Systems Architecture

Keeping the business running and reducing cost, whilst the business itself is increasingly demanding more in terms of service levels and capabilities are the challenges for IT departments today. You need to do more with less:

Increasing Operational Efficiency Solutions

Increasing operational efficiency solutions enable you to reduce the risk, cost and effort required to operate and manage IT infrastructure, whilst at the same time increasing the service levels, security and support for end users. The following table explains how you can achieve these objectives with Computer Support of San Diego and the Windows Server System.

Business Objective

Management: Manage your entire Windows infrastructure from a single location.

Costs: Reduce Total Cost of Ownership (TCO) by 30%.

Service levels: Wide availability of offerings from hardware vendors that ensure high availability and scalability. Management best practices enable improved service levels.

Business Value

Management:

• Take control of your IT infrastructure by creating a central point of administration that saves your IT staff time and effort.
• Enable your IT staff to ensure consistent configuration of servers and desktops throughout your organization, and rapidly make configuration changes and to roll them out throughout organization.
• Avoid swapping CDs to install new servers and desktops. Rapidly and easily deploy, repair, migrate, and upgrade systems.
• Delegate routine configuration and operations tasks to trusted individuals in the organization, conserving valuable IT administrator time for the most critical functions and projects.
• Reduce manual effort of managing users by implementing a single directory to store identities and authenticate and authorize users.

Costs

• Save up to 30% of your IT costs by consolidating servers and reducing your investment in hardware, software, and support.
• Upgrade from high-TCO and legacy platforms. Windows Server System leads the industry in price/performance, giving you the best value for your IT investment.
• Cut your help-desk expenses by 50% by minimizing trips to users' desktops and the manual steps to solve support-call-related issues.
• Reduce the manual effort of keeping systems up-to-date by automatically distributing, installing, and configuring software to desktops and servers based on the computers' and users' roles in the company.
• Minimize requests for tape backup restore of accidentally lost files by enabling user self-recovery.

Service levels:

• Use a high-reliability platform that achieves 99.99% availability. Eliminate 80% of your reboots per server versus Windows NT4.
• Use a high-performance platform that is significantly faster than NT4, specifically 345% faster as directory server, 64-148% faster as file server, and 487% faster as Web server, and that allows faster access to mission-critical documents, files, and network resources.
• Use a platform that is 87 times more scalable than NT4 and that allows your organization's computing needs to match business needs.
• Secure your infrastructure by using a platform that has 60% less attack surface area by default compared to Windows NT 4.0 SP3.

Increasing Infrastructure Productivity Solutions

Increasing infrastructure productivity solutions enable you to increase the security, reliability and management of your messaging infrastructure, with greater protection from virus and spam. This creates a higher degree of communication and collaboration for your users anytime, anywhere. The following table explains how you can achieve these objectives with Computer Support of San Diego and the Windows Server System.

Business Objective

• Communication - Create a secure, remote messaging infrastructure. Increase reliability, business uptime, and protection from viruses and spam using a familiar, well-integrated end-user experience with Outlook®.
• Mobile and remote user - Enable anytime, anywhere access. Enable remote and mobile device access, providing the same familiar Windows and Outlook experience that your end users demand.
• Collaboration - Enable team collaboration while increasing IT security and manageability. Enable team productivity with familiar Windows experience that your end users demand while increasing security and manageability.

Business Value

• Improving availability and security of the communications infrastructure.
   
• Lowering ongoing infrastructure operational costs.
   
• Deploying Windows Server TM 2003, Active Directory, Exchange Server 2003, and Outlook 2003 to take advantage of these benefits:
   
• Benefiting from advanced information management features of Outlook 2003.
   
• Experiencing overall improved performance with Exchange 2003.
   
• Deploying better anti-spam capabilities delivered by the combined solution.
   
• Integrating with the security systems in Windows Server 2003 and Exchange Server 2003.
   
• Improving antivirus capabilities enabled by Exchange Server 2003.
   
• ISA Server 2004 delivers advanced security for Exchange Server 2003 through integrated application layer filtering. Reduced operational costs are made possible by using Active Directory®, site and server consolidation and improved management facilities delivered through the Microsoft Operations Manager.

Mobile and remote users:This message extends the value proposition of the previous theme by focusing on the mobile and remote e-mail access capabilities delivered by Exchange Server 2003.

• Increase Information Worker productivity by making it easier to access mission-critical business information contained in their e-mail anywhere and anytime using a wide variety of devices and connections. For the first time, Microsoft delivers these capabilities in a form that is easy to deploy, low cost to manage, and which meets the security requirements of a majority of our clients.
   
• Fast and easy access to e-mail from Windows Mobile®-connected devices: SmartPhone, Pocket PC Phone Edition devices, Outlook Web Access, and Outlook RPC/HTTP connections.
   
