Chiyo
Save Me Konata-Chan
Premium
join:2003-02-20
Minneapolis, MN
clubs:
 ·Comcast
| Your 2009 project / budget list?
Hey everyone,
With this tight economy we've all had to pull our belts tighter and the same can be said in the world of IT. Luckily CPU speeds have stayed constant and the software to hardware requirements aren't bloated to an extreme like years past.
So what are you big projects that you have lined up for 2009 and are you working with a smaller budget than last year?
personally I can't say because i'm out of work but I'd love to read what everyone else is up too.
--
My Blog:
»abanzai.animeblogger.net/ |
|
Jameson
10-8
Premium
join:2004-05-28
Fallbrook, CA
clubs:
 ·HughesNet Satellit..
·Time Warner Cable
| said by Chiyo  :Hey everyone, So what are you big projects that you have lined up for 2009 *Deploying two new AD servers with Windows Server 2008 & migrating to Exchange.
*Replacing some old 3Com switches.
*Replacing old user machines.
said by Chiyo :and are you working with a smaller budget than last year? Surprisingly no, I have a larger budget than last year. |
|
ashs2dst
join:2002-03-24
Hillsdale, NJ
| reply to Chiyo
To be honest, we have not even finalized it yet... I had an extensive list of upgrades, but I was basically told if sales dont't improve by 2nd quarter 2009 that we will be losing employees.
But this is my list
Replace accounting deparment pc's (4)
Install exchange 2007 in both sites( I was unsure if I should do 1 server in each site for mailboxes and use our office for the edge...)
Upgrade main office connection from 1.5mb SDSL line to 20/20 Fios with static.
Standardize Wireless through enterprise and replace soho type Wireless access points with commercial grade multi radio access points.
Install IP Cameras at main office entrances and exits. |
|
NetAdmin
CCNA
join:2008-05-22
| reply to Chiyo
said by Chiyo :So what are you big projects that you have lined up for 2009 and are you working with a smaller budget than last year? -Implement drive replication to an off site location
-P2V about 30 servers to an R900 ESX cluster
-Upgrade/redesign the internal corporate network for this market to support VoIP.
-Replace our aging and flaky tape library
As for the budget, I think we managed to get it submitted before things got really bad, so there weren't any real cuts.
--
"This is a bus. You know how big a bus is?" |
|
Matt
Take me down to the paradise city
Premium
join:2003-07-20
Jamestown, NC
 ·North State Commun..
| reply to Chiyo
Luckily, I got all our upgrades in place before the 2009 budget. We're a smaller company, but we're set for 2009 as far as capacity. We're not even at 50% utilization on our public server infrastructure, although our internal AD/Exchange servers are very close to capacity and we're out of resources for virtual machines.
We are implementing an RSA SecurID system so we can provide our clients with a hardware password keyfob. That should be a fun one ... RSA SecurID Appliance, RSA Authentication Client, JBoss, OpenLDAP, SASL, and PAM, all which have to be integrated seamlessly ... oh joy. |
|
drew
Reformation
Premium
join:2002-07-10
Port Orchard, WA
clubs:
·wavebroadband
| We are PCI/DSS compliant now, but are struggling with two-factor authentication for remote access.
I wonder how much a RSA SecurID system would cost to implement. Log into the server remotely but have to input in the generated ID and a code.... hmmm
--
Come play Mafia! | WA State Politics |
|
Matt
Take me down to the paradise city
Premium
join:2003-07-20
Jamestown, NC
·North State Commun..
| said by drew :We are PCI/DSS compliant now, but are struggling with two-factor authentication for remote access. I wonder how much a RSA SecurID system would cost to implement. Log into the server remotely but have to input in the generated ID and a code.... hmmm What are you using for remote access? There are plugins for AD/RRAS and IAS. |
|
Steve
I'm a PC, so shut up
Consultant
join:2001-03-10
Yorba Linda, CA | reply to Chiyo
You folks are all missing substantial line items for Consulting Services
Steve  |
|
Matt
Take me down to the paradise city
Premium
join:2003-07-20
Jamestown, NC
·North State Commun..
| said by Steve :You folks are all missing substantial line items for Consulting ServicesSteve Ha ha. Speaking of which, I've had a task to contract out an external security audit for a year or so now. It just keeps getting pushed back ... |
|
PToN
join:2001-10-04
Houston, TX
| reply to Chiyo
I actually got my hands full since 4 months ago and will be that way till at least next December.
P2V all our servers. (1 month)
Replace all old switches with L2 switches and implement VLANs (1-2 months)
Design and develop our new internal portal with custom webapps. That's DB, UI, business rules, testing, etc (3-4 months)
Update the documentation with new diagrams, etc (1 month)
Design and develop new customer portal and integrate it with our ERP. (4-6 months)
Plus whatever else gets on the way. |
|
Matt
Take me down to the paradise city
Premium
join:2003-07-20
Jamestown, NC | reply to Chiyo
Just out of curiosity, why are so many of you moving your servers to virtual environments? |
|
JoelC707
join:2002-07-09
Tucson, AZ
clubs:
| I did it about 6-8 months ago because I can do more with these two servers than I ever could with individual servers. It started with a program called Teleform that MUST have it's own server. Never mind the server basically does nothing because it's all SQL driven, it would NOT cooperate unless it had it's own server.
