Which type of infrastructure service provides data voice and video connectivity?

1. What is IT infrastructure and what are its components?

1.1 Define IT infrastructure from both a technology and a services perspective.

Technical perspective is defined as the shared technology resources that

provide the platform for the firm’s specific information system applications.

.

Service perspective is defined as providing the foundation for serving

customers, working with vendors, and managing internal firm business

processes.

List and describe the components of IT infrastructure that firms need to

manage.

IT infrastructure includes hardware, software, and services:

1. Computing platforms: Includes mainframes, midrange computers, desktop and laptop computers, and mobile handheld devices

2. Telecommunications services: Data, voice, and video connectivity between employees, customers, and suppliers.

3. Data management: Store, manage and analyze data.

4. Application software: Includes enterprise resource planning, customer relationship management, supply chain management, and knowledge management systems.

5. Physical facilities management: Develop and manage the physical installations for computing, telecommunications, and data management.

6. IT management: Planning and developing the infrastructure, coordinate IT services among business units, manage accounting for IT expenditures, and provide projectmanagement.

2. What are the stages and technology drivers of IT infrastructure evolution?

2.1 List each of the eras in IT infrastructure evolution and describe its distinguishing characteristics.

1. General-purpose mainframe and minicomputer era (1959 to present): Consists of a mainframe performing centralized processing that could be networked to thousands ofterminals and eventually some decentralized and departmental computing using networked minicomputers.

2. Personal computer era (1981 to present): Dominated by the widespread use of standalone desktop computers with office productivity tools.

3. Client/server era (1983 to present): Consists of desktop or laptop clients networked to more powerful server computers that handle most of the data management andprocessing.

4. Enterprise computing era (1992 to present): Defined by large numbers of PCs linked ogether into local area networks and the growing use of standards and software to linkdisparate networks and devices into an enterprise-wide network so that information can flow freely across the organization.

5. Cloud and mobile computing era (2000 to present): A model of computing where firms and individuals obtain computing power and software applications over the Internet, rather than purchasing their own hardware and software.

2.2 Define and describe the following: Web server, application server,

multitiered client/server architecture.

Web server: Software that manages requests for Web pages on the

computer where they are stored and that delivers the page to the user’s

computer.

Application server: Software that handles all application operations between

browser-based computers and a company’s back-end business applications

or databases.

Multitiered client/server architecture: Client/server network in which the work

of the entire network is balanced over several different levels of servers.

2.3 Describe Moore’s Law and the Law of Mass Digital Storage

Moore’s Law:The number of components on a chip with the smallest

manufacturing costs per component (generally transistors) had

doubled each year.

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Law of Mass Digital Storage:The amount of digital information is

roughly doubling every year. The cost of storing digital information is

falling at an exponential rate of 100 percent a year.

2.4 Describe how network economics, declining communication

costs, and technology standards affect IT infrastructure.

Network economics: Metcalfe’s Law helps explain the mushrooming use of

computers by showing that a network’s value to participants grows exponentially as the network takes on more members.

Declining communication costs:Rapid decline in communication costs and

the exponential growth in the size of the Internet is a driving force that affects

the IT infrastructure.

Technology standards:Growing agreement in the technology industry to use computing and communication standards that define specifications that

establish the compatibility of products and the ability to communicate in a

network.

3. What are the current trends in computer hardware platforms?

3.1 Describe the evolving mobile platform, grid computing, and cloud

computing.

Mobile platform: more business computing is moving from PCs and desktop machines to mobile devices like cell phones and smartphones.

Grid computing: Connects geographically remote computers into a single network to create a “virtual supercomputer” by combining the computational power of all computers on the grid.

Cloud computing: the model of computing where firms and individuals obtain computing capacity, data storage, and software applications over the Internet, rather than purchasing

3.2 Explain how businesses can benefit from autonomic computing,

virtualization, green computing, and multicore processors.

Autonomic computing

Systems that automatically do the following:

1. Configure themselves

2. Optimize and tune themselves

3. Heal themselves when broken

4. Protect themselves from outside intruders and self-destruction

5. Reduce maintenance costs

6. Reduce downtime from system crashes

Virtualization

1. Run more than one operating system at the same time on a single machine.

2. Increase server utilization rates to 70 percent or higher.

3. Reduce hardware expenditures. Higher utilization rates translate into fewer computers required to process the same amount of work.

4. Mask server resources from server users.

5. Reduce power expenditures.

6. Run legacy applications on older versions of an operating system on the same server as newer applications

7. Facilitates centralization of hardware administration.

Green computing

1. Businesses can minimize their impact on the environment by adopting better practices and technologies for designing, manufacturing, using, and disposingof computers, servers, and other computing devices.

2. Reducing power consumption in data server centers is the leading practice in the green computing movement.

Multicore processors

1. Cost savings by reducing power requirements and hardware sprawl

2. Less costly to maintain as fewer systems need to be monitored.

3. Performance and productivity benefits beyond the capabilities of today’s

single-core processors.

4. Run applications more efficiently than single-core processors – giving users the ability to keep working even while running the most processor intensivetask in the background.

4. What are the current trends in software platforms?

4.1 Define and describe open source software and Linux and explain their

business benefits.

Open-source software provides all computer users with free access to the program code so they can modify the code, fix errors in it, or to make improvements. Open-source software is not owned by any company or individual.

Linux is the most well-known open-source software. It’s a UNIX-like operating system that can be downloaded from the Internet, free of charge, or purchased for a small fee from companies that provide additional tools for the software.

