Infrastructure Management

CLOUD COMPUTING

Cloud computing empowers companies to access their IT information from anywhere, anytime with information available to access online. These “clouds” either come in the form of “private clouds”, where individual companies pay a premium for dedicated servers, or “public clouds”, in which multiple companies share the storage space provided by a hosting and server provider. In both cases, the servers can either be on-site or off-site, which is a personal preference based on each company’s desire to control the security of the server with on-site servers or trust the security of off-site servers and save money in the process. Even for companies protecting the most sensitive or proprietary information, a private cloud hosted on an on-site server is a high-security way to store information.

DESKTOP VIRTUALIZATION

With virtual desktops, company software is stored on servers, rather than the individual computers from which employees are accessing the software. Such a setup, also known as virtual desktop infrastructure (VDI), minimizes the risk of file corruption at the individual level, and streamlines the security and storage process for the software of the company, as a whole. Desktop virtualization allows for the management of all physical desktops from one, central location: the master copy on the server. This also has the advantage of coordinated, timely security patches when pushed through by the administrator managing the software on the central server. VDI is an excellent way to reduce overhead costs while improving efficiencies and security.

DATA BACKUP

Data backup is an insurance policy for all of a company’s files, especially crucial IP and highly-sensitive documents. Without data backup, unforeseen circumstances from hacking to malware to data corruption to hard drive failure to a manual error on the part of IT personnel can result in the permanent loss of all company data. We will help you put a data recovery (DR) plan in place to protect against worst-case scenarios.

SERVER VIRTUALIZATION

Think of server virtualization as the dividing and conquering of one master server. By moving all operations from one, large server to a number of smaller ones, a company becomes more agile. Each of these virtual servers can run its own operating system, so there is no need to base all of a company’s software on the pre-existing operating system of an existing, central server. Additionally, server virtualization reduces overhead costs and downtime of servers by making more efficient use of space and cooling down more quickly and easily.

STORAGE VIRTUALIZATION

Storage virtualization allows businesses to harness the power of cloud technology to capitalize on file storage efficiencies. No longer is it mandated (or recommended) that employees store their files on their personal computers. Rather, make use of virtual storage to free up local hard drive and memory space without compromising security or accessibility.

Storage virtualization can be broken down into the following subcategories: block virtualization and file virtualization.

Block virtualization affords many advantages to companies who wish to take advantage of it. For one, resources can be pooled for migration efforts, data backup, and storage scaling. There are also fewer points of management, which translates into reduced overhead and increased security.

DISASTER RECOVERY

Disaster recovery solutions (DR solutions) involve setting processes in place in the event of disasters (natural or human-induced) to ensure business continuity. DR solutions refer specifically to the technological aspects of a business continuity plan, and focus on supporting IT teams and technology components relevant to daily, imperative business operations.

We help companies of all shapes and sizes – in every industry – prepare for the worst by mitigating potential downside of catastrophic events by putting plans in place to keep applications, data, hardware, and other vital technological components up and running. Or, at the very least, restoring the functioning of these vital processes as soon as possible in the wake of emergency.

DATA CENTER NETWORKING

Data Center Networking plays a vital part in any business’s operations, because it links every tool and technology together, allowing the company to scale efficiently. When a data center network is set up optimally, it is capable of handling the increase in computing demands seamlessly, without crashing. Server and storage data is aggregated and moved to the cloud, where it can be securely stored with reduced overhead and management fees, compared to their physical information-storing counterparts.

DATA CENTER INFRASTRUCTURE MANAGEMENT (DCIM)

Data center infrastructure management (DCIM) focuses on optimizing the physical and software aspects of a company’s IT division. DCIM provides managers with a complete picture of the computing and electrical power, space, employees, and equipment required to run a data center so they can use this information to make the data center run as efficiently as possible. KitelyTech will act as consultants and help your firm set up an ideal configuration for all infrastructure including the following: computers, servers, routers, power and cooling devices, server racks, cables, data center management software and applications, etc.