We started out with 1 server like most small businesses do. We quickly added a second server for web and email duties. The first server was and still is our terminal server. Then we found we needed a 3rd server for Teleform (we were skimping by with SQL on the 1st server). By now it's becoming clear this isn't going to cut it. So we get a dedicated SQL server and an old desktop to become the dedicated AD server. We've now got 5 servers at this point and except for the 1st server, are all old P3 based servers.
Fast forward to the beginning of this year. We still have 5 physical servers but we also have 5 virtual servers and a couple of desktop virtual machines for remote access to those pesky applications that do not play nice with TS/RDP/Citrix. We still have that first server (a 2600) as our TS server. Next we bought two identical 2950 III's for the virtual servers. And finally we have a 1650 for Trixbox and a 1750 for AD (also have a secondary AD in VM).
This really helped in terms of power and cooling. Instead of several noisy, power hungry servers that sit idle all day long, I can throw them in a VM with the bare minimum config to keep them happy and let the rest of the virtual server get used by SQL or Exchange. Right now whatever resources aren't being used are being given to SQL on one server and Exchange on the other. They don't use all of their resources so I can easily drop them back without recourse if I need room for another server/desktop. Power isn't an issue for us because it's free at our complex (don't know how but I know it's been this way since the beginning and it isn't being added to the rent), but cooling was becoming a problem. |
|
Mike
Premium,Mod
join:2000-09-17
Pittsburgh, PA
clubs:
 ·Verizon FIOS
·Verizon Online DSL
Host:
Site Tools
W.O.W.
FairPoint
World of Warcraft
Alltel Axcess
| reply to Chiyo
Exchange 2007
03 -> 08 domain controllers WITHOUT breaking Open Directory
Figure out why I can't hit all subnets / VLANs via Apple Remote Desktop.
Finally create a Task Server for unicasting instead of multicasting everything. That's been creating angry users with VoIP.
Update windows software packages.
Write better documentation.
Get rid of Citrix and replace it with pre-set Microsoft Remote Desktop .rdp connections on the mac side.
--
"If something about the human body disgusts you, complain to the manufacturer" - Lenny Bruce
What this country needs is a good five dollar plasma weapon. |
|
Matt
Take me down to the paradise city
Premium
join:2003-07-20
Jamestown, NC
·North State Commun..
| said by Mike :03 -> 08 domain controllers WITHOUT breaking Open Directory I thought about that one too, but I'm going to set aside several months for research and testing. Good luck. |
|
Mike
Premium,Mod
join:2000-09-17
Pittsburgh, PA
clubs:
·Verizon FIOS
·Verizon Online DSL
Host:
Site Tools
W.O.W.
FairPoint
World of Warcraft
Alltel Axcess
| Oh here's a protip from RTFM and press stuff and see what happens.
The default schema in 08 is different than 03. Meaning if you have Open Directory in play, Kerberos authentication hoses and it murders the computer if under 08. You can set it to 03s and it doesn't break anything.
However if you do this without testing, the only fix is reinstall OS X. Huge threads on Apple forums about it. |
|
cypherstream
Looking forward to the future of things.
Premium,MVM
join:2004-12-02
Reading, PA
clubs:
| reply to Chiyo
Big Class C to Class A IP upgrade. Going to be a tough one, but really nice when finished.
New backup programs and plans.
Branch office replication.
Upgrade the VM server so it can run more VM's!
Clean up the mess.
New PC's (about 50 or so).
Scripting / profile management (already in progress)
WSUS
Possibly WiFi
DHCP hopefully
Some new mission critical application servers.
and much much more. |
|
NetAdmin
CCNA
join:2008-05-22
| reply to Matt
said by Matt :Just out of curiosity, why are so many of you moving your servers to virtual environments? The short answer, we have way too many servers. The previous management liked to order a new server for EVERY application that was coded and deployed, regardless of how often it was used or how complex it was. So it didn't matter if it was a simple website site that ran a quick query on a database and presented a single page of information to one user every couple of days, it got a whole server.
When the new regime came in (I'm one of those folks), it was decided that instead of replacing those servers as they go out of warranty, the machines would be virtualized, eliminating 30 mostly idle servers consuming several kW of power.
It also fits in very nicely with the corporate initiatives to reduce our environmental impact.
--
"This is a bus. You know how big a bus is?" |
|
jester121
Premium
join:2003-08-09
Lake Zurich, IL
 ·surpasshosting
 ·ViaTalk
| reply to Chiyo
Looking forward to 2009 -- we're opening a new site and setting it up right from the start -- no huge data center, but we're doing all the wiring to cover VOIP, IP surveillance, Wifi, etc. Plus the associated server resources and such.
It's nice to be starting from a blank slate. |
|
Matt
Take me down to the paradise city
Premium
join:2003-07-20
Jamestown, NC
·North State Commun..
| said by jester121 :It's nice to be starting from a blank slate. Amen. I inherited a VoIP system from a non-techie and I can't make heads or tails of why there are certain things set up the way they are. I'm trying to push the powers that be to build our own on Trixbox w/ Level 3 SIP trunking, but the costs are a little higher than what we currently pay, even though we get a hundred additional features people want.
If we didn't have to upgrade the bandwidth in our 2nd data center for the VoIP system, we'd save a boatload of money. |
|
Bigzizzzle
Premium
join:2005-01-27
Franklin, TN | reply to PToN
Hope your getting paid the big bucks!!! |
|
