Information Technology Reference
In-Depth Information
Supporting Automation
Although automated systems can perform arduous repetitive tasks,
human operational staff remains necessary even in the most heavily-
automated enterprise. Logs must be reviewed regularly to ensure comple-
tion of updates and backups. Backup media should be regularly tested
for recoverability, and retired on a regular schedule to protect against loss
of critical data at an inopportune time. Human operators are needed in
order to configure initial system images, and to ensure that patches and
updates do not create problems within the test network before they are
deployed to the production environment.
Enterprise architects may hear concerns from IT professionals afraid
they may be automated out of a job, but the architect should emphasize
that automation is a tool that can multiply the effectiveness of the IT
professionals—not one that can remove the need for them outright. Even
self-service password reset solutions, file-recovery utilities, and ad-hoc
database reporting tools require configuration and management in order
to provide automated results to end users.
Virtualization
Vir t ua li z at ion a l lows a sing le ser ver computer to host mu lt iple v ir t ua l ser v-
ers, which function as if each were on a separate system. Each server can
have its own dedicated processing power, memory allocation, and storage.
Virtualization allows enterprises to bring together multiple services and
standalone applications and run them all one a small number of physical
servers. This can decrease energy costs and increase resource utilization,
particularly when consolidating multiple systems that spend most of their
CPU power idling. Xen, VMWare, and Microsoft are some of the vendors
producing virtualization host software, many versions of which are free or
provided with the server operating system at no additional charge. More
robust versions of some virtualization software solutions can be used to
automatically load-balance virtual systems and perform other manage-
ment tasks, though these are typically commercially licensed.
Many in One
Because each virtual system functions as if installed on its own hard-
ware, a single computer can host virtual servers of many different types
