How to document campus IT infrastructures
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In this presentation we look the issues required to document a campus wide IT infrastructure, perhaps consisting of many buildings. Understand your communications racks, networks and servers. Understand dependency mapping and impact analysis, for example best practice use of a CMDB. What visualization techniques are best suited to showing data from racks and servers to services maps.
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How to document campus IT infrastructures
- 1. How To Document Campus Infrastructure Offices, Hospitals, Universities, Airports, Etc. 29th November 2012 David Cuthbertson, Director Square Mile Systems Ltd www.squaremilesystems.com
- 2. Some Background Based in Cirencester, Glos, UK Customers – worldwide. Key Skill Areas Documenting IT infrastructure Configuration management processes MS Visio automation Industry bodies & roles • BCS-Config Mgmt Specialist Group • BCS-ITIL Specialist Group – ex Chairman • LinkedIn – Data Center Engineering • LinkedIn – Data Center Operations Mgmt • BICSI, ITSMF, Microsoft guest speaker Fixed Infrastructure (Cabling, Power, Cabinets, Rooms, Buildings) Hardware Infrastructure PCs, Network, Servers, UPS, Storage, Other Virtual Infrastructure PCs, Network, Servers, Storage, DBMS Applications PC, server, mainframe, SOA Services End user, infrastructure, supplier Business Processes Departmental, Company *BCS – British Computer Society Presentation Scope
- 3. Infrastructure Management Maturity Reactive Repeatable Defined Managed Optimised 1 2 3 4 5 Individual approach Some process, often informal Process documented and explained Process checked and reviewed for gaps Process open to external review and updated regularly To move to the right we typically need to; 1. Embed infrastructure knowledge in team systems 2. Enable separation of roles – design, implement, operate, risk 3. Plan and allocate resource against demand 4. Feedback on metrics and changes – billing, compliance
- 4. The Current State For Many 1. Lots of existing documentation of varying accuracy, formats and purpose which isn’t trusted, updated or generally known about 2. Project teams use individual MS office tools for communicating changes, whereas operations teams need multi-user systems 3. Task or projects often involve reverse-engineering, site surveys, workshops and audits of the same infrastructure 4. Location, business and system dependencies in peoples heads 5. IT teams are targeted to deliver projects faster and minimise disruption, not to maintain systems documentation 6. There is no identified budget for improving process or management techniques for the infrastructure 7. Multiple, repeated audits to get management data on infrastructure capacity and usage 8. Lack of standards – naming, data maintained, Visio shapes, etc
- 5. Overlays of Technologies (1) WAN Video Conferenci ng Voice Wireless External Video KVM Unix Servers Printers Copiers Storage Phones Fax Power Cabling LAN SAN CCTV Wintel Servers Desktop Laptops Network
- 6. CCTV SAN Overlays of Technologies (2) WAN Video Conferenci ng Voice Wireless External Video KVM / Control Unix Servers Printers Copiers Phones Fax Power Cabling LAN Wintel Servers Desktop Laptops NetworkStorage
- 7. SAN Overlays of Technologies (3) WAN Video Conferenci ng Voice Wireless External Video KVM / Control Unix Servers Printers Copiers Phones Fax Power Cabling LAN CCTV Wintel Servers Desktop Laptops NetworkStorage
- 8. Document Overload! 1. Update asset/inventory list 2. Update rack diagrams 3. Update network diagrams/patching records 4. Update switch port usage and capacity 5. Update floor plan rack capacity 6. Update power usage spread sheet(s) 7. Update storage / backup system documentation 8. Update systems architecture documentation 9. Update DR lists and documents 10. Update maintenance records 11. Update billing and charging data 12. Update project documentation with the “as built” details After a project change, what should be updated? 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 249 10 11 12 13 14 15 161 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 249 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 PP01-03-01 UID HP ProLiant DL380G5 COMPACT 1 2 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 POWER SUPPLY SUPPLY POWER SPARE ONLINE MIRROR CAGE RISER PCI PROCPROC LOCK INTER TEMP OVER FANS PPM PPM DIMMS UID HP ProLiant DL380G5 COMPACT 1 2 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 POWER SUPPLY SUPPLY POWER SPARE ONLINE MIRROR CAGE RISER PCI PROCPROC LOCK INTER TEMP OVER FANS PPM PPM DIMMS SVR-BHAM-010301 440 I CRITICAL MAJOR MINOR USER COMPACT microsystems 440 I CRITICAL MAJOR MINOR USER COMPACT microsystems UK_BIRM_UX01 PROLIANTPROLIANT SERVERWIN0001 tsr 4554 PROLIANTPROLIANT SERVERWIN0099 PROLIANTPROLIANT SERVERWIN00078 www.assetgen.com
