Virtual Server Services

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IBM provides New Zealand based virtual server services for customers requiring cloud based infrastructure for hosting their Linux® or Windows® servers. Virtual Server Services is enabled by IBM’s new Level 3+ reliability data centre.

IBM’s service comprises hardware, virtualisation software and networking and associated tools to provide a virtual pool of capacity to host a customer’s operating systems and application software.

This cloud service is provided on allocated-based billing.

Initial configuration is provided on a per Virtual Data Centre basis with a one time charge for set-up. Additional technical support labour is available to assist with the configuration of customer’s environments where required and is charged on a time and materials basis.

Virtual Server Services offer businesses flexibility around IT infrastructure

Whether it be the introduction of a new application, perhaps with uncertain growth expectations, a major upgrade or a rapid deployment project, many organisations are finding it tough to keep up with these demands as well as growing cost, security and regulatory pressures.

The cost and time spent on the IT infrastructure investment and administration often leaves few resources to focus on those IT Projects that deliver the competitive edge for the business.

• Facilitate standardisation by helping reduce the number of disparate systems and tools required to manage an in-house environment.
• Control management costs, helping optimise investments in IT infrastructure and lower total cost of ownership.
• Align cost with today's business requirements and improve flexibility and responsiveness to business needs via the ability to add or subtract virtual server resources with ease as workload demands shift.
• Reduce risk through the reliability, resiliency and security features of a hosted environment provided by IBM.
• Reduce capital investment through not requiring an upfront investment in processing and storage infrastructure.

Solution overview - how does it work?
IBM® Virtual Server Services provides a defined capacity of resources where the customer can flexibly create remove virtual machines as required.
IBM® Virtual Server Services:

• Run on highly scalable/redundant IBM x Series servers and tiered, enterprise-level IBM System Storage
• Uses VMWare vCloud virtualisation system to provide virtual Data Centres
• Supports Windows or Linux virtual machines
• Leverages Virtual Network and Firewall infrastructure that enables secure accessibility via the Internet of dedicated WAN connections
• Uses the vCloud Director Self service administration portal that provides the ability to administer and control resources
• Housed in IBM’s Level 3+ Reliability data centre
• 24x7 infrastructure monitoring and alerting; incident response; proactive troubleshooting; access to IBM’s Service Desk

Additional options include:

• IBM Management of your Virtual Data Centre environment including:
  • Operating Systems (Windows/ Linux)
  • Patch Management
  • Annual Data Restore Test
  • Security Compliance
  • Antivirus
• Monitoring services for Server, Storage, Network and Security including up/down and performance data.
• Back-up and Archive services.
• Second site DR services for your Virtual Data Centre.
• Virtual Server Recovery services provided on the VSS platform to protect your onsite production systems.
• Managed Security – you can choose to replace or supplement the standard virtual firewall with an external managed firewall or load a tier 1 virtual firewall image onto a Virtual Server Services server.
• Co-location of specialised equipment alongside and integrated with the Virtual Server Services implementation.
• Database and Middleware support.
• IBM Transition to Virtual Server Services.
• Microsoft software licensing such as Windows Server, SQL, Exchange, Sharepoint (per server/ per user).
• IBM skilled resources to assist with projects including transition.

• Service level target of 99.5% availability on the infrastructure.
• IBM’s proven infrastructure management across servers, storage, network and security.
• IBM governance and service delivery management to ITIL 3.0 standards.
• Each Virtual Server Services customer is appointed an IBM Service Delivery Manager as a single point of contact for services provided.
• The Virtual Server Services infrastructure is continuously maintained at current levels of technology, eliminating the need for upgrade outages.
• Upload existing Virtual machines from your current environment into Virtual Server Services using VMWare Upload feature.
• Create your own catalogues for machine types and software.

Operating Systems

Select a pre-configured template server image or provide your own server image. IBM provides Microsoft licensing for those Microsoft products you require.

With IBM Virtual Server Services, you only pay for the resources you need, based on standardised ‘blocks’ of resource. IBM charges you a monthly rate. This removes the need to invest upfront in processing and storage infrastructure and is a smarter way to reduce and control management costs. It allows you to match costs to business requirements and to handle seasonal fluctuations or one-off projects without over-investing to support peak demands.

IBM offers a number of options for purchasing Virtual Server Services, these include:

• A pre-defined Virtual Server Resource Pool configuration at set monthly price. This option allows for a predictable monthly charge on defined compute resources. In this model you pay for resources assigned to a Resource Pool regardless of utilisation. Within the Resource Pool, you can allocate capacity in the pool to specific servers.
• A Usage based option that allows you to create and run multiple Virtual Servers and pay for total compute usage. This option is well suited to development or test systems which can be activated or deactivated as required or low utilisation production servers. You pay for compute resources utilised by all Virtual Servers within a Resource Pool. With this option you are not charged for the number of Virtual Servers, you are charged for total consumption of compute resources.