Cisco Cisco Nexus 2224TP GE Fabric Extender Information Guide
DIMENSION DATA
SUCCESS STORY
Holmesglen TAFE
Solution at a glance
•
Cisco UCS Blade Server Chassis
•
Cisco UCS B-Series Blade Servers
•
Cisco Nexus 7000 Series Switches
•
Cisco Catalyst 3750 Power-over-Ethernet switches
For more information please visit www.dimensiondata.com/solutions
the evenings over the Easter break in April 2010. These
new generation switches provide more bandwidth and
rich feature set, which are is necessary for the institute’s
move to a 10Gb/s Ethernet backbone and extra network
redundancy.
new generation switches provide more bandwidth and
rich feature set, which are is necessary for the institute’s
move to a 10Gb/s Ethernet backbone and extra network
redundancy.
“This was a complicated exercise that we could not have
completed on our own,” said Puchalski. “The hard part
was removing the old switches and replacing them without
upsetting the business. The assistance that Dimension Data
provided was crucial to the success of this upgrade.”
completed on our own,” said Puchalski. “The hard part
was removing the old switches and replacing them without
upsetting the business. The assistance that Dimension Data
provided was crucial to the success of this upgrade.”
Dimension Data engineers also connected the Cisco UCS
Blade servers to the Cisco switches and Hitachi storage and
demonstrated how the TAFE could take advantage of this
new technology.
Blade servers to the Cisco switches and Hitachi storage and
demonstrated how the TAFE could take advantage of this
new technology.
“Dimension Data’s technical staff also provided us
with valuable feedback about trends in the market and
the directions that we should take with our technology
infrastructure,” said Puchalski. “This has enabled us to
make the right decisions about which technologies will
benefit us now and in the future.”
with valuable feedback about trends in the market and
the directions that we should take with our technology
infrastructure,” said Puchalski. “This has enabled us to
make the right decisions about which technologies will
benefit us now and in the future.”
Value Derived
The new data centre infrastructure has ensured Holmesglen
can reliably deliver around 1,000 applications to users
across its TAFE network. Students and teachers benefit
from more dependable infrastructure that is always
available.
can reliably deliver around 1,000 applications to users
across its TAFE network. Students and teachers benefit
from more dependable infrastructure that is always
available.
“When the disaster recovery centre in Glen Waverley is
completed at the end of 2010, we will be able to completely
eliminate system downtime in the event of a server failure or
disaster at our primary site,” said Puchalski.
completed at the end of 2010, we will be able to completely
eliminate system downtime in the event of a server failure or
disaster at our primary site,” said Puchalski.
“We will be able to do upgrades and patching during the
day. Our IT staff will no longer have to work over Christmas
and Easter to conduct server maintenance.”
day. Our IT staff will no longer have to work over Christmas
and Easter to conduct server maintenance.”
The rollout of the Cisco UCS Blade Server Chassis has
enabled Holmesglen TAFE to reduce server hardware costs
by about 30%, increase processing power, cut the amount
of space in the data centre required to house its servers by
half and save on power and cooling costs.
enabled Holmesglen TAFE to reduce server hardware costs
by about 30%, increase processing power, cut the amount
of space in the data centre required to house its servers by
half and save on power and cooling costs.
“The CPUs and memory in the blade servers are packed
together tightly in the rack, which means that one blade
server can do the job of six or seven of our old servers,”
said Puchalski. “We now have room to grow as the TAFE
network expands in the future. We can also reduce our
carbon emissions.”
together tightly in the rack, which means that one blade
server can do the job of six or seven of our old servers,”
said Puchalski. “We now have room to grow as the TAFE
network expands in the future. We can also reduce our
carbon emissions.”
Virtual server technology also enables Holmesglen to create
virtual machines on a small number of blade servers, which
has helped reduce hardware costs.
virtual machines on a small number of blade servers, which
has helped reduce hardware costs.
“Virtualisation also reduces the time it takes to provision
new servers from days or weeks to minutes,” said
Puchalski. “We save time and money and our IT staff can
focus on more important tasks.”
new servers from days or weeks to minutes,” said
Puchalski. “We save time and money and our IT staff can
focus on more important tasks.”
The new Cisco wireless network enables students to access
applications from any location within the three campuses.
applications from any location within the three campuses.
“We have around 4,500 desktop PCs around our Institute
and with the recent growth in demand for IT resources we
always have had a shortage,” said Puchalski. “Students can
now use their laptops to access the network without having
to find a PC in the library or computer lab.”
and with the recent growth in demand for IT resources we
always have had a shortage,” said Puchalski. “Students can
now use their laptops to access the network without having
to find a PC in the library or computer lab.”