• Inclusion of the mobile access components directly into Exchange has greatly simplified the deployment of these services, resulting in lower deployment and management costs. Integration with Windows Server 2003, Windows XP, Outlook 2003, and ISA enable connections that meet the security requirements of most clients.

Collaboration: The deployment of Windows Server 2003, Windows SharePoint Services, and Outlook 2003 enables IT to deliver new business value by enabling team document sharing and team productivity technologies. Because these technologies are part of an integrated set of familiar client and server applications, you are able to implement while increasing security and manageability and decreasing end-user support.

Microsoft Technology Solutions

The Technologies

Computer Support of San Diego's relationship with Microsoft spans over 10 years. This ensures that its Microsoft certified Consultants, Technical Architects, Engineers and Trainers have prompt and direct access to Microsoft staff and in-depth access to exclusive resources and early product information which is evaluated in the dedicated Computer Support of San Diego test lab.

This means that whatever the level of involvement you require from Computer Support of San Diego, be that a free technology workshop or business briefing to keep you up to date with current and new Microsoft technologies, technical or end user training, architecture design, design ratification, solution deployment or indeed to outsource the operation of your complete IT infrastructure, Computer Support of San Diego are best placed to help you achieve your infrastructure business objectives

Windows Server 2003 Migration - Takes the best of Windows 2000 Server technology and makes it easier to deploy, manage, and use. The result: a highly productive infrastructure that helps make your network a strategic asset for your organization.

If you are planning to migrate from Windows NT4/2000 or Novell to Windows Server 2003, Computer Support of San Diego can help you drive down the cost of implementation and achieve greater server consolidation, higher availability and improved scalability.

Computer Support of San Diego Technical Architects (TA's) have successfully migrated many of its client environments from 100 to 5000 users. Computer Support of San Diego TA's work from initial consultation and planning, through to implementation and rollout. Computer Support of San Diego use a tried and tested phased approach of workshop, scope/audit, test, implementation, review and support.

Part of this migration strategy includes a thorough understanding of your business and technical objectives which Computer Support of San Diego believe is fundamental to developing the correct strategy.

There are two ways to illustrate Computer Support of San Diego's approach to migrating from Windows NT4 to Windows 2003.

• Domain Upgrade - A domain upgrade is the process of upgrading the Primary Domain Controller (PDC) and the Backup Domain Controller BDCs of a Windows NT domain from Windows NT Server to Windows 2003
• Domain Restructure/Consolidation - A domain restructure is a complete redesign of the domain structure, usually resulting in fewer, larger domains. This choice is for those who are dissatisfied with their current domain structure or who feel that they cannot manage an upgrade without serious impact to their production environment.

Upgrade and restructure are not mutually exclusive; some organizations might upgrade first and then restructure, while others might restructure from the start. Computer Support of San Diego can advise you on which route is the most appropriate for your business and plan its implementation. A recovery plan will also be put in place to prevent accidental data loss during upgrade, which will be the procedure of how to back up your domain controllers, applications, and other data. The recovery plan will determine if there is a point at which incremental migration can stop and full migration can begin.

Once the new Windows environment is running your key business systems, Computer Support of San Diego's accredited engineering teams can provide flexible support for your infrastructure whenever you need it.

Active Directory Design - A central component of the Windows platform, Active Directory provides the means to manage identities and relationships that make up network environments. Windows Server 2003 makes Active Directory simpler to manage and easier to migrate and deploy.

You can use Computer Support of San Diego's experienced design capabilities to implement and migrate the solution for you or have an experienced Technical Architect ratify a design on the drawing board and be on-hand as you implement and migrate the solution in-house.

Active Directory design is a crucial part of an organization's environment. It plays many roles; from being the backbone of distributed security to providing a service publishing framework. Therefore any design needs to be right from the start. Computer Support of San Diego's Microsoft Solution division will ensure that your business optimizes the benefits of Active Directory through detailed planning of the structure, designing and testing the solution, and implementing a phased rollout

Computer Support of San Diego take a thorough approach to designing Active Directory and take particular care in auditing the following:

• Company geographic distribution
   
• Company departmental distribution
   
• Company politics and administration centers
   
• Company policies
   
• Company office size and communication links
   
• Company applications
   
• Company plans for growth and acquisition

Exchange Server 2003 - Exchange Server, the Microsoft messaging and collaboration server, is software that runs on servers and that enables you to send and receive electronic mail and other forms of interactive communications through computer networks. Designed to interoperate with a software client application such as Outlook®, Exchange Server also interoperates with Outlook Express and other e-mail client applications.

