De Montfort University

Success Story

De Montfort University has chosen Novell® Open Enterprise Server 2 as the foundation for a new globally accessible infrastructure for students and staff. The Novell solution, built on SUSE® Linux Enterprise Server SP1, introduces innovative storage technology to reduce storage costs, and integrated Xen* virtualisation technology for improved resilience and flexibility.

Overview

De Montfort University is one of the largest in the UK, with more than 20,000 students and 3,000 staff across two campuses in Leicester. The University offers 400 undergraduate and postgraduate courses, with particular strengths in professional, creative and vocational education.

Challenge

Historically, the IT infrastructure at De Montfort University had grown at the departmental level, resulting in a number of "islands" of computing resources and a lack of centralisation for data and services. This fragmentation of the infrastructure made it hard for students and staff to work and share information effectively.

Aiming to create a single point of access to applications and information for all staff and students, the IT function at the University set out to build a new centralised infrastructure.

Following the successful implementation of Novell Open Enterprise Server, Novell eDirectory™ and Novell Identity Manager, the University had a stable platform that permitted all users to access all relevant resources from any computer. As the next step, the University wanted to improve the flexibility, efficiency and scalability of the infrastructure. The key short-term goals were to introduce tiered data storage and to begin to exploit server virtualisation technologies.

Novell solution

"The usual cost argument for Linux is relatively unimportant from our point of view - it's much more about scalability, security, robustness, high performance and the ability to run on practically any hardware."

Chris Semmens
IT Team Leader
De Montfort University

De Montfort University implemented a three-node Linux* cluster with Novell Cluster Services™ on Novell Open Enterprise Server 2 . The cluster will provide file and print services to a growing number of users as the University migrates from NetWare®. The University worked with NDS®8, a Novell Platinum PartnerSM, to implement the new solution.

"The main driver for upgrading to the new version of Novell Open Enterprise Server was to push the adoption of Linux at the core of our infrastructure," said Chris Semmens, IT Team Leader, De Montfort University. "The usual cost argument for Linux is relatively unimportant from our point of view - it's much more about scalability, security, robustness, high performance and the ability to run on practically any hardware."

De Montfort University is using Dynamic Storage Technology to enable policy-based migration of inactive data from high-performance disks to lower-cost disks. After a set period, the Novell solution automatically archives inactive data from the fibre-channel disks on the University's Hitachi* SAN to the SATA disks on a newly implemented IBM* System Storage DS3300 storage array with iSCSI connections.

"Dynamic Storage Technology in Novell Open Enterprise Server has given us a transparent second tier of storage, enabling us to reduce the cost of storing inactive data in a way that is transparent to the users," said Semmens. "We then only need to back up the data from the lower-cost devices on a monthly basis, as it is largely static."

De Montfort University is now testing Xen virtualisation on SUSE Linux Enterprise, with the aim of creating clustered Novell iPrint environments for improved responsiveness and resilience. "Virtualisation will allow us to abstract services from the hardware on which they run, enabling non-disruptive infrastructure upgrades and improved disaster recovery options," said Semmens.

Results

"De Montfort University is a strong believer in the importance of technology as a tool to assist learning. Our investments in Novell software are opening up a broad range of new possibilities, improving the options available to our students."

Roy Adams
IT Director
De Montfort University

By upgrading to Novell Open Enterprise Server 2, De Montfort University has gained a future-proof platform for its Novell Cluster Services. The Novell solution also introduces tiered storage to De Montfort's infrastructure, which will reduce the cost of storing largely static data without diminishing its accessibility.

"The Novell solution has improved the resilience of core services and enabled us to adopt Linux at the centre of our infrastructure," said Semmens. "NDS8 provided excellent implementation services in support of the project, as did IBM in helping us to deploy a second tier of lower-cost iSCSI storage."

Using open source Xen virtualisation technology integrated in SUSE Linux Enterprise, De Montfort will be able to upgrade its infrastructure with minimal or even zero impact on users. Virtualisation will enable faster recovery in the event of a disaster, as well as allowing more efficient use of hardware, power and floorspace.

"The University is committed to reducing its carbon footprint, and virtualisation will have an important role to play," said Semmens. "With Xen, we will reduce the total number of servers we run, and technologies like Novell ZENworks® Orchestrator will enable us to move services and power down servers when demand falls, helping to reduce power consumption."

"De Montfort University is a strong believer in the importance of technology as a tool to assist learning," said Roy Adams, IT Director. "Our investments in Novell software are opening up a broad range of new possibilities, improving the options available to our students."