This week's entry is written by Robert E. Jenkins, an active member of LUG.
Mainframes introduced us to the concept of centralization while servers showed us the benefits of decentralization. Now Power Systems technology show us a new concept of a centralized platform, made of one or more physical systems, simulating a decentralized virtual environment. Many companies either overlook or are unaware of this new concept. They continue to manage their Power Systems as servers or as a mainframe. Those companies either deploy Power Systems as a mainframe that only runs one type of OS on each Power system, or deploy smaller Power systems like servers, for varies projects/software packages. To capture the full potential of Power Systems, they should be managed as a platform. As a hybrid of the two concepts, Power Systems are more of a platform than a mainframe or a server. Managing a platform requires a different approach than the other two concepts. Platform management is best accomplished using three teams: Platform Administration, LPAR Administration and Operations.
Platform Administration
Platform administration should be responsible for overseeing the entire Power System platform. This means bringing design and planning work in-house. Platform administration would interface with IBM and IBM business partners to create direction for the platform. This approach brings more focus to the company's IT goals.
LPAR Administration
LPAR Administration should be made up of individuals who are experts in one or more operating systems that run on the Power System. This team of professionals would be responsible for administration of the LPARs running on the platform. Their focus would be working together to manage a mix of LPARs with different operating systems like Linux, i and AIX running on the same platform. This would include, planning OS upgrades and overseeing software upgrades to the different LPARs. This approach eliminates internal conflict over resource allocation and dollars, thus allowing for a more consolidated approach to managing the businesses technology needs. It eliminates the need for having an exclusive Power System for AIX, Linux or i. It benefits the company by reducing cost on maintenance and upgrades.
Operations
Platform management allows for the consolidation of operations. An operations team would be responsible for message wait, backup messages and other day-to-day system support operations. The operations teams should be made up individuals who have a general familiarity with the different operating systems that run on Power System. The operations team’s primary focus is to provide day-to-day support for the different LPARs and be the main point of contact to the end user and help desk.
Platform Management Summary
A platform management approach has the potential for creating a highly reliable and cost-effective computing platform for any company. This approach provides the following benefits:
Reduced cost in maintenance and upgrades
- The number of systems needed to run multiple OS environments can be reduced by consolidation to a platform administration approach
Faster ROI
- Power system upgrades would benefit more than just one system user group in the company.
- Platform administration better utilizes the Power system technology
Brings more focus to the company’s IT goals
- Reduces IT conflicts over resources and dollars on the Power system
- Consolidates the company’s IT Power Systems infrastructure and the resources needed to manage the technology
While the approach of managing Power Systems as a platform seems straightforward and simple, a large number of companies continue to gravitate to the mainframe or server management approach. This often results in internal resource conflicts and overspending on upgrades and resources to manage the technology. The Power System platform brings new concepts, capability and reliability to a company’s IT infrastructure. This requires a new approach and a new way of thinking about how the organization needs to align their technology assets to best meet their business needs while still striving to realize the best ROI for their organization.
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