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CASE STUDY: The Data Gameplan

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VoicenData Bureau
New Update

The outsourcing of non-core, yet business-critical services has

been much debated over the years. However, it has been accepted that it is

sensible for an enterprise to outsource its hosting needs. Here's a look at

one of the Level-3 data center of a telecom operator, which would help

understand how an organization can carry out commerce and offer quality managed

services with clear 'Service Level Agreements.' To offer managed IT

infrastructure outsourcing services, Reliance has setup world-class Internet

Data Centers (IDC) across major cities in India. Reliance IDC is a managed

service platform for delivering managed hosting, security, storage, disaster

recovery, ASP and professional support services to various enterprise customer

segments.

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Infrastructure Support



Located in seismically stable zones in Reliance's own premises with

multiple layers of physical and electronic security (including biometric access

and 24x7 CCTV recording), the data centers are secure areas. High redundancy on

power supply chain from source level grids to power distribution units, DG sets,

UPS sets and batteries ensure power uptimes. Fire detection system (including

early warning system) and fire suppressions system (based on eco friendly FM200

gas) work in automated coherence. Precision air-conditioning systems standardize

temperature and humidity levels and filter out any harmful gases and dust

particles. All the facility infrastructure is monitored and controlled centrally

through a building management system (BMS).

The

Technology Used
  • Cisco

    12000 series GSR/Juniper M-160 routers

  • Cisco 6500

    series/Nortel Passport multi-service switches

  • Sun Fire 6800

    /V880/V480 servers for ISP applications

  • Sun L700 LTO tape

    library

  • HP Openview suite,

    Web trends enterprise

  • Lucent structured

    cabling

  • Multiple Netscreen

    firewalls

  • Real Secure IDS

  • Alteon AD4 load

    balancing switches

  • Real Networks

    audio video streaming servers

  • Brocade fiber

    channel SAN switches

  • HP-Hitachi/EMC SAN

    with more than 400TB capacity

The IDC facilities measure more than 200,000 sq ft of hosting

space. Two IDCs-35,000 sq ft (IDC1) and 100,000 sq ft (IDC2)-are functioning

in Mumbai and two others-20,000 sq ft (IDC1) and 50,000 sq ft (IDC2)-in

Bangalore. Reliance is further setting up data centers in four other major

cities in India-Chennai, Hyderabad, Delhi, and Kolkata-thus taking the

hosting space over 500,000 sq ft in the next one year.

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The services at the Mumbai IDC range from offering collocation

space to fully managed hosting of servers on rent/lease model. A range of

managed value-added services are offered including remote IT administration,

managed security, backup, streaming, mailing, database administration,

application administration, load balancing, storage services and disaster

recovery/BCP solutions. Sunil Gupta, head of marketing & business operations

for data center services at Reliance Infocomm, says that the IDC is not a

standalone service provider but a complete managed service for the enterprises

and their data needs.

The data centers are connected to 132 countries across four

continents spanning the US, the UK, the Middle East, and Asia Pacific through

Flag Telecom backbone and other undersea cable systems like Se-Me-Wea-3 and i2i

and also have public/private peering relationship with Tier 1 ISPs and content

providers at more than 15 Internet Exchange points across the globe.

Facilities
  • Secure

    facility:
    2 levels of manual and 3 levels of electronic

    security, with biometric access

  • Operations

    with multiple layers of power supply:
    Main feeders from dual

    sources, dual DG sets, dual UPS, and dual electricity

    distribution system, all in highly redundant configurations.

  • Multiple types

    of fire detectors, fire warning systems, FM 200 gas based fire

    suppression systems

  • Raised floors,

    controlled HVAC as per international standards and biometrics

    access

  • Centralized

    building management system (BMS)

  • Accessible on

    shortest paths from over 485+ international carriers/ISPs with

    extensive private peering relationships in 4 continents at more

    than 20 internet exchanges

  • Accessible on

    shortest paths from other major Indian ISPs with direct private

    peering relationships as well as peering at NIXI

  • Accessible on

    Reliance's 3G, CDMA 1x RTT based wireless data services from

    1100+ cities in India. Currently 1million+ active users of this

    service.

  • Accessible on

    Reliance's MPLS IP VPN network from more than 220 cities

    across the country. Currently 20,000+ business customers of this

    service.

