1. Consolidate IT infrastructures to help reduce server sprawl
and complexity
Server Consolidation Services from IBM
Eventually, unimpeded sprawl can have
consequences—real costs in terms of
increased total cost of ownership (TCO)
and a reduced ability to respond to
change and opportunities for innovation.
Many organizations are taking steps
to mitigate the resulting complexity
through consolidation and are focusing
on it as a key initiative for IT infrastructure
optimization and operational cost
reduction. By reducing the number
of servers required to support your
applications, server consolidation can
help lower costs and improve your
Highlights No company sets out to deliberately business flexibility. Just as important,
create IT infrastructure complexity. through the ability to reduce energy
Yet even with the best-laid plans, consumption, consolidation can help
■ Helps reduce costs for server
complexity can work its way into your evolve your IT environment into a more
hardware and software,
IT infrastructure through mergers energy-efficient data center.
management and facilities
and acquisitions, new applications,
unanticipated growth, globalization, Server consolidation services from IBM
■ Enables more efficient
compliance requirements and can help facilitate a smooth transition to a
infrastructures for improved
organizational power plays. Complexity consolidated, more efficient environment
business flexibility and higher
typically manifests itself as server through assessment, design, planning,
utilization rates
sprawl: Your data centers grow because implementation, testing and application
it’s initially cheaper and easier to add migration services built on IBM’s
■ Simplifies application migration
a few servers to accommodate spikes extensive server and application product
and workload consolidation to
in demand than to reexamine the offerings and proven track record for
help improve performance and
entire infrastructure. designing, deploying and managing
mitigate risk
data center environments.
■ Provides a foundation for
advanced optimization
solutions for the future

2. Lowering your total cost of server Server consolidation services from Improving your ability to respond to
investments IBM are designed to help you reduce evolving business demands
The need to cut costs is a fact of life these costs by minimizing the number While cost reduction is a top priority,
in the IT department. But pressures of servers needed in your environment organizations must also consider
to reduce costs in the short term can and optimizing server performance the impact complexity can have on
have long-lasting effects. An apparent to meet your specific needs. It’s strategic objectives and the ability
bargain on a rack of servers, for example, simple math—fewer servers means to respond to change. Reducing
is not a smart investment if you’ve simply lower costs. Building on IBM’s vast total cost of ownership is often a
added more servers without adding experience in servers and data major reason for consolidation, but
proportional performance benefits. center design, IBM professionals other factors, including controlling
can quickly analyze your existing server sprawl to improve system
Beyond the initial expense of server environment, factor in your current management, leveraging skilled
hardware, each server has additional and future demands, and develop and resources more efficiently and the
hard and soft costs associated with its implement a consolidation strategy ability to provide better and more
deployment in your environment: that can meet your objectives for cost flexible service to internal and external
reduction. Unlike many other solution customers, are equally important.
• Software—licenses for operating providers, IBM has a service focus that
systems and applications considers your heterogeneous server An unconsolidated data center
• Management—utilities, backup infrastructure—even if it’s not on infrastructure can hamper flexibility,
and archiving IBM hardware, IBM can still help because resources are not tuned
• Labor—monitoring and you consolidate. to respond to changing application
support, ongoing training and demands. So, when activities affect
skills upgrades Based on IBM’s previous experi- demand—introducing a new product
• Site and facilities costs—rack space, ences, companies that implement a or merging with a new business
security, power, cooling consolidation strategy assisted by acquisition, for example—application
IBM Global Services have been able performance, functionality and
Costs can be even greater for to realize significant savings that can efficiency can be limited. Servers may
heterogeneous infrastructures that be passed to the bottom line or not be easily repurposed; skill sets
use multiple hardware vendors and repurposed for projects that support may not be interchangeable; multiple
a mix of operating systems because greater competitive advantage. Typical facilities may make new investments
they require broader IT skill sets, more savings include :
1
too costly; security may be
tools for management and separate compromised. And when additional
storage processes, and the ability to • Hardware costs reduced 33 to servers are deployed merely to
address other ongoing IT challenges. 70 percent. accommodate occasional peaks
For extended enterprises with multiple • Maintenance costs reduced up to in usage, the result is under-utilized
locations, the costs can be even higher. 50 percent. processing power and unnecessary
• Support costs reduced by as much energy consumption.
as 33 percent.
• Floor space and facility costs
reduced 33 to 50 percent.

