Establishing your software-defined data centre

Shift your attention from managing hardware to improving efficiency in a multi-cloud environment.

FacebookTwitterLinkedIn
Establishing your software-defined data centre

 

The software-defined data centre (SDDC) is the ideal hub to connect disparate resources across multiple public and private clouds for the seamless delivery of digital services.

The world is moving towards multi-cloud deployments, as organisations increasingly mix and match public cloud platforms and on-premises deployments to meet their IT needs. Unsurprisingly, a recent report from analyst firm IDC observed that 72.3% of cloud users currently have a mix of on-premises and off-premises cloud deployments1.

The case for SDDC

The reasons for going multi-cloud are varied, and ranges from a desire to deploy new applications alongside existing systems, having applications reside in optimal environments, and to protect against cloud lock-in. What is less obvious is the increased IT complexity that a multi-cloud strategy entails2, on top of overheads such as the need to keep abreast of rapid developments across multiple public cloud platforms and the need to manage the inevitable cloud sprawl.

The software-defined data centre (SDDC) is the ideal hub to connect disparate resources across multiple public and private clouds for the seamless delivery of digital services. An SDDC essentially wraps traditional components in the form of compute, storage and networking into an integrated system that supports on-demand infrastructure allocation and programmatic access to resources.

With their on-premises hardware encapsulated as part of a highly-manageable private cloud through SDDC, enterprises can now shift their attention away from managing hardware to leveraging the virtualised infrastructure stack to their advantage. This means IT personnel can focus their resources on how best to meet business needs and improve the agility of their organisational.

Establishing your SDDC

When it comes to switching to an SDDC, organisations that have already rolled out virtualised infrastructure will find themselves having an easier time with the migration3. The biggest barrier would undoubtedly be legacy systems, which should be gradually replaced or virtualised ahead of the big move – ideally with hyperconverged infrastructure (HCI).

For the rest of the infrastructure, the simplest approach would be to run the existing systems in parallel with the new deployment, with existing workloads migrated to the software-defined infrastructure in batches. Alternatively, the SDDC can be built over time as legacy equipment are retired and replaced with new hardware, akin to the normal replacement of data centre over its lifecycle4.

Finally, deployment within a cloud data centre that has been optimised for SDDC deployments can make a world of difference. For a start, such a facility will sport the power density required to properly meet HCI requirements without the delays and costs of installing auxiliary cooling. In addition, advanced DCIM offers real-time information on parameters such as the performance of systems in the data centre, power, and cooling, allowing enterprises to better track and tweak their operational efficiency.

Connecting the SDDC

A crucial but often overlooked aspect of the SDDC would surely be the network connectivity to external resources. Experienced CIOs know that fast and robust network connectivity is not always a given, especially across complex, multi-cloud deployments. Yet interdependences between cloud services is such that even intermittent network issues can trigger race conditions or culminate in limited outages – and mean that preferential access to key public cloud platforms is often necessary.

Another consideration is the availability of low-latency access between more than one data centre, which can make the difference between an organisation’s ability to deploy an active-active site or to successfully fail over into a backup data centre during an outage. Moreover, databases or storage volumes are also more reliably replicated across multiple locations for safekeeping and backup.

Aware of the need for reliable, fast networking, Singtel’s DC Connect leverages advanced software-defined networking (SDN) technology to let enterprises move workloads between multiple data centres and public cloud platforms through a single connection. And instead of having to wait weeks or months to provision bandwidth, a centralised console lets administrators dial-up or dial-down on their requirements to meet their requirements.

As enterprises start on their journey towards digital transformation for greater organisational agility and to support future growth, network services such as DC Connect can help to strengthen and support network requirements at digital speed. Book a preview of DC Connect today!

IDC CloudView Research 2017

Multi-cloud management still a work in progress for IT teams

Software-defined data center: How to get started

Moving data center strategies: What to consider in an SDDC transition

Download Singtel's DC Connect brochure.