Information Technology Infrastructures

IT Infrastructure

The set of hardware, software, network, and service resources required for the existence, operation, and management of the overall corporate IT environment is referred to as IT infrastructure. An organization can supply IT solutions and services to both its employees and consumers thanks to its infrastructure.

• IT infrastructure is the collective pool of technological resources that serves as the foundation for a company's particular information system application.
• Information technology infrastructure involves investments in computer hardware, software, and services like consulting, training, and education.
• A company's information technology infrastructure serves as the cornerstone or framework for corporate operations, customer service, vendor relations, and internal firm management.

Defining IT Infrastructure

IT infrastructure is made up of a collection of hardware, software, and devices that are needed to run the entire business. The following services are provided via the usage of IT infrastructure:

• Utilized as a computing platform to deliver competing services that link workers, clients, and suppliers in a digital setting.
• Data, voice, and video connectivity is provided through a telecommunications service to suppliers, customers, and employees.
• Data management services that store and manage company data to offer tools for analysis.
• Enterprise resource planning, customer relationship management, supply chain management, and knowledge management systems are just a few of the services offered by application software services.
• The company's business unit and the standard IT services it offers decide which IT will be employed and how.
• Services for IT education that offer training.
• Service for IT research and development.

Evolution of IT Infrastructure

• Mainframe and Minicomputer Era
  • The first potent computers with multitasking, time sharing, and virtual memory capabilities were mainframes. With appropriate power, thousands of remote terminals could be supported. During the mainframe era, system administrators and programmers tightly regulated and centralized computers. also powerful but less expensive computers are minicomputers. Minicomputers started to alter the mainframe's design, enabling decentralized computing that could be customized for both business units and specific departments.
• Client/Server Era
  • We pretended that the client-server era began in 1983 and continues now. In client-server computing, desktop or laptop computers that are considered clients are networked to a server that offers services and capabilities to the clients. Between these two machine kinds, referred to as the server and client, are divided the processing of computers. In contrast to the server, which often stores shared data, handles requests, serves Web pages, and oversees network activity, the client is where users first interact with computers. Both the software program and the actual computer that houses the network software are referred to as the server. A mainframe computer could function as the server. Today's server computers, however, are typically a more potent version of personal computers.
• Personal Computer Era
  • From 1981 to the present, the personal computer era has been in existence. The introduction of the IBM PC in 1981 is typically seen as the beginning of the personal computer era. First of all, American business widely embraced this device. Before PC operating system software, personal computers were distinct. This operating system software enabled the connection of personal computers to networks in the 1990s.
• Cloud Computing and Mobile Computing Era
• Enterprise Computing Era

Technology Drivers of IT Infrastructure

• Moore’s Law and Micro-Processing Power
  • According to Moore's law, which was established in 1965, microprocessor power doubles every two years. Different versions of this statute claim that
    • The capacity of microprocessors doubles every 18 months.
    • The power of computers doubles every 18 months.
    • The cost of computing increases by 18 months.
• Nanotechnology
  • This method makes computer chips thousands of times smaller than those permitted by existing technologies by using both individual molecules and atoms. Nano tubes could be used as extremely thin wires or in tiny electronic components. Additional innovations in chip technology and transistor miniaturization are promised.
• The Law of Mass Digital Storage
  • According to the Law of Mass Digital Storage, the cost of storing digital information is lowering or declining exponentially while the amount of digital information produced globally doubles every single year. This implies High storage yielding low cost
• Metcalfe’s Law and Network Economics
  • A network's value or power increases exponentially as a function of the number of network members, with a small investment yielding a higher marginal gain.
  • People desire to use networks more as they grow in number.
  • Typical NTC
• Declining Communication Cost of the Internet
  • The idea of cloud computing resulted from this. Internet access is inexpensive. As a result, more people employ the available computing and communication technologies. If communication costs were high, traditional systems rather than cloud computing would be employed.
• Standard and Network Effect
• Technology Standard
  • A specification that determines a product's compatibility and network communication capabilities.
  • When networks are linked together, they are said to be of a global standard.

IT Infrastructure Components

The following list includes the seven main elements that make up IT infrastructure:

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Fig: IT infrastructure components

• Computer Hardware
  • ​​​​​​​Along with current mainframes, it also contains client and server machines.
• Operating System
  • It covers client computer operating systems like Windows, UNIX, or Linux. Operating systems are pieces of software that control the computer's resources, processes, and user interface.
• Enterprise and other Software Applications
  • It consists of middleware software, like as SAP, Oracle, and PeopleSoft, that connects a company's existing application systems.
• Data Management and Storage
  • Database administration software manages it, and storage devices include older network-based storage systems as well as more modern disk arrays and tape libraries.
• Networking and Telecommunications
  • Novell, Linux, UNIX, and Windows server operating systems are all included. The TCP/IP networking standards are used by almost all LANs and many wide area networks (WANs).
• Internet Platforms
  • It overlaps with and must be related to the hardware, software, and general networking infrastructure of the company. The hardware, software, and services needed to run corporate websites, intranets, and extranets, including web hosting services and web software application development tools, are included in internet-related infrastructure.
• Consulting and System Integration Services
  • This was used to integrate a company's old systems with new infrastructure and technology. It also provided experience in putting the new infrastructure in place along with the necessary adjustments to business procedures, training, and software integration.

Competitive Forces Model for IT Infrastructure Investment

The answer to the question "How much should our organization spend on IT infrastructure?" can be determined using six different parameters.

• Market demand for the company's services?
• The company's business plan
• IT infrastructure, strategy, and cost for the company
• IT analysis
• The offerings of rival companies
• Investment in IT infrastructure by rival company

Reference

Laudon, Laudon, "Management Information Systems Managing the Digital Firm", twelfth edition