  • Accessibility

    from multiple carriers' network backbones: Carrier neutral

    facility with multiple carrier /ISP termination at IDC

    (Reliance, BSNL, Hughes, Tata Power, Bharti, UUNet, C&W,

    Sprint)

  • Accessible

    through vsat/radio links: Ample provisioning of roof top/ground

    space for installing VSAT earth stations/terminals and for RF

    towers.

  • All Data

    Centers Interconnected to each other through redundant STM-4

    links of our own optic fiber backbone.

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The data centers are further connected to Reliance's

countrywide optic fiber-based IP network with terabytes of capacity having

points of presence at more than 1,100 cities. The IDC claims that the potential

users across the world can access the content hosted at Reliance Data Centers

with minimal number of hops, minimal latency, and lesser packet losses. So with

higher speeds. Further, the data centers in Mumbai and Bangalore are also

interconnected through redundant fiber ring, with bandwidth capacity of STM-4

for data replication purposes for providing DR services. The IDC currently hosts

2,500-plus servers and 600-plus terabytes of storage capacity.

What's on Offer?



A look at the services offered by IDCs.

  • Managed hosting services: The services include managed

    co-location services, managed dedicated hosting, managed Internet access

    services, hosted Internet access, and direct Internet access.

  • Managed co-location services: For offering co-location

    services, it offers disaster resistant physical infrastructure, like

    uninterruptible and back-up power, raised flooring, redundant Internet

    connections with 24-hour monitoring, and fire suppression and environmental

    controls.

  • Managed dedicated hosting services: This service provides

    customers with an exclusive use of the server resources on a leased model.

    This service also comes bundled with value added services like OS hardening,

    patch management and vulnerability assessment. This helps customers save

    high capital expenditure and obsolescence risks.

  • Managed Internet access services: Under this service, it

    provides network connectivity facilitating high-speed, redundant Internet

    connections for its customers. Network management tools carry out proactive

    monitoring of Internet backbone ensuring optimal performance. The services

    are built on an easy scalable architecture that allows augmentation of

    bandwidth as and when required.

  • Managed security services: A security approach to

    proactively identify and secure customers' hosted setup against potential

    threats of hacking, viruses, worms, etc. The services offered include

    managed firewall services, managed intrusion detection services, host-based

    anti-virus, secure VPN access, and vulnerability assessment services.

  • Remote professional services: Remote Professional Services

    (R-Pros) provide monitoring and management of customers IT infrastructure,

    network, security, and other resources, at their own or at third-party

    premises, on 24x7 basis. This is intended for customers who prefer to retain

    ownership of infrastructure, located at their own premise, while passing all

    or part of the monitoring and management responsibility to the service

    provider. These services include data-center management services, database

    management services, and security management services.

  • Messaging services: Messaging services is an emerging

    alternative for business to build and operate their enterprise messaging

    setup, instead of deploying in-house hardware, software and resources. The

    services include shared messaging services, dedicated messaging services,

    mail relay, and mail queue. This service offer messaging on a complete

    outsourced platform. Others who wish to operate their own site messaging

    servers, but would like to protect the same with zero downtime, anti-virus,

    and anti-spam can utilize the services.

  • ASP services: An application service provider (ASP) offers

    networked-based applications on a rental or per-usage basis. ASP combines

    software, hardware, infrastructure and networking technologies including

    deployment, monitoring and management of the same to deliver the net-hosted

    applications as a "service" in lieu of customer ownership and

    management of these applications.

  • Rich media communication services: It is a group of services

    that uses the Internet or Intranet for instant delivery of audio, video, and

    other multimedia. The services offered are on demand streaming, live

    streaming, web collaboration, content management, and content delivery

    network.

IDC Customers



A number of enterprises from varied industry segments host their mission

critical applications at the facility. Among others: BSE, Central Depository

Services, Bank of Baroda, Euronet Worldwide Services, and OBC in the BFSI space;

HLL, Mahindra & Mahindra, Godrej Industries, Pfizer, and IPCL in

manufacturing and FMCG; Mumbai Police, BHEL, C-DAC, MSEB, and Karnataka Udyog

Mitra among the government and PSU verticals. It also has customers from other

verticals in IT & telecom, services industry, and media & entertainment.

Reliance IDC is looking at catering to the global market.

Minu Sirsalewala

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