best practice include ration 218878

8/12/2019 Best Practice Include Ration 218878

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G00218878

Best Practice: Include Rationalization and

Consolidation in Your Virtualization PlansPublished: 28 September 2011

Analyst(s): Philip Dawson

IT managers know that virtualization can deliver efficiencies and cost savings

across the IT infrastructure, enabling many other projects and functions.

However, a virtualization strategy that does not include the rationalization of

workloads and the consolidation of servers leaves money on the table,

which is inexcusable in times of tight budgets and limited growth.

Key Findings Server rationalization offers one of the biggest cost savings of all the elements of a virtualization

and consolidation strategy by reducing the number of hardware platforms.

Vendors are in business to sell hardware, software and services, and they may not be aligned

with your rationalization projects.

You may not be able to modernize legacy systems and may be better off leaving big, scale-upapplications as is.

Virtualization of infrastructure should simplify and consolidate technology, not create more

issues to be managed.

Recommendations IT managers/buyers should include rationalization projects in their virtualization efforts.

IT managers/buyers should work with more than one vendor to reduce dependence and obtain

realistic insights into your virtualization plans.

Don't let vendors sell you on "100% virtualization"; double your 40% virtualization efforts today

to 80% and be cautious about the last 20%.

Consider retiring workloads that are obsolete or bring low business value.

IT managers/buyers should reduce complexity by rationalizing, retiring or outsourcing complex

niche and legacy workloads, or by moving them to a mainstream platform.


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AnalysisIT managers in most enterprises are enthusiastically moving ahead with plans to virtualize many

systems in the IT infrastructure. They recognize that virtualization delivers efficiencies and cost

savings, freeing up funds that can be applied to many other IT projects and functions. However, in

the rush to virtualize everything from storage to servers, the need to rationalize or reduce types ofworkloads can become lost. IT managers should build a comprehensive plan that takes all variables

into account and includes the rationalization of certain workloads and the consolidation of

applications as part of the virtualization strategy. Failure to do this can end up costing the

organization, and can have other negative impacts, as managers juggle a variety of extraneous

systems.

The Gartner Rationalization Model

For more than 10 years, Gartner has been refining its virtualization and consolidation models

through client engagements, workshops and interactions. We have added the rationalization

function to existing collocation, storage consolidation and workload consolidation models.

Rationalization involves a reduction in the number of physical servers, OS instances and

applications. We recommend that IT rationalize servers, consolidate storage and reduce complexity

by performing one or both of the following tasks:

Retire or outsource complex, niche and legacy workloads move them to a mainstream

platform (predominantly toward x86) and/or storage protocol and formation, such as Fibre

Channel (FC), Network File System (NFS), Common Internet File System (CIFS) and Internet

Small Computer System Interface (iSCSI).

Collapse users of multiple similar applications onto a single choice (e.g., if several ERP

packages are being used, then the company moves to use a single one).

Look for suite products that can address multiple requirements in one application, where

previously multiple separate applications and servers were used to meet one requirement

apiece.

Look for opportunities to host more than one application on a single server instance, thus

reducing the number of virtual machines (VMs) and the costs, but still delivering the same

number of running apps.

Look for opportunities to combine users onto fewer instances, such as moving users from two

or more file servers onto a single file server with higher capacity.

Rationalization Advances Cost Reduction

By getting rid of the infrastructure "dead wood," rationalization can further your virtualization

strategy's progress in reducing costs. IT managers know that random server proliferation is highly

inefficient. Take the following steps:

Assess physical systems and measure their associated capital expenditures (capex) versus

operating expenses (opex).

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Separate direct-attached storage (DAS) systems, for example, by deploying storage-attached

networks (SANs), that enable devices such as disk arrays and tape libraries to be consolidated

and shared by many servers. This can be achieved by attaching them via an FC or iSCSI SAN to

the OS, or network-attached storage (NAS). This will enable faster data access, easier

administration, increased productivity and simpler configuration. Storage/server/DAS separation

is necessary to move forward and can expose storage costs.

Logically consolidate physical servers. For example, move from 1,000 servers to 1,000 blades.

Commodity hardware can address this space focus around blades with virtual input/output.

Server management is key.

Virtualize the servers. Move from 1,000 blades to 1,000 VMs on 100 blades. Preventing VM

sprawl will enhance your benefits and reduce complexity.

Rationalize the servers. If you can move to 800 to 900 VMs onto 80 to 90 blades, even better.

This would retire and rationalize 100 to 200 workloads. Then you reduce cost and complexity by

10% to 20%.

Rationalize the actual application workload. Instead of having tens of MS Exchange or

SharePoint servers, consolidate them into fewer, but more powerful, servers and storage

devices. Similarly, consolidate database workloads from hundreds of separate database

instances on hundreds of virtual hosts to fewer larger databases on more powerful servers,

appliances or converged systems.

Virtualization of infrastructure should enable you to simplify and consolidate the technology, rather

than create more issues for you to manage. Start by retiring low-complexity, low-value workloads,

which will lead to easy savings. Then, look at simplifying infrastructure for high-value workloads,

with the drive to x86. Finally, for complex IT/low-business-value workloads, clients can choose

whether to simplify IT first before retiring workloads, depending on the cost and risk. IT departmentsshould not move the problem from one platform to another, but consolidate the application

software, the number of OS instances and the application workloads.

Exceptions and Caveats

There will always be exceptions to this approach. For example, you may not be able to modernize

proprietary legacy systems and may be better off leaving big, scale-up applications alone. Also,

analyze existing service contracts with bundled pricing. Such workloads are all right to have, but

they require fencing off and that costs be understood and realized. Furthermore, you may want to

retire or outsource some workloads that are obsolete.

Even the best vendors may not be on board with your rationalization plans. Although they aim toassist with IT infrastructure consolidation and virtualization projects, their business is to sell

hardware, software and services. Their goals may not be completely aligned with your objectives,

such as reducing the number of application license fees. Be aware that vendors may tend to view

rationalization and consolidation as a way to move other vendors applications to their own

systems. This is not rationalization, but vendor substitution. Server rationalization offers the biggest

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