TECHNOLOGY I VIRTUALISATION The best of both worlds
By using Nexsan storage, Regional Finance Office Koblenz benefits from the advantages of storage virtualization.
The Regional Finance Office Koblenz (OFD) was facing the task of creating the technical conditions for the upcoming introduction of a nationwide uniform tax software. The basic requirements included, among other things, that sufficient dedicated disk space be provided. This was impossible with the existing storage system, which was limited to a capacity of 16 terabytes in its final phase and had almost exhausted its expansion potential. Especially, because the server virtualization that was already in progress and the operation of a constantly increasing number of virtual machines also required a more adaptable storage concept.
The situation suggested a switch of the entire system to a flexible, heavy-duty and robust storage infrastructure. Combining the DataCore server virtualization software SANsymphony with a high-performance, high-density and extremely scalable Nexsan SASBeast system proved to be ideal here, both from a technical and economical point of view. Founded in 1950, the Chief Finance Office (OFD) in Koblenz is the intermediate authority of the Rhineland-Palatine state finance administration. The authority’s functions are divided into the department for taxes based on possession and transactions, and the salaries and pension office. The regional cashier’s office and the federal construction division are also attached to the OFD. The authority is controlled by the Finance Ministry of Rhineland-Palatinate. It, in turn, is responsible for supervising the state’s 26 local tax and field
offices, which operate in 37 locations, as well as one university of applied sciences. Currently, about 7,900 employees at OFD Koblenz handle the tasks within their area of responsibility in a citizen-friendly manner. “Central Data Processing for the Fiscal Authority”, ZDFin for short, creates the necessary technical prerequisites for this work. These include, among others supporting the entire EDV system, including the server infrastructure, where the various applications needed for the daily work are run.
The challenge: meeting limited storage capacities EOSS: that’s the name of the program which is intended to pave the way for using a nationally uniform tax office software. That software aims to improve the administrations’ cost effectiveness. Prior to moving to the new solution, whose acronym means “tax software geared towards evolution” (Evolutionär orientierte Steuersoftware), the Regional Finance Office Koblenz had to set the right switches to ensure a smooth transition. After all, as of the deadline on June 1, 2010, around 40 million data sets from the taxation proceedings of the past 10 years had to be migrated to the new system.
One of the first steps in fulfilling the basic requirements was to ensure sufficient disk space. Six dedicated terabytes of storage had to be available just for setting up the obligatory EOSS reference environment. Since at that time, available total capacity at OFD Koblenz was twelve terabytes, this demand could not be met at all by using the SAN storage that had so far been attached to the mainframe. Limited to 16 terabytes in its final stage, there was little maneuvering room in terms of expandability, necessitating a change of systems. At the same time, virtualization of the server environment was already proceeding at a fast pace; accordingly, the parameters set for the storage infrastructure changed significantly. Operation of an increasing number of I/O-intensive virtual machines on the physical servers, as well as their connection to the SAN, required sufficient storage capacity. In the process, neither IT complexity nor administrative effort should be increased.
Based on this background, the persons in charge at OFD Koblenz decided to set up an entirely new storage concept. The highest priority was to create the necessary conditions for the migration, but also, going forward, to be able to react as flexibly and cost-effectively as possible to the expected annual increase in data volume. Based on growth of 10 to 20 terabytes per year, the new storage environment should be scalable at any time,
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