DATA CENTER VIRTUALIZATION

PRIVATE CLOUD

A private cloud, or virtual private cloud (VPC), is storage space dedicated to a single organization or company. While these terms are often used interchangeably, they actually signify an important difference regarding the infrastructure of the cloud. While both clouds are private, as denoted by the names, a private cloud makes use of internal infrastructure, while a VPC capitalizes on a third-party’s infrastructure. Private clouds are an excellent way to store large amounts of information just as, if not more, securely while reducing the overhead fees associated with hiring a team to manage all data on-site.

DATA CENTER AND CAMPUS NETWORKING

Data center networking (also known as “campus networking”) are the steps by which physical and virtual devices are interconnected throughout a data center building. The importance of data center networking lies in ensuring all data center infrastructure components are online and capable of communication for the transfer of data between each other and the internet. The benefits of setting up a campus network include: increased stability, security, and reliability; ability to support increasingly-popular cloud-based technologies; scalability to handle network conditions even during high-volume usage.

HYBRID CLOUD

A hybrid cloud combines a private cloud with a public cloud for the third type of cloud computing infrastructure. A hybrid cloud is ideal for small businesses with uncertain growth trajectory, as they allow companies to store a manageable amount of data on on-site servers, while setting up the private cloud to only handle overflow traffic, data, etc. This allows companies to control and keep private access to the majority of the data, without paying for excess server space if the need for it never arises and preventing a site crash or system failure if it does.

OPEN SOURCE SOLUTIONS

Open source solutions (OSS, also known as open source software) is rooted in crowd-sourcing. The coder who holds the copyright for a piece of software can release the license to the public, so their code can be viewed, edited, and added to in the name of improving the software for general use. WordPress, Android, and Firefox are perhaps the most widely-known examples of open-source software. As indicated by these examples, open source solutions span across every type of technology, and can be customized to fit the needs of most businesses.

SOFTWARE-DEFINED DATA CENTER

Software-defined data center (SDDC) is a fully virtual data center, meaning each aspect of the infrastructure is virtualized software as opposed to hardware. The automated software controls the data center, leading to a more efficient management of resources. SDDC has the advantage of being compatible with both legacy applications as well as more modern cloud computing solutions.

BUSINESS MOBILITY

Business mobility goes hand-in-hand with cloud computing culture, and refers to businesses’ increased propensity to allow employees to work remotely. Cloud computing is necessary in such situations, and enables business mobility by allowing workers to access company documents from cloud storage. The flexibility offered through business mobility is widely regarded as a benefit to employees, as it allows for maximum efficiency without limiting workers to a physical location in which they are able to complete their work.

HYPERCONVERGED SOLUTION

Hyperconvergence allows multiple hardware components to be grouped together via software for the purpose of managing all infrastructure as a single system. Hyperconvergence works by grouping hardware nodes into clusters, and is beneficial to any organization that strives to dedicate resources to operational areas of the business as opposed to infrastructure overhead. Hyperconvergence is a good solution for businesses interested in any degree of virtualization.

UNIFIED COMMUNICATIONS

Unified communications standardize the way employees connect using company software, and allows conversations had on one medium to be available across all linked mediums. A well-known example of this in the public sphere is Apple linking iMessages across iPhone and Macs, so that the texts sync between computer and phone. Voicemail transcription into text or email is another common use of unified communications. This integrated communication infrastructure allows employees to increase availability and productivity.

VIRTUALIZING BUSINESS-CRITICAL APPLICATIONS

Virtualizing business-critical applications is all about efficiency; the process frees up valuable hardware resources without negatively affecting software performance. The virtualization process makes software more easily accessed to all employees, as it can be migrated across data center servers. The importance of being readily available cannot be understated for a business-critical application, as its very nature suggests that downtime would be harmful to the company’s bottom line. Business-critical applications are often the last pieces of software to be transferred from a company’s private hard drives onto a cloud (whether private, shared, or hybrid).

Microsoft Server Infra Consulting. ( Exchange , O365 , System Management suite, Collaboration, Active Directory , SQL Database ) are several examples of business-critical applications that can be virtualized. This suite is worth mentioning by name, as each component represents a popular candidate for virtualization. The KitelyTech infrastructure team is well equipped to consult businesses every step of the way as they transition the most valuable company components to the cloud.