Businesses can choose from a range of open-source software including operating systems, office suites, Web browsers and games Open source software allows businesses to reduce the total 1-25 browsers, games. Open-cost of ownership. It provides more robust software that’s often more secure than proprietary software.

4.2 Define Java and Ajax and explain why they are important.

Java:  is a programming language that delivers only the software functionality needed for a particular task. With Java, the programmer writes small programscalled applets that can run on another machine on a network. With Java, programmers write programs that can execute on a variety of operating systemsand environments. It is important because of the dramatic growth of Web applications. also it is anoperating system-independent, processor-independent, object-oriented programming language that can run on multiple hardware platforms. It provides astandard format for data exchange on Web sites.

Ajax: is short for Asynchronous JavaScript and XML. It allows a client and server to exchange small pieces of data behind the scene so that an entire Webpage does not have to be reloaded each time the user requests a change. It’s another Web development technique for creating interactive Web applications thatmake it easier and more efficient for Web site users to complete forms and other interactive features.

4.3 Define and describe Web services and the role played by XML.

 Web services offer a standardized alternative for dealing with integration across various computer platforms.  Web services are loosely coupled software components based on XML and open Web standards that are not product specific and can work with any application software and operating system.  They can be used as components of Web-based applications linking the systems of two different organizations or to link disparate systems of a single company.  Web services are not tied to a particular operating system or programming language. Different applications can use them to communicate with each other in a standard way without time-consuming custom coding.

XML provides a standard format for data exchange, enabling Web services to pass data from one process to another

Businesses use Web services to tie their Web sites with external Web sites creating an apparently seamless experience for users.  The benefit derives from not having to re-create applications for each business partner or specific functions within a single company.

4.4  Name and describe the three external sources for software.

Software packages from a commercial software vendor: prewritten commercially available set of software programs that eliminates the need for a firm to write its own software program for certain functions, such as payroll processing or order handling. Software-as-a-service: a business that delivers and manages applications and computer services from remote computer centers to multiple users using the Internet or a private network. Instead of buying and installing software programs, subscribing companies can rent the same functions from these services. Users pay for the use of this software either on a subscription or a per-transaction basis. The business must carefully assess the costs and benefits of the service, weighing all people, organizational, and technology issues. It must ensure it can integrate the software with its existing systems and deliver a level of service and performance that is acceptable for the business.

Outsourcing custom application development: an organization contracts its custom software development or maintenance of existing legacy programs to outside firms, frequently firms that operate offshore in low-wage areas of the world An outsourcer often has the technical and management skills to do the job better, faster, and more efficiently. to outsource the maintenance of an IT infrastructure and the development of new systems to external vendors, a business must weight the pros and cons carefully. Service level agreements are formal contracts between customers and service providers that define the specific responsibilities of the service provider and the level of service expected by the customer.

4.5 Define and describe software mashups and apps.

Mashups are new software applications and services based on combining different online software applications using high-speed data networks, universal communication standards, and open-source code. Entrepreneurs are able to create new software applications and services based on combining different online software applications. The idea is to take different sources and produce a new work that is “greater than” the sum of its parts.  Web mashups combine the capabilities of two or more online applications to create a kind of hybrid that provides more customer value than the original sources alone.

Apps are small pieces of software that run on the Internet, on your computer, or on your cell phone and are generally delivered over the Internet. Google refers to its online services as apps, including the Google Apps suite of desktop productivity tools. But when we talk about apps today, most of the attention goes to the apps that have been developed for the mobile digital Platform. It is these apps that turn smart phones and other mobile handheld devices into general-purpose computing tools. Most of these apps are for the iPhone, Android, and BlackBerry operating system platforms. Many are free or purchased for a small charge, much less than conventional software.

 Mashups let a business combine previously developed Web applications into new ones with new purposes.  They don’t have to re-invent the previous applications from scratch—merely use them in the new processes. 

5. What are the challenges of managing IT infrastructure and management solutions?

5.1 Name and describe the management challenges posed by IT infrastructure.

Creating and maintaining a coherent IT infrastructure raises multiple challenges including:

Making wise infrastructure investments: IT infrastructure is a major capital investment for the firm. If too much is spent on infrastructure, it lies idle and constitutes a drag on firm financial performance. If too little is spent, important business services cannot be delivered and the firm’s competitors will outperform the under investing firm

Coordinating infrastructure components: firms create IT infrastructures by choosing combinations of vendors, people, and technology services and fitting them together so they function as a coherent whole.

Dealing with scalability and technology change: as firms grow, they can quickly outgrow their infrastructure. As firms shrink, they can get stuck with excessive infrastructure purchased in better times. Scalability refers to the ability of a computer, product, or system to expand to serve a larger number of users without breaking down.

Management and governance: involves who will control and manage the firm’s IT infrastructure.

5.2 Explain how using a competitive forces model and calculating the TCO of technology assets help firms make infrastructure investments

The competitive forces model can be used to determine how much to spend on IT infrastructure and where to make strategic infrastructure investments, starting out new infrastructure initiatives with small experimental pilot projects and establishing the total cost of ownership of information technology assets.

The total cost of owning technology resources includes not only the original cost of acquiring and installing hardware and software, but it also includes the ongoing administration costs for hardware and upgrades, maintenance, technical support, training, and even utility and real estate costs for running and housing the technology. The TCO model can be used to analyze these direct and indirect costs to help firms determine the actual cost of specific technology implementations.

Which type of infrastructure services provides voice and video connectivity?

Which type of infrastructure services provides data voice and video connectivity to employees customers and suppliers?

What are the four services that comprise IT infrastructure?

What are the three types of cloud computing services according to Chapter 5 of the essentials of MIS?