INFORMATION SYSTEMS MIGRATION

Information Systems Migration Project



Information Systems Migration Project

1) Describe how you would initiate the project

There are two broad categories of data center providers. The first only supply computer room floor space, access to an ISP, basic monitoring and power. These are called collocation providers. The second group provides more comprehensive management that may include all possible IT services related to your site including systems development. These are called managed hosting providers. There are a wide range of varying service levels in between and the interpretation of the terms within the industry can often be very loose. Always request a very specific list of the services your data center provides as part of your selection process (Alreck, 2005).

As expected, the selection of a suitable data center will play an important role in any data center or web farm relocation project. There are many factors related to the facility and its services that need to be considered that are often overlooked. These include:

Location

The data center should be positioned away from zones at risk from natural disasters such as flooding from rivers and dams, hurricanes and earthquakes. It should also be no closer than a quarter kilometer away from major highways and railroads to reduce the evacuation risk from toxic spills. Locations close to hazardous production facilities and aircraft flight corridors should be avoided.

Your employees may have other personal interests in the location such as the presence of reasonably priced housing nearby, recreational attractions in the area, access to public transportation, and the availability of amenities such as schools and parks in the neighborhood. You should monitor how traffic patterns affect the ease of accessibility to the site to see whether they are unsuitable.

The immediate vicinity of the site is also important. Rainwater should drain away from the building and then off site to prevent localized flooding. In high security environments the building should be surrounded by embankments and perimeter fencing, reducing the risk physical attack.

Communications

The facility should have access to multiple ISPs with the cable entering from different points of the building. This reduces the risk of outages due to a technical failures as well as construction and landscaping accidents. Verify the roof access rights in the event you need to have a satellite or microwave line of sight antenna installed.

It is also extremely important to visually verify the type of connectivity you have. Be certain that both the ISPs that enter the building and the types of data circuits they can provide are suitable. Don't sign a contract with an ISP where you are held hostage to unsuitable or otherwise inadequate connectivity (Midler, 2005).

2) Create a project plan for moving the data centre, considering the budget and time constraints.

A Data Center Moving Project is a daunting experience. Many considerations, such as the pressures and concerns of disruptions to business operations and data losses can weigh heavily on those without experience in moving servers and ether IT and technology equipment.

A combination of factors is making data center relocation much more ...