- 9. Document Overkill! 1. Update asset/inventory list 2. Update rack diagrams 3. Update network diagrams/patching records 4. Update switch port usage and capacity 5. Update floor plan rack capacity 6. Update power usage spread sheet(s) 7. Update storage / backup system documentation 8. Update systems architecture documentation 9. Update DR lists and documents 10. Update maintenance records 11. Update billing and charging data 12. Update project documentation with the “as built” details After a project change, what should be updated? 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 249 10 11 12 13 14 15 161 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 249 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 PP01-03-01 UID HP ProLiant DL380G5 COMPACT 1 2 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 POWER SUPPLY SUPPLY POWER SPARE ONLINE MIRROR CAGE RISER PCI PROCPROC LOCK INTER TEMP OVER FANS PPM PPM DIMMS UID HP ProLiant DL380G5 COMPACT 1 2 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 POWER SUPPLY SUPPLY POWER SPARE ONLINE MIRROR CAGE RISER PCI PROCPROC LOCK INTER TEMP OVER FANS PPM PPM DIMMS SVR-BHAM-010301 440 I CRITICAL MAJOR MINOR USER COMPACT microsystems 440 I CRITICAL MAJOR MINOR USER COMPACT microsystems UK_BIRM_UX01 PROLIANTPROLIANT SERVERWIN0001 tsr 4554 PROLIANTPROLIANT SERVERWIN0099 PROLIANTPROLIANT SERVERWIN00078 Who, what, where, how, when? www.assetgen.com
- 10. Infrastructure Knowledge Plan Build Operate Risk Dispose Project and task Manage and Coordinate Examples Project documentation Equipment lists Visio/CAD diagrams Test results Examples Asset and Inventory management Business / service dependencies Monitoring of performance, status Risk and Recovery Ease and speed of creation Ease of distribution Flexible to meet task needs Limited training Ease of use by many Structured for integration & reporting Support for multiple processes Wide scope – the big picture! 10
- 11. Task Resourcing Desktop Server Single Building Campus Campus + 3rd party PlanRequest FinishBuild Admin Desktop Server Desktop Server Why does it take longer?
- 12. Change Tasks Plan • Surveys, meeting • Project docs • Scheduling • Ordering • Access • Change forms • Costing Build • Travel • Unpack • Install • Configure • Label • Test • Dispose Admin • Project docs • Operations docs • Billing / time sheets • Project reports • Service reports • Payments
- 13. Document - Start With Quick Wins Few elements Low rate of change Lots of elements High rate of change Site Rooms / locations Computer racks, enclosures Fixed Infrastructure Core network devices Hosts and servers User infrastructure User devices – desktops, printers, voice
- 14. Prepare - Reduce The Workload 1. Establish policies, standards and clarify ownership Make it easy for engineers 2. Have project / operations use common terms & formats Supply templates, naming system, labels, etc. 3. Reduce the numbers of documents / files to maintain Consolidate into centralised systems and make easy to find Link or create Visio diagrams, reports, excel from databases 4. Update operational systems as part of planning processes
- 15. Prepare – Define the Scope and Priority • Technical space(s) rooms, racks, ERs, TRs, user areas • Inventory – bigger than “assets” • Backbone and horizontal cabling, power, voice, etc. • Pathways, cable routes, capacity • Attributes / data on inventory elements • Relationships – location, chassis, links, end to end • Diagrams – Formats, symbols and shapes • Change processes and maintenance
- 16. Prepare – Define Standards/Formats • Assess existing conventions and formats to minimise variations • Align with appropriate external standards / guidelines – Data centers TIA942, ANSI/BICSI-002 – Cabling administration TIA606-B, EN50174-1, ISO14763-2 – Manufacturers Cisco, HP, IBM, installers Examples Rack U position starts from bottom TIA942 Rack tile - identifier front right corner AH06 Rack name - tile or row/number AH06 or B06
- 17. Prepare - TIA606-B Administration • Classes of administration – Class 1 single ER (equipment room} – Class 2 single ER with multiple TR (telecom rooms) – Class 3 campus Multiple ERs, TR – Class 4 multi-site, multiple campus • Identifier formats for interchange of information • Labeling formats – Example cable label within 300mm (12in) from end of cable – All letters uppercase, machine created without serifs • Definitions of terms • Patch panel identifier
- 18. Prepare - Example Identifiers • Space - LON-F1-1A London - Floor 1- Room 1A • Cabinet identifier – XY Coord - 1A.AH06 (front right corner tile reference) – Row/rack -1A.A6 Row A, Rack 06 – Rack number R07 • Always preface with an alpha and add leading zero (excel sorting issue). A01 – good A1 - bad • Label rack top/bottom/ front/rear – Full (LON-F1-1A-A06) , short (1A-A06), simple (A06)
- 19. • Patch panel naming – choose one system! – 1A-AH06-A (a panel) – 1A-AH06-30 (u position) – 1A-AH06-F30 (front u position or nsew, abcd) • Ports – 1A-AH06-A-001 (put in leading edge 00s) – 1A-AH06-F30:015 or 1A-AH06-F30:010-020 • Backbone panels – 1A-AH06-30:001-010 / 2C-AH06-30:001-010 – 2C-AH06-30:001-010 / 1A-AH06-30:001-010 • Outlets – EO / TO / CP /SP Prepare - Patch Panels
- 20. Prepare - Patch Cable Labeling 1. No label 2. Local port 23 3. Local port to port SW1:23 to PPA06:12 4. Remote port to port SW1:23 to ServerB:Eth0 5. Path/work order ref WO33432 6. Unique cable label C000232 A201201/322 All have their benefits though we recommend 6. easy to create/print doesn’t change with device name easy to read good reference for work instructions
- 21. Prepare – Exception Handling What about active equipment? Use logical name as reference, or equipment type and location id SW-BHAM-01 or Cisco 3750 LON-F1-A1-AH06-U23 What about passive hardware? Cable management, blanking plates, trays – use location ID CM LON-F1-A1-AH06-U2 What about cards, plug in modules, blade systems, etc Parent device and then slot/card number SW-BHAM-01.Slot05
- 22. Preparation Summary • For physical infrastructure develop a convention like TIA606B and ISO14763-2 recommends. • Have a short name for convenience, as the unique administration identifier may be unwieldy. • For active components it is often best to use the logical name – makes it easier to understand – easy to import data from other sources – other identifiers such as asset tag numbers will result in a lot of work cross referencing if not careful.
- 23. Capture - Audit Process • Scope, depth, schedule of visits • Develop data capture toolsPlanning • Check the process works on a trial building • Refine data capture tools and processPrototype • Data capture using workbooks / teams • Upload as soon as possible in case of data or process errosBulk Capture • Check for gaps and inaccuracies across teams and cultures • Combine with other data sourceReconciliation • Project and site reports • Produce diagrams, sharepoint portalsPresentation
- 24. Capture - Inventory • Defined scope – infrastructure, desktops, printers • Naming – use existing naming or new? • Labelling/tagging – required – if so how do you create? • Categorising equipment • Exception handling – Equipment on top of rack? – Still in boxes – Surplus bits – disks, panels, cables – No name, partial name, wrong name, multiple names
- 25. • Defined scope – network, voice, power, video? • Must have completed fixed infrastructure and inventory! • Labelling/tagging – required? How do you create? • Exception handling – Can’t find ends – Damaged – One end connected – the other not! – Multi-cable joins – And so on Capture - Connectivity
- 26. • It is likely that the quality of data capture will vary – Expertise increases with each audit – Rescheduling and coping with local site/user/team issues – Local decision making and exception handling – Descriptions will be based on what is seen – Comparing inputs before upload often highlights differences • Other data sources may overcome missing audit data as well as add in additional device data. – Choose what is best for ongoing use, not stick with previous format Capture - Reconciliation
- 27. Presentation - Desired Outputs? 1. Asset/inventory list 2. Rack diagrams 3. Network diagrams/patching records 4. Switch port usage and capacity 5. Floor plan rack capacity 6. Power usage spreadsheet(s) 7. Storage / backup system documentation 8. Systems architecture documentation 9. DR lists and documents 10. Maintenance records 11. Billing and charging data 12. Project documentation with the “as built” details Are we just recreating the same problem we started with? 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 249 10 11 12 13 14 15 161 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 249 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 PP01-03-01 UID HP ProLiant DL380G5 COMPACT 1 2 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 POWER SUPPLY SUPPLY POWER SPARE ONLINE MIRROR CAGE RISER PCI PROCPROC LOCK INTER TEMP OVER FANS PPM PPM DIMMS UID HP ProLiant DL380