Data Centre Refresh: the Dos and Don'ts

Datacentre and Infrastructure Refreshes are a vital part of any organisation’s IT strategy. Historically, this has always involved detailed conversations about power, cooling, rack space CPUs, RAM, etc., which effectively turn into computing and technical shopping lists.  This blog will explain why the first thing you SHOULD be considering is what your business really needs – be that on-premise finetuning or modernising with Oracle Cloud – and how Cloud consultants like DSP-Explorer can help.

According to a recent report by Spiceworks.com, the need to upgrade outdated IT infrastructure remains the top factor leading businesses to increase their IT budgets.

Figure 1  https://www.spiceworks.com/marketing/state-of-it/report/

Huge advances in the technical specifications of servers today, as well as the ability to run these applications in highly scalable, resilient and secure cloud environments, gives organisations a multitude of choice to ultimately improve application performance and reduce cost.

Regardless of whether your business wishes to remain on-premise for the foreseeable future, sits in a partner Datacentre, or is willing and ready to adopt a Cloud-first strategy, it is vital that the organisation takes a step back from simple number crunching and hardware specifications to really evaluate what the business needs from critical Line of Business (LoB) applications.

There are several fundamental steps your business should take when evaluating your options and as a leading Managed Service Provider, DSP can help you every step of the way.  Don’t wait until the last minute - planning should be done well in advance of your end of life support notification, datacentre renewal date, or your next server outage due to old antiquated hardware.

Here are some of the key activities your business should be considering when defining your new landscape:   mmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm mmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm

• Benchmark performance and understand your business and technical requirements.

To budget correctly and fully evaluate the options available during any infrastructure refresh, you must first understand how best to facilitate your business needs and objectives.

Forecast and predict your business growth and match this against your IT infrastructure needs.  If your business performance is unpredictable and your IT system / application performance fairly volatile, consider a cloud platform that allows you to meet these fluctuations in demand.  Don’t buy additional capacity ‘just in case’. Buy it ONLY when it is needed and reduce it when it’s not!     mmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm

• Try before you buy & use the tools available

Cloud ‘Proof of concepts’ and trials are there for a reason.  Use them and further strengthen your case for any proposed cloud – remove risk by defining pre-agreed performance criteria which, once successfully ticked off, can be presented back to the business justifying any recommendation.    mmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm

• Don’t lock-in: give your business endless choice and options

With BREXIT potentially around the corner businesses may be facing uncertain times, and your IT teams and systems will need to be able to adapt to stay ahead of the competition. Being able to change your strategy mid-way through with no painful renegotiation can be a lifesaver.  A huge array of Oracle’s industry leading products are now available in the Cloud – and you don’t have to be prescriptive and put all your investment in certain products.  Oracle’s Universal Credit Model gives clients the ability to use any of their products and you still only pay for what you use!   mmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm

• Engage specialists and independent experts

Whilst your existing IT team may have maintained a steady-state for years, they may be ill-equipped to deliver the best solution for your business going forward – or they may have a vested interest in retaining the same on-premise model for reasons of ‘self-interest’.  If this is the case, why not engage DSP as Cloud database and application experts to show your IT team that migrating to Public Cloud does not have to mean a reduction in their duties.  IaaS, PaaS and SaaS all come with differing levels of management / maintenance which could allow them to innovate and deliver projects AND move the organisation forward. Let us help you choose the right one for your business.   mmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm

• Plan ahead & Future Proof

Any on-premise hardware or datacentre refresh should be done with planned growth at the forefront of your mind.  Take the opportunity to get quick access to endless amount of computer power, infrastructure and storage.  mmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm mmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm

• Review and compare the competition

Take every opportunity to innovate and gain a competitive advantage over your rivals.  If your key competitors maintain the status quo, don’t be afraid to take a different approach. DSP has developed the Oracle Cloud calculator which is simple to use and will give you quick, easy to understand scenario-based costings for deployment options across different cloud platforms. mmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm

• Base your choice on fact, not fiction.

Sift through any rhetoric and look at the facts and independent assessments of the marketplace and the cloud vendors.  There is independent performance-based research out there and a plethora of case studies where Public Cloud has delivered phenomenal technological benefit and cost savings.  Who better to look after prized data than the owners of the software themselves.  Oracle performs quicker on Oracle.

If your business is planning a Datacentre or Hardware Refresh, engage DSP-Explorer Cloud consultants to transform your IT function for the better.

We offer workshops designed to help organisations make the right decision for their business, including our Oracle Bitesize package for companies looking to migrate to Oracle Cloud.  The workshop, proof of value, and ongoing support provided through this package provide clients with a reliable way of kick-starting their Oracle Cloud migration.