Information Technology Reference
In-Depth Information
were found to be inadequate, because fuel supplies and housing needed
for relocating staff could not be found. Tsunamis, hurricanes, volcanoes,
earthquakes, sunspots, and many other uncontrollable events can have a
tremendous impact on an organization and the technologies needed for
its continued operation.
Other problems are man-made but equally threatening, such as viruses
and other malicious code. Even defensive technologies can sometimes
prove dangerous to operations, as when the popular McAfee antivirus
suite incorrectly identified many business applications as a threat and
quarantined or deleted application files needed for database management,
business awareness, and many other functions. Recoverability must be a
factor in network planning, and effective systems virtualization can speed
recovery thresholds immensely.
Even concerns over the potential of threats, as in the case of severe
acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) or a swine flu pandemic, could lead
to isolation of operational staff or facilities. By conducting proper disaster
recovery and continuity of operations planning within the data center, an
organization can remain viable in times of crisis. If the business is forced
to operate by running virtualized hosts on laptops from an out-of-the-way
data center, at least it may still be able to maintain minimal support for
key customers while its competitors are blacked out.
Summary
Technology is not the solution to business requirements, but it can pro-
vide the means for an organization to remain viable and even to gain an
advantage if properly directed. Standardization and a reduction in com-
plexity are vital if an enterprise is to gain access to true economies of scale,
automation, and efficient control. Although some complexity and redun-
dancy can be desirable in order to defend a network adequately, these are
areas where rapid proof of value can be found by the lead architect charged
with enterprise renovation. Effective information management and data
center controls can provide tremendous return on enterprise restructuring
projects. Problems like the Y2K bug do not fix themselves—they are fixed
by carefully guided management strategies. The reins must be firmly in
hand before the next crisis arises, as it is inevitable that something will
eventually go wrong. Recovery from disaster or attack is not a matter of
“if ” but of “when.”
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