, is the need to encrypt your data for network transfers. Cloud storage data and metadata, including files names and time stamps, should always be invisible when moving over a network connection.

Physical Security. Stolen or damaged storage devices can lead to lost and/or compromised files. To counter this threat you’ll want to use a provider that pays scrupulous attention to the physical security of its private cloud storage assets. Look for a provider that secures its premises—and your data—with advanced access controls, including guard-controlled gates, biometric screening, video surveillance, a trained security staff and other advanced technologies and practices.

Availability. Service availability becomes a major consideration when critical data is stored in the cloud. Not having continuous, immediate access to your cloud-stored data creates a giant business liability. To ensure constant, uninterrupted file access, look for a cloud storage provider that offers a 24×7xForever service guarantee.

Provider Stability. Finally, don’t forget to consider the possibility that your provider could someday go out of business, making your stored files along for the ride. Before committing to any cloud storage relationship, check into the provider’s financial condition and ask the company how it plans to protect your data in the event normal business operations are interrupted.

Tags: ,
Posted in Info, Solutions | No Comments »

« Older Entries