Since Cloud4Y is a corporate cloud provider, our projects are usually large and complex. Sometimes dragging on for a long period due to bureaucratic delays and many approvals. And you can't talk about a lot, so as not to violate trade secrets and NDAs. Although there are a lot of stories (funny and not so).
Today we will tell you about an interesting project that was successfully completed not so long ago. All the sharp details that allow identifying the client were crossed out by vigilant lawyers and security officers. But even that didn't really hurt the story itself.
So, the tale of how the
How it all began
Once upon a time there was One Big Company. Let's call it OBK. For many years it flourished, because it was headed by wise leaders, and competent performers worked on the ground. Well, the demand for products was, of course.
It was distinguished from many other companies by strict internal regulations, a large number of self-written software developed by contractors, the highest level of security and the criticality of any disruptions in work. And also a ramified and imperfectly structured IT infrastructure. But due to the fact that the in-house IT department worked tirelessly, the equipment coped with the current workloads.
Since the guide was indeed wise, it quickly considered the benefits of using cloud services. True, the first experience of cooperation with providers was not very successful. But this did not scare the company away from the clouds, but helped to better understand its desires and formulate the requirements for the company, which undertakes to provide its cloud platform. Therefore, when it became necessary to ensure the fast and stable operation of the program for encouraging regular and attracting new customers, a tender was organized, consisting of a qualification stage and the tender itself.
The qualification was carried out according to a long list of criteria that a cloud provider must meet. Applicants were assessed based on work experience, business and general reputation, reliability, financial condition and other interesting parameters. Despite the large number of participants, only two companies reached the second stage, including Cloud4Y. And our proposal turned out to be more convincing.
What was the difficulty
The main problem on the part of the OBK team was fear. First, we have already talked about their not very successful experience of cooperation with cloud providers. Secondly, the management had concerns that a company they did not know very well would not be able to cope with the procedure for transferring IT infrastructure, since it was voluminous and atypical.
Before the migration, the OBK used a complex architecture of the file system of the operating server, built on the use of two RAID arrays, one of which was software and operated on Linux, and the other was hardware.
Another difficulty was that due to internal requirements for IT security, the OBK did not have access to a physical server via the Internet. There were also serious restrictions on physical access to the technical site on which the server was located. Therefore, Cloud4Y engineers had to find workarounds to ensure a normal data migration procedure. In particular, apply social engineering, show tricks using console commands.
Some difficulties with backing up the existing system, as well as the lack of administrative access to the server console, which is not provided for by the functionality of the internal software developed by a third-party company, contributed to the development of creativity and the loosening of the nervous system of our engineers. Our guys felt like sappers - one wrong move, and kirdyk bases. And behind them and something else will surely "fall". And what does this mean for, though not the largest in the country, but still a large company, there is probably no need to tell.
Since we have already touched upon the topic of the uneasy relationship between the OBK and the cloud provider that previously served them, I would like to note the not very ethical behavior of the representatives of this company. They struggled to delay the migration process by disrupting meetings and “forgetting” access to their equipment, interfering with the normal migration of customer data. In part, they could be understood, because a big serious company is leaving. However, we believe that this is not the best indicator for the provider. Not only Cloud4Y, but other responsible companies will never allow themselves to treat customers and / or competitors like that. If they leave you, then you have failed somewhere. And this is a motivation for optimizing internal processes, and not trying to spoil others.
How was the migration
The infrastructure transfer procedure was divided into 3 stages. The first one, the database transfer, was the most ambitious in the sense that it was necessary to transfer up to 6 TB of data, so we decided not to transfer virtual machines, but to make a SQL backup. It turned out only 900 GB, and we saved a lot of time.
The second stage was the transfer of auxiliary virtual machines using standard backup tools, and the third was the transfer of the physical server to a completely different hardware.
It was the third stage that required the most time and effort. Due to the software specially developed for the OBK (oh, how many marvelous epithets addressed to him could be heard from the technical department at that time!) The server could not simply be reinstalled, it had to be transferred 1-in-1. The transfer procedure was simply not foreseen by the software developers. They did not think about it somehow. It happens.
And the server periodically lagged. Well, from time to time I would switch off quietly so that our engineers would not be bored.
What else has been done
To soften the process of moving, even before the start of the transfer, the corporate cloud provider Cloud4Y prepared all the necessary infrastructure for the client (internal network, secure tunnels, etc.), deployed a virtual machine for the server. Thanks to this, the transfer was carried out regularly and quickly. Also, an Nvidia Tesla P100 video card was mapped to the physical server, which is necessary for mathematical GPU calculations using software from a contractor company that collaborated with the OBK.
Moreover, if under the contract for migration was given three days, then we completed it in two. The contract was signed on Thursday, and on Friday evening, the wise satisfied representatives of One Big Company confirmed the acceptance of the transfer work.
The provider provided the OBK with the necessary infrastructure, protected from outside access. Access to the database is carried out via a secure channel and is available only to the most responsible OBKshniki.
Result
The business received an infrastructure that not only duplicated the functionality of the one that was previously used, but surpassed it. The cloud provider's engineers set up server monitoring (this function was not available before), optimized technological solutions, which made it possible to reduce the load on the equipment and increase the speed of its operation. A backup system was also configured, which previously worked in a strange and unpredictable way.
In fact, the OBK received full-fledged console access to its infrastructure, as well as a backup of all its systems, which significantly reduced the risks of data loss and simplified the work of its own IT service.
The Cloud4Y cloud infrastructure hosts both client virtual machines and a physical server. Moreover, a project is already underway to virtualize a physical server in order to optimize the costs of its support and maintenance.
Other advantages include:
- The ability to distribute the system between two data centers to increase its fault tolerance.
- A normally configured backup system with the ability to transfer backups to another data center;
- A reliable hoster that helps to optimize the costs of IT infrastructure, and does not just host the client's servers;
- The ability to reduce the cost of GPU calculations, which are necessary for the internal business processes of the company.
If you also want to evaluate the advantages of the Cloud4Y cloud platform, apply for a free test access or call us +7 (495) 268-04-12.
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