MIS - IT Infrastructure (Part I)

IT Infrastructure IT Infrastructure and Platformsand Platforms

(Part I)(Part I)

Management Information System

IT INFRASTRUCTURE

Defining IT Infrastructure• Includes hardware, software, and services

• A set of physical devices and software applications that are required to operate the entire enterprise

• Your firm is largely dependent on its infrastructure for delivering services to customers, employees, and suppliers.

• You can think of infrastructure as digital plumbing, but its much more than that!

The Connection between the Firm, IT Infrastructure, and Business Capabilities

IT INFRASTRUCTURE

Levels of IT InfrastructureLevels of IT Infrastructure

Three major levels of infrastructure:

• Public

• Enterprise

• Business unit

IT INFRASTRUCTURE

A Multitiered Client/Server Network (N-tier)

IT INFRASTRUCTURE

IT INFRASTRUCTURE

Technology Drivers of Infrastructure Evolution

Moore’s Law

The law of mass digital storage

Metcalfe’s law

Declining communications

costs and the Internet

The IT Infrastructure Ecosystem

INFRASTRUCTURE COMPONENTS

Operating System Platforms

• $100 billion annually spent in the United States

• Continued dominance of Microsoft OS in the client (95%) and handheld market (45%)

• Growing dominance of Linux (UNIX) in the corporate server market (85%)

• Windows 2002 and 2003 Server remains strong in smaller enterprises and workgroup networks


Enterprise Software Applications

• $165 billion annually spent in the United States for basic enterprise software infrastructure

• SAP, Oracle, PeopleSoft (now Oracle), and Siebel dominate this market.

• Middleware firms like BEA and JD Edwards serve smaller firms, and work also in the Web services space.


• The enterprise market is consolidating around a few huge firms that have gained significant market share such as SAP and Oracle.

• Microsoft is expanding into smaller firm enterprise systems where it can build on its Windows server-installed base.

Enterprise Software Applications (Continued)


Data Management and Storage

• $70 billion annually spent in the United States.

• Oracle and IBM continue to dominate the database software market.

• Microsoft (SQL Server) and Sybase tend to serve smaller firms.

• Open source Linux MySQL now supported by HP and most consulting firms as an inexpensive, powerful database used mostly in small to mid-size firms.


• $35 billion annually spent in the United States for physical hard disk storage

• The hard disk market is consolidating around a few huge firms like EMC and smaller PC hard disk firms like Seagate, Maxtor, and Western Digital

Data Management and Storage (Continued)


Networking/Telecommunications Platforms

• $150 billion annually spent on networking and telecommunications hardware

• $700 billion annually spent on telecommunications services, e.g. phone and Internet connectivity

• Local area networking still dominated by Microsoft Server (about 75%) but strong growth of Linux challenges this dominance


• Enterprise networking almost entirely Linux or UNIX

• Cisco, Lucent, Nortel, and Juniper Networks continue to dominate networking hardware.

• The telecommunications services market is highly dynamic with MCI, AT&T, and Sprint providing most trunk line services for both phone and Internet.

• Growth of non-telephone Wi-Fi and Wi-Max services, and Internet telephony

Networking/Telecommunications Platform (Continued)


Internet Platforms

• $32 billion annually spent on Internet infrastructure in the United States

• Internet hardware server market concentrated in Dell, HP, and IBM

• Prices falling rapidly by up to 50% in a single year for low-power servers


• Open-source Apache remains the dominant Web server software, followed by Microsoft’s IIS server.

• Sun’s Java grows as the most widely used tool for interactive Web applications.

• Microsoft and Sun settle a long-standing law suit and agree to support a common Java.

Internet Platforms (Continued)


Consulting and System Integration Services

• Most firms today, even large firms, cannot develop their systems without significant outside help.

• $130 billion annually spent on computer system design, and related business services like business process redesign in the United States

• About 85% of business consulting in the United States involves IT business consulting.


Grid Computing:

• Involves connecting geographically remote computers into a single network capable of working in parallel on business problems that require short-term access to large computational capacity

• Rather than purchase huge mainframes or super computers, firms can chain together thousands of smaller desktop clients into a single computing grid.

CONTEMPORARY HARDWARE PLATFORM TRENDS

• Most computers in the world are loafing, and at night they are sleeping.

• It is estimated that from 25% - 50% of the computing power in the United States is unused.

• Grid computing saves infrastructure spending, increases speed of computing, and increases the agility of firms.

• Examples: Royal Dutch/Shell Group and the National Digital Mammography Archive

Grid Computing (Continued)


On-Demand (Utility) Computing:

• Firms off-loading peak demand for computing power to remote, large-scale data processing centers

• Developed by IBM, SUN, and HP

• Firms pay only for the computing power they use, as with an electrical utility.


• Excellent for firms with spiked demand curves caused by seasonal variations in consumer demand, e.g. holiday shopping

• Example: Harry and David use IBM’s On-Demand computing

• Saves firms from purchasing excessive levels of infrastructure

On-Demand (Utility) Computing: (Continued)


Edge Computing:

• Edge computing is a multitier, load-balancing scheme for Web-based applications.

• Processing load is distributed closer to the user and handled by lower-cost servers.

• Lowers cost of hardware


• Increases service levels

• Provides firm greater flexibility in responding to service requests

• Seasonal spikes in demand can be off-loaded to other edge servers.

Edge Computing: (Continued)


Edge Computing Platform

Figure 6-12


The Rise of Linux and Open-Source Software

• Open-source software is free and can be modified by users.

• Developed and maintained by a worldwide network of programmers and designers under the management of user communities


• Linux is the most widely used open-source software program. Linux is an operating system derived from Unix.

• Mozilla Firefox browser and Thunderbird mail clients are the most widely used open-source applications. Others include MySQL.

• IBM, HP, Intel, Dell, and Sun have adopted and support Linux. Linux is a major alternative to Windows server and even client operating systems.

The Rise of Linux and Open-Source Software (Continued)


Java: • An operating system—Independent, processor-

independent, object-oriented programming language

• Applications written in Java can run on any hardware for which a Java virtual machine has been defined.

• Java is embedded in PDAs, cell phones, and browsers.

• Java is a leading interactive programming environment for the Web.

Java Is Everywhere


Software for Enterprise Integration:

• One of the most important software trends of the last decade is the growth of “enterprise in a box” or the purchase of enterprise-wide software systems by firms.

• Rather than build all their own software on a custom basis, large firms increasingly purchase enterprise applications prewritten by specialized software firms like SAP, Oracle, PeopleSoft, and others.


• The goal is to achieve an integrated firm-wide information environment, reduce cost, increase reliability, and to adopt business best practices which are captured by the software.

• Enterprise software firms achieve economies of scale by selling the same software to hundreds of firms.

• Today's enterprise systems are capable of integrating older legacy applications with newer Web-based applications.

Software for Enterprise Integration: (Continued)



Video Case :

George Washington University

Quick Quiz

1. Why they are using Cisco ? What are the benefits ?

2. Why they tried to emphasize their web application secure ? What are their efforts to do that ?

3. Are they using grid computing, on demand computing or edge computing concept ? Explain your answer.

George Washington University : Using Cisco

Date post:	16-Apr-2017
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