IT Service Upgrades Announcement

Transcription

1 IT Service Upgrades Announcement Beginning in late 2008, AgriLife Information Technology under the direction of the Office of the Vice Chancellor and Dean of Agriculture and Life Sciences conducted a study of information technology (IT) services and operations within Texas AgriLife Research, the Texas AgriLife Extension Service, and the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences at Texas A&M University. The core purposes of the study were to determine opportunities for (a) improving IT services and increasing collaboration enterprise wide (throughout the organization), (b) reducing operating costs, and (c) obtaining effective risk management for the protection of data. The study concluded that IT services could be greatly improved through updating, standardizing, and centralizing core services, which would result in the following benefits: Improved quality of IT services and overall environment Comprehensive application of mainstream software, such as and file services Enhancement of collaboration services for AgriLife Reduction in IT operational overhead and costs Ability to more efficiently and comprehensively meet state and Texas A&M University System IT policy and regulations Improved security and disaster recovery of electronic information and platforms Recent Texas A&M System IT audits showed considerable deficiencies in IT operations that must be addressed and can be partially resolved through this approach. The IT study prioritized the following core areas where benefits and efficiencies could be greatly increased or created: , calendaring, contacts management, and instant messaging Directory services and identity management File services (backup, archiving) Web hosting and application services Network infrastructure (regional centers) Data protection (anti virus, encryption) The proposed solutions will strategically position our organizations and enable them to use a more comprehensive, collaborative, efficient computing environment. They will also enable AgriLife to efficiently meet the ever increasing needs in IT operations and data security requirements. Activities are underway for procurement and core engineering efforts, which we expect to be complete by September AgriLife IT is working to develop a migration schedule and will be in contact with your program, unit, or center head to review and finalize those plans. Following are more details regarding the planned upgrades and changes in addition to answers for frequently asked questions. Additional questions can be ed to itrenewal@ag.tamu.edu.

2 Overview of IT Service Upgrades , Calendaring, Contacts Management, and Instant Messaging This solution will consist of a single, centralized, redundant platform for providing , calendaring, and contact management. Microsoft Exchange 2010 has been selected as the enterprise mail system. Microsoft Outlook will be used for Windows based workstations. Equivalent mail clients are available for Macintosh, Linux, and many mobile phones. will also be accessible via a web browser. Mailbox sizes will be supported up to 2 gigabytes (GB). Microsoft instant messaging will also be provided as a service. Directory Services and Identity Management Directory services will be provided by Microsoft Active Directory. A statewide deployment of redundant Active Directory servers will provide a single sign on environment, in which you will use one password and username for access to and file services from your workstation. File Services (Backup, Archiving) File services will be provided through the deployment of enterprise class storage servers in regional centers and locations on the Texas A&M University campus in College Station. Data from these storage servers will be securely replicated to core storage servers in College Station, providing offsite redundancy and disasterrecovery capabilities. In addition, tape archiving will be provided for data requiring long term backup and storage. Web Hosting and Application Services A platform will be provided to centrally host all websites within AgriLife IT. This platform will be provided by using server blade and virtual machine technology, allowing for highly reliable and flexible configuration needs and services. This environment will also provide a framework for hosting application servers and reducing capital investment costs. This platform will support Linux and Windows environments. Network Infrastructure (Regional Centers) Network infrastructure upgrades will consist of the application of firewalls, managed network switches, up to date secure wireless access points, and wide area network (Internet) bandwidth upgrades, where required. This effort will provide for more secure and robust networking environments in addition to more efficient and stable networking environments within the regional centers. Data Protection (Anti virus, Encryption) Sophos was selected as the AgriLife enterprise anti virus solution in Sophos anti virus software protects against computer viruses, malware, and spyware as well as accidental disclosure of confidential information, such as Social Security numbers.

