What is IT Infrastructure?
IT infrastructure is the combined and interconnected components that are required to operate and manage an enterprise’s IT environment. It encompasses the hardware, software, networks, facilities, and any other parts necessary to deliver IT service to employees within an organization, as well as to partners and customers outside of it.
IT infrastructure products are delivered in diverse ways, including downloadable applications, as well as through infrastructure as a service (IaaS) models, but even then, the question remains: What is IT infrastructure good for?
At its core, IT infrastructure helps drive efficiency and create value by helping an enterprise meet its goals and compete in its sector. In doing so, IT infrastructure, depending on its deployment, has the power to both ensure a business is able to thrive and keep it from doing so entirely.
Types of IT Infrastructures
There are three main types of IT infrastructures that modern companies use, which are as follows:
Traditional: Traditional IT infrastructures include all of the components you would expect an enterprise to have, including desktop computers, operating systems, and applications, along with the data centers, servers, networking cables, and facilities necessary to house them all. Typically, all infrastructure components are owned by the business, and they are maintained and operated by an in-house team.
Traditional IT infrastructure models, however, are considered to be the most expensive, as they require plenty of power and physical space to maximize their full potential. Nevertheless, they give companies who are willing to spend the money a great deal of control over their deployment.
Cloud: Cloud infrastructures are somewhat similar to traditional models in that they necessitate computers, servers, applications, data centers, and networking hardware. However, the key difference here is that these items are not housed on the enterprise’s premises.
Instead, most of what is needed for cloud infrastructures is accessed via the internet through the process of virtualization, which connects servers owned and operated by a service provider to the enterprises they provide service to. Business owners can pay for a private cloud, in which the infrastructure is dedicated solely to their enterprise, or they can pay a lower price for shared infrastructure, in which assets are divided between a number of users.
Because the enterprise does not own or house the IT infrastructure components, cloud solutions often cost less than traditional setups, and they are usually accessed through monthly or yearly plans with an authorized provider.
Hyperconverged: Hyperconverged infrastructure does not require nearly as many moving parts because it converges all of your computing, storage, and networking resources into one unified, software-defined system. All of your resources are virtualized and can be managed from one single interface.
The hyperconverged approach provides IT teams with simpler control over their infrastructure since they don’t have to manage each network device. Additionally, software-defined storage is independent of any particular operating system, which gives enterprises the freedom to choose how and where they store their data.
What are the components of an IT Infrastructure?
Regardless of type, an IT infrastructure is made up of several elements that work together to provide the enterprise with the ability to use its IT infrastructure to carry out specific tasks.
The components of IT infrastructure that make it all possible are as follows:
- Hardware: Computers, servers, and data centers
- Software: Operating systems and content management systems
- Networks: Components like switches, routers, and hubs
- Facilities: Physical buildings and rooms that provide the necessary space for all other components
No single component of your IT infrastructure can deliver the functionality you need by itself. These elements are interdependent, which means they rely on each other to ensure that the entire system runs smoothly.
What is IT Infrastructure monitoring, and why is it important?
IT infrastructure monitoring is all about your IT Team collecting data from your IT infrastructure on a near-constant basis, then using that data to solve problems, optimize performance, improve productivity, and drive enterprise goals.
Keeping a close watch on your system helps your organization to do the following:
- Find smaller issues causing minor disruptions before they turn into bigger issues that affect uptime and productivity
- Quickly pinpoint the root cause of an issue so it can be solved in a timely manner
- Get real-time alerts about everything going on in your system, from resource usage thresholds to outages affecting employees or customers
- Detect and isolate threats from bad actors to keep your sensitive data and network safe from harm
With proper IT infrastructure monitoring, you can help your company avoid costly data breaches and downtime and maintain momentum as you work toward your business goals.
There are many IT infrastructure monitoring tools in the market. The traditional approach has been silo-based, having one tool for network monitoring, another for database monitoring, yet another for virtualization monitoring and so on. Today, most organizations are exploring a single pane of glass, converged application and monitoring solution. eG Enterprise from eG Innovations is one such unified monitoring solution. Learn more about eG Enterprise here.
