In 2018, we teamed up with one of New Zealand’s most prominent media content providers to future-proof their IT infrastructure and accelerate data access. The key challenge they were dealing with involved an outdated and overworked hardware platform that was well past its standard lifetime and various system components that were also reaching the end of their product and support lifecycle. At the same time, the physical limitations of their data centre hindered the expansion of the tape library to help keep up with the quickly growing volume of data.
As a result, there was a massive need to modernise the infrastructure, make accessing data easier, faster and more efficient, and ensure that priceless media archives are protected for future generations to enjoy.
“The Systemethix team led by Marcus König and Ivo Kohler realised right away that handling a system as complex and past its prime as this one will require developing a tailored, innovative approach”
That’s where the team’s extensive experience working with general parallel file systems, enterprise storage, disk and data management capabilities across Linux, Network and AIX, and expertise in planning and deploying complex technology solutions really shined through. 2 When dealing with aged systems running old versions of software and firmware, customising the solutions to fit particular infrastructure and organisation specifics is critical. In this case, we had to come up with a new, bespoke way to move the data from an old tape silo onto a state-of-the-art object storage system. We determined that the best course of action would involve replacing legacy equipment including a TS3500 tape repository with over 5000 LTO cartridges, POWER6 and Tivoli Storage Manager (5.5) with a one-of-a-kind IBM Cloud Object Storage solution with the option of leveraging transparent cloud tiering to maximise flexibility and efficiency. This included employing on-premise IBM Cloud Object Storage and the IBM Spectrum suite of products (Protect, Scale and Storage), all supported by Red Hat and AIX 7.1.
Systemethix fit into the media organisations infrastructure team like a glove from the start, having worked together in previous years.
“Working hand in hand with our client, we knew that we had to ensure the day-to-day running of the business had to remain unaffected while the transformation took place. And that’s exactly what we did.”
said by Marcus König, Advanced Technical Specialist & Director at Systemethix
Replacing the existing infrastructure with the new, tailored solution without affecting business operations.
We kept the original systems running while a new infrastructure solution was designed from scratch and implemented. Our team was committed to excel and pushed itself to complete rigorous testing, monitoring and ironing out creases in the trajectory in record time.
Once this new, efficient system was up and running, the functions were trialled and reviewed until they met our qualitative benchmarks and aligned with our standards. Only then did we pronounce the solution as completed and successful. The actual system cutover was completed in October 2018 when the system has been successfully moved and upgraded.
Partnering with Systemethix to modernise the infrastructure and transform data access brought much needed improvements and efficiencies for the entire organisation. They included in particular:
The new bespoke system has been tailored to the client’s particular needs and will continue to support them for many years to come.
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