IBM and Marist College have announced a joint
project – now in the testing stage – that could change the way data centres
prepare for impending natural disasters. The solution involves using a cloud-computing
environment to re-provision data centres in minutes, using only a mobile device
and a wireless connection.
When a natural disaster is imminent, data
centre operators immediately set about the process of re-provisioning. Simply put, re-provisioning moves data and
online applications to another server not in harm's way. Unfortunately, the process can take days to
complete using technology currently available. Often, data centres do not have that much
advance warning.
Superstorm Sandy a Good Example
Last year's super storm Sandy is just one
example of what could happen when there isn't enough time to re-provision. As the storm bore down on the north-eastern
United States, it destroyed communications networks and put a number of data
centres literally underwater. A year
later, some of those data centres still haven't recovered. In the days and weeks after the storm, there
were still millions of businesses and individual consumers in the North-east
without access to network data communications.
IBM's new system could be a significant game-changer
should the test at Marist College prove successful. The system takes advantage of what is known as
software-defined networking (SDN) in a cloud-computing environment. The software allows for more efficient management
of data in both physical and virtual networks, while also allowing immediate
changes to network resources, even from remote locations.
Disaster Intervention
The system, in theory, changes the game from
disaster prevention to disaster intervention. As soon as data centre operators know a
potentially damaging storm is imminent, they could begin re-provisioning right
away. Just bring up the software on any
mobile device and they are off and running. Systems engineers don't even need to be
present to get the job done. What's
more, there is no interruption in service for the millions of customers who
might be using a series of data centres in the storm's path.
In a world becoming increasingly more
dependent on virtualisation and cloud computing, the system cannot be ready
soon enough. IBM is working to make the
software commercially available sometime next year. It is likely to become an instant success
should it deliver what IBM is promising.
For the record, the SDN lab at Marist College
is sponsored by IBM, also providing testing facilities for a number of other
important technologies. The lab is
heavily involved in helping IBM develop cloud-computing technologies by
providing an environment for testing using real-time scenarios. IBM has used the lab to develop an open-source
SDN controller, develop a software device that can predict and prevent Internet
traffic congestion and better control video streaming within the cloud.
The success of the lab suggests that the test
of IBM's new disaster intervention system will go well. We are looking forward to the commercial
release of the software next year. Once
it becomes main stream, it could hopefully mean the end of service
interruptions as a result of natural disasters and other unforeseen events...
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