- More servers are deployed in production than necessary, resulting in excessive hardware, utilities, licensing and maintenance costs.
- Many databases are business critical, and prolonged downtime while IT changes the environment is unacceptable.
- It can be hard to secure funds for an overdue upgrade project.
Our Advice
Critical Insight
- Get to action with the tasks that have the most impact. Focus your time and energy on the items that will provide the greatest return on investment.
- Create a plan to replace infrastructure that can make costs and changes predictable.
- Clearly communicate these needs to executive stakeholders, identifying the business value of changes.
Impact and Result
- Create an inventory of your current environment.
- Perform an analysis of the current system to identify candidates for consolidation and out-of-date platforms.
- Create a detailed plan to test, execute modifications, and stabilize your platform.
- Use Info-Tech’s tools and templates to guide your project and get to action.
Workshop: Optimize and Consolidate SQL Server
Workshops offer an easy way to accelerate your project. If you are unable to do the project yourself, and a Guided Implementation isn't enough, we offer low-cost delivery of our project workshops. We take you through every phase of your project and ensure that you have a roadmap in place to complete your project successfully.
Module 1: Identify Opportunities and Challenges
The Purpose
- Review the project rationale and identify project value add.
- Identify challenges to overcome and opportunities to improve.
Key Benefits Achieved
- Create an inventory of your current database environment.
Activities
Outputs
Identify pain points in the current system.
Identify project drivers, risks, and expected outcomes.
- Identify project value proposition
Identify stakeholders, SMEs, and roles and responsibilities.
- Complete the project opportunity assessment
Establish project parameters and deliverables and collect system data.
- Create an inventory identifying system interdependencies
Identify new features in SQL Server that can provide business value.
Module 2: Plan the Optimization Project
The Purpose
- Develop a project plan to guide implementation.
Key Benefits Achieved
- Develop project scope and get sign-off.
Activities
Outputs
Review key factors for your platform, such as security and availability, to identify the optimal path for modifications.
- Document prioritized criteria to guide any modifications to your environment
Identify the paths to optimization that can help you meet business goals.
- Complete the opportunity assessment and identify initial steps on the project checklist
Identify servers to upgrade, performance tune, and consolidate.
- Complete the TCO budget tool
Module 3: Test, Execute, Stabilize, and Debrief
The Purpose
- Establish a plan to execute and test modifications to your environment.
- Communicate project successes to stakeholders.
Key Benefits Achieved
- Ensure your plan to modify your SQL Server environment will minimize disruption to business processes.
- Build a roadmap for next steps to streamline future projects.
Activities
Outputs
Create a step-by-step plan for modifications with your SMEs.
- Complete the execution checklist
Identify steps for roll back and backup to deal with unexpected complications.
- Complete the roll back checklist
Review your project plans with stakeholders.
- Review the executive presentation
Discuss and document lessons learned.
- Update the issue resolution template