3 Questions and Answers Q: What does enterprise IT services mean? A: The term enterprise refers to a group or organization as a whole. In information technology, it means that certain computing services are provided centrally to users throughout the group or organization. These services can include , file services, instant messaging, and web hosting. Q: Which software/system has been chosen? A: Microsoft Exchange has been selected as the preferred , calendaring, and contacts management system. Microsoft Outlook would become the software used on Windows based workstations for , calendaring, and contact management. Microsoft s instant messaging service will also be supported via web and desktop based clients. Q: Will I be able to use my existing Outlook client with Exchange 2010? A: Yes, the Outlook client that came with your Microsoft Office 2003 or 2007 software will work with the newer Exchange Q: I don t use Windows. Will my Apple or Linux workstation be supported? A: Yes. Microsoft Exchange can be used by all operating systems. Each provides varying clients or methods for accessing and sending through Microsoft Exchange. Q: Will I be required to migrate to the new system? A: Yes. The central Microsoft Exchange system will be the only officially supported system provided by our organization. Q: My department does not use Novell or GroupWise. What changes can I expect? A: Departments and units currently using Microsoft Exchange or other mail systems will migrate into the core AgriLife system. Plans will be developed to determine the exact details and migration process for these areas of operations. Q: I use a Texas A&M University address (name@tamu.edu), or my unit has a special address that I use. Will this address still function on the new system? A: Yes. addresses can be easily redirected to the new mail system. Units or departments with specialized addresses/domains will be supported as well. Q: I use GroupWise mail, and all my needs are met. Why do I need to switch to another system? A: GroupWise is provided by the vendor Novell. GroupWise use throughout the Texas A&M System has diminished to only a few areas of operation over the years. All remaining operations that use GroupWise are currently developing plans to migrate away from GroupWise and Novell. Microsoft Exchange and the desktop client, Outlook, are used by a large majority of businesses, academic entities, and organizations for collaborative workgroup communications. Both are supported by a large group of third party products and vendors, so use and integration with other products will be less expensive and easier to manage.

4 Q: Will I have access to my old ? A: If required and requested, existing employees will be provided with instructions and options for converting or migrating existing and archives to a format that can be accessible either by Microsoft Outlook or as searchable files on their desktop. Q: What limitations or policies will be applied on the new system? A: Mailbox sizes will be limited to 2 GB. Policies for retention will be discussed and finalized during the implementation phase of the solution. Q: Will AgriLife wide contact and distribution lists be available in the new mail system? A: Yes, centrally available lists pertinent to AgriLife Extension, AgriLife Research, and the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences will be available. Existing Extension distribution lists will be reviewed and appropriately integrated. These lists will be maintained by the appropriate units to provide the greatest possible accuracy. Q: Will there be any training offered for the new software? A: Yes, a variety of self training materials will be provided in addition to local orientation before each unit or group migrates to the new system. Over time, advanced training opportunities will be available for more in depth features. Q: What changes will I need to make on my mobile device? A: Microsoft Exchange supports a wide variety of mobile devices. Accessing will simply require configuring your device with new access credentials and server information. This information and instructions will be provided when your unit or group is migrated. Q: Whom do I contact to have the Sophos anti virus software installed on my system? A: Please contact your local IT manager for assistance. Otherwise, please contact the AgriLife IT help desk (FirstCall) at first call@tamu.edu. Q: How will I access the new file storage systems? A: IT Resources will assist in connecting your workstation by adding or mapping new drives on your system during the migration phase. Your unit or group will be advised on when and how this change will occur. Q: My group has its own web server, with specialized software. Will we be required to move it to the centralized platform? If so, will it support all our needs? A: The centralized web hosting platform will use virtual machine technology. This will enable the support of most typical website and application environments. Each site will be analyzed for any issues or special needs before relocation. Those electing not to use the centralized platform will be required to ensure that all IT management, security, and documentation needs, as well as disaster recovery protocols, are tested on a regular basis.

5 Q: I use a home version of Microsoft Windows; will I be limited in any way using the new services? A: Yes. Users with home grade versions of Microsoft Windows will not be able to use the Active Directory services. These systems will be required to log on to and file services separately until their operating systems can be upgraded to an enterprise or professional version of Windows. Users with professional or enterprise Windows operating systems will simply need to log in to their workstation to access mail and file services. It is highly recommended that all future Windows based systems being purchased or upgraded use an enterprise or professional version of the Windows operating system. Q: How will the migration and upgrades be performed? A: Typically employees will be converted in groups, based on location. For example, employees based within a regional AgriLife Research and Extension center would be migrated together from an existing environment. Campus based departmental employees would be migrated in similar fashion. AgriLife Extension county agents will be migrated over the course of several months through onsite and remote assistance provided by AgriLife IT. AgriLife IT will partner with local (departmental, center) IT managers in a variety of logistical planning efforts to perform the least problematic migration possible. Q. I am an IT manager for a unit or center. When will planning efforts begin? A: AgriLife IT is currently in the process of finalizing procurement of the core hardware systems and software as well as finalizing the standardized core engineering design. We expect to begin informational and planning sessions with unit IT managers in July, once these efforts are near completion. During these sessions, specifics will be discussed regarding migration timelines and how each unit you support can begin migration to the new services. Additional Questions? Please itrenewal@ag.tamu.edu.