IT Trends & Technology

As IBM iSeries celebrates its 30th anniversary, it continues to be a system of record for critical applications and data in sectors such as healthcare and manufacturing. The forward momentum of the digital business often means the server lags behind in the business backup strategy. This poses a myriad of challenges for users when it comes to avoiding downtime with iSeries backup strategies.

As mergers and acquisitions (M&A) increase, more IT departments will be faced with data center consolidation. Although it’s common practice for the acquired company to adopt the data center practices of the parent company, consolidation still requires detailed evaluation of current equipment, processes, and personnel.

Container technology adoption has been picking up steam in the last several years across all sectors and types of organizations. According to a Forrester report, 82 percent of container users expect to have more than 100 containers deployed within the next two years.

In the recent IDC paper, “The Business Value of the Connected Mainframe for Digital Transformation,” there is a clear path for its part in digital transformation moving forward. How organizations find that way forward is largely dependent on keeping pace with innovation, including making decisions regarding updates and support.

You don’t have to search far to find numerous articles touting mainframes or x86-based server farms as the superior choice for organizations. But when the question of the right choice for the future becomes the focus, things may change in the mainframe versus server farm debate.

First National Technology Solutions (FNTS), an IT managed services provider, announced it will begin offering Database as a Service (DBaaS) cloud computing and managed services due to rising demand from businesses that want to deploy new databases quickly, securely and at a fraction of the cost of infrastructure-intensive projects.

A database can be one of the most important assets a business has to run its applications and operations. First National Technology Solutions can host database infrastructures in the cloud to streamline business operations, allowing companies to focus on other aspects of their business without having to monitor their own data.

While there can be numerous benefits derived from data center consolidation, realizing them requires a defined set of outcomes and a clear strategy. Achieving those benefits can be hampered by challenges such as those associated with user base application access, the associated security concerns and the disruption to the enterprise that the consolidation process can bring overall. There are also a number of short-term and long-term costs (both hidden and obvious) that require a detailed plan of execution and long-term strategy.

According to the IDC Worldwide Quarterly Server Tracker, vendor revenue in the worldwide server market declined 4.6 percent year over year to $11.8 billion in the first quarter of 2017. That decline is clearly driven by data center consolidation and server consolidation more specifically. Server consolidation is a way to make a more efficient IT environment by combining servers or replacing legacy servers with virtual systems, like cloud or SaaS products. Server consolidation is exactly what it sounds like: It’s essentially consolidating hardware for more effective usage.

It’s a concept that frightens almost every data center manager. What happens if something doesn’t go well? What if we lose our data? While moving your entire IT environment sounds daunting, with proper planning and the right people on your side – it doesn’t have to be. Here are some helpful tips for a successful data center migration. 

As the top-rated bank in southern Wisconsin and northern Illinois, Blackhawk Bank focuses on providing exceptional customer service and superior financial products, while also allowing its customers and employees to benefit from the latest technologies. Throughout its rich history, Blackhawk Bank has gone through several expansions, mergers and acquisitions – all while maintaining a powerful partnership with First National Technology Solutions (FNTS).

1956 – IBM announced the IBM 350 Drive (5MB) on 50 x 24” disc platters  1,200 RPMs with an average seek time of 600ms (milliseconds), weighed over a ton and cost $3,200 per month (lease)

In the midst of spring, the severe weather threats of torrential rain, hail, and more importantly, high winds and tornadoes.  Many companies, especially small organizations should be reviewing their disaster contingency plans. However, many do not have adequate, if any, business continuity plans or have heavily outdated plans that are not reviewed regularly from an IT perspective in the event of a disaster.

Back in 1956, IBM introduced us to the first commercially available disk drive.  It stored 5MB of data, weighed over a ton, and could be leased for $3,200 a month.  Today, with the prevalence of solid state storage, you can fit a 128GB Flash Drive in your shirt pocket for under $100.
Although I wouldn’t store my most critical database on a $100 flash drive, it’s a testament to the advances we have seen within storage industry in a relatively short period of time.