Successful server consolidation: it is all in the preparation

Successful server consolidation: it's all in the preparation
Collocation
Collocating servers into one central location is an important part of a server
consolidation. Benefits of hardware relocation include immediate cost savings on server
management and operation. A collocated IT environment also benefits from better
physical security, availability, and system usage.
Hardware/data
integration
Reducing the volume of servers and centralizing storage allows IT professionals to
optimize their IT environment more. Hardware/data integration also lowers operating
costs while improving performance and maximizing the availability of applications and
data.
Application
integration
With application integration, an IT environment shifts from multiple applications
accessing multiple databases to solutions running on fewer servers that integrate
databases and applications. The IT infrastructure is streamlined allowing for applications
and systems to be standardized leading to an in increase performance while reducing
total cost of ownership.
IT utility
IT utility is the ultimate agile, adaptive infrastructure, with components that self-configure
in the most economic way. Resources can be dynamically allocated to increase server
and storage utilization. Changing IT needs can be responded to rapidly allowing for
business transformation when necessary. Efficient, cost-effective, and highly available,
this is the absolute optimal consolidated IT environment.
IT consolidation optimizes people, processes, and systems to be more efficient and
effective. A successful IT consolidation initiative usually has a combination of both
server and storage consolidation. Storage consolidation will be discussed briefly later in
this white paper. Server consolidation is a driving force of IT consolidation because it
provides the technological foundation that supports a truly adaptive IT environment.
Therefore it is essential to dedicate this entire white paper to the key considerations for IT
professionals when considering a server consolidation initiative.
Server
consolidation as
part of IT
consolidation
Server consolidation is an important part of IT consolidation. Today’s servers
consistently deliver increased reliability and processing power. The technological
capabilities of servers present new options for IT managers. Large servers with multiple
processors for mission-critical applications and smaller servers designed to utilize space
more efficiently can help IT managers streamline their infrastructure.
A driving force of server consolidation is the Microsoft Windows 2000 operating system
(OS), which is a much more reliable and scalable platform than the past Microsoft
Windows NT operating systems, allowing for greater resource allocation. Often server
consolidation introduces advanced software to the IT environment that builds upon
specific features found in Windows 2000 DataCenter to partition and dynamically
allocate resources. More efficient servers, a scalable operating system, and software
that make remote management possible can greatly reduce the complexity of an IT
infrastructure.
Windows Server 2003 is a server operating system designed to build upon the
advanced features of Windows 2000 Server and helps organizations reduce the cost
and complexity of the IT infrastructure. Windows Server 2003 provides technical
advances like the Windows Resource Manager, which allows administrators to set
processor and memory resource usage on applications and manage them through
Group Policy settings. Other technical improvements to help improve server efficiency
include support for Non-Uniform Memory Access (NUMA), Intel Hyper-Threading
3