3. Without consolidation and optimiza- multiple options for consolidation, Ensuring a smooth application
tion, your servers will run below their based on your unique business and migration, from start to finish
full capabilities. But how can you IT strategies, to meet the needs and Whether through a merger or
consolidate in a way that enhances challenges of your organization. acquisition, unexpected growth or
flexibility, increases resiliency and the need to find additional savings
improves performance? The answer Consolidation services from IBM are in a volatile economy, chances are
lies in thorough planning and deploy- organized around three basic stages: good that business improvements
ment expertise. solution framing, planning and design, and workload consolidation will
and implementation. During these affect your company’s basic IT
IBM has developed a center of compe- stages IBM professionals perform an infrastructure. If you need to migrate
tency that focuses on consolidation extensive range of activities, including: core applications and data to a new
to help align server environments to environment, do you know where
business initiatives. The center is staffed Solution framing. Delivers an extensive to start?
by professionals from many areas of IT analysis of your current data center
consolidation expertise: environment (not just an inventory IBM offers proven methodologies that
of your servers) and documentation are designed to help mitigate risk and
• IT specialists with in-depth of your business objectives and maximize workload performance as
platform knowledge strategic initiatives you move from your existing legacy
• IT specialists with data and IBM and non-IBM platforms to IBM
application migration and Planning and design. Establishes Systems. Using these methodologies,
upgrade knowledge the logical and physical design of the IBM can help you determine what,
• IT server and storage consolidated environment and develops where and how to plan your migration
consolidation architects IT management and transition plans for to eliminate the potential for disruption
• Server consolidation the implementation of your end-users and business critical
financial analysts applications. While no two migrations
• Project managers Implementation. Builds out the are identical, IBM’s five-step
• Server platform specialists new, repurposed, or both new and process—refined over 25 years based
repurposed servers, performs exten- on extensive engagements—can
Using best-of-breed tools to assess sive testing outside the production help ensure success throughout the
your current infrastructure, IBM can environment and, finally, deploys the migration process.
demonstrate the benefits server new assets into your infrastructure
consolidation can bring to your business. Creating a smarter infrastructure for
IBM professionals can evaluate IBM can also provide ongoing the future
virtually all elements of your business testing and monitoring of your In addition to cost savings and
operations—including infrastructure, infrastructure to help make sure business flexibility considerations,
data, applications, storage and that your infrastructure maintains consolidation of servers is an
networking—to determine how they availability and performance targets. important first step toward broader
interact in your operational environment. optimization initiatives. To create an
From this information, IBM can make even more responsive infrastructure,
targeted recommendations and provide you may want to employ virtualization
and cloud computing technologies
that pool hardware and processing

4. resources to accommodate fluctuating IBM has the ability to provide localized,
processing demands. Or you may be onsite service, combined with the cost
considering a revamped approach to savings of global resources for support
business and IT in the form of a Service and implementation, offering you a
Oriented Architecture (SOA) that compelling combination of competence
integrates applications and business and affordability. IBM’s extensive
processes and creates an enterprise resources and development of proven
© Copyright IBM Corporation 2009
service bus. Or you might be looking consolidation methodologies can help
IBM Global Services
for ways to build more energy-efficient reduce your risks and shorten the time Route 100
Somers, NY 10589
systems and data centers. required to achieve a consolidated
U.S.A.
server environment—allowing you to
Produced in the United States of America
To provide maximum return on invest- more quickly reap potential cost and 03-09
All Rights Reserved
ment, these advanced IT initiatives flexibility benefits.
IBM and the IBM logo are trademarks or
require optimized hardware and
registered trademarks of International Business
software. During the solution framing For more information Machines Corporation in the United States,
other countries, or both.
stage of server consolidation services, To learn more about IBM Server
Other company, product and service names
IBM professionals can factor in these Optimization and Integration Services
may be trademarks or service marks of others.
initiatives and design a solution that can – server consolidation, contact your
References in this publication to IBM products
help you get the server infrastructure you IBM sales representative or your IBM or services do not imply that IBM intends to
make them available in all countries in which
need today—and that can support your Business Partner, or visit:
IBM operates.
needs in the future.
ibm.com/services/us/index.wss/
Why IBM? offering/its/a1028234
1 Based on previous IBM sales engagements.
IBM’s rich server heritage and vast
2 “Top 12 Green-IT Users and Vendors,”
resources of design, implementation Computerworld, February 2008.
and management expertise can help
achieve the consolidated server
environment suited to your specific
requirements. IBM can provide the
experience and product knowledge
needed to migrate to IBM System server
technologies, or can provide vendor-
neutral consolidation services that
address the heterogeneous environment
you already have. Named the Top
Green IT company for 2008 by IDG
and Computerworld, IBM is also well-
positioned to help support your initiatives
to reduce energy consumption in your
data center through consolidation.2
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