Computer Support of San Diego prides itself on implementing and designing Exchange 2003 messaging systems, which take advantage of the new features incorporated into Exchange 2003 since Exchange 5.5/2000. Increases in reliability, scalability and performance have enabled companies to realize the true value of Exchange and many organizations now believe that it is the most mission critical part of their IT investment.

Computer Support of San Diego are able to offer advice on long term strategic uses of Microsoft Exchange which include the following:

• Integrating Exchange into company portals and collaboration products
   
• The ability to deliver messaging through mobile solutions
   
• Archiving and regulatory issues
   
• Email retention and Reference Information Storage Systems ((RISS)

Migrating from other messaging solutions such as GroupWise/Lotus Notes or upgrading from Exchange 5.5 requires careful planning and design work. Computer Support of San Diego use Technical Architects with specializations in Exchange to deliver the right solution, ensuring a successful transition.

Computer Support of San Diego analyze the company structure and size in detail and take special care with regional and branch offices to ensure that the Exchange design takes advantage of the latest developments built in Exchange 2003 and Outlook 2003. These include:

• Centralized Exchange design for operational efficiency
   
• Taking advantage of Outlook 2003 Cached mode with slow links in branch offices

Computer Support of San Diego have a specific mobility offering for Exchange Server 2003, enabling remote users to access email and data from home or on the road.

Learn about Computer Support of San Diego's Microsoft Mobile Solutions

Microsoft server/storage consolidation and server virtualization - Many companies have realized that over the years, their Microsoft server and storage estate has grown exponentially. In some cases it has grown out of control leading to spiraling support costs and ineffective management. Computer Support of San Diego have realized this and have the expertise to advise on consolidating the environment.

Computer Support of San Diego employs Principal Consultants experienced in datacenter consolidation projects outside the Microsoft arena. Computer Support of San Diego use these expertise along with its Microsoft Technical Architects to provide consolidation solutions. Computer Support of San Diego couple this knowledge with the latest know-how in server and software technology. These include:

• Server Blade Technology
   
• NAS storage technology (NetApp and Microsoft Storage Server 2003)
   
• Server Virtualization Technology (VMware and Microsoft Virtual Server)
   
• Windows System Resource Manager

Our consultants have the breadth of expertise to consolidate the following business platforms:

• File and Print servers
   
• Exchange server consolidation and redesign
   
• SQL server consolidation (multiple instances on large scale servers)
   
• Domain consolidation and rationalization
   
• Web server consolidation

Operating system (OS) virtualization software, which can emulate multiple guest OS's on a host OS such as Windows Server 2003, enables organizations to run legacy applications from diverse platforms on consolidated servers. For example, a virtual server can be used to create a virtual Windows NT or OS/2 server on Windows Server 2003. Computer Support of San Diego uses its expertise in VMWare and Microsoft Virtual Server to consolidate multiple server environments into larger scale single boxes hosting multiple guest operating systems.

Windows SharePoint Services - Arguably the best kept secret of Windows Server 2003, Windows SharePoint Services allows teams to create web sites for information sharing and document collaboration, benefits that help individual and team productivity. Windows SharePoint is a component of the Windows Server 2003 information worker infrastructure and provides team services and sites to Microsoft Office System and other desktop programs. It also serves as a platform for application development.

Computer Support of San Diego use its expertise in Windows AD design, Microsoft Exchange and portal development expertise to develop Sharepoint solutions. Computer Support of San Diego's direct links with Microsoft's Sharepoint teams, enable it to deliver the most effective portal solutions.

Learn about Computer Support of San Diego's Microsoft Sharepoint Portal Solutions

Microsoft Thin Client including Citrix

Many organizations have moved into the 'thin' world of server-centric computing. This is still an area which requires the most careful thought and planning to achieve the best results.

Computer Support of San Diego will devise a Terminal Services Design (incorporating hardware requirements) based on your business requirements which may include; administrative control, remote access, a core set of business applications and central desktop deployment.

To enable you to take optimum advantage of thin client technology Computer Support of San Diego can also introduce Citrix MetaFrame - Computer Support of San Diego are a Silver Accredited Citrix Partner. In the right place and with adequate planning and testing Citrix technology can produce tremendous benefits in terms of administration, security, application deployment and cost.

Many businesses rely on older releases of Citrix technology and have yet to take advantage of the newer release providing higher levels of resilience and load-balancing; capable of driving thousands of users.

Computer Support of San Diego Citrix consultants can help you evaluate your Citrix requirements, and develop a plan to create the appropriate testing, evaluation and implementation of server-centric systems. Computer Support of San Diego take into consideration the following areas:

• Number of and types users
   
• Number and types of applications
   
• Number of geographic sites
   
• Bandwidth between sites
   
• Scalability and size of Citrix/Thin Client server farms
   
• Type of Citrix software required

Learn more about the Microsoft products used in Computer Support of San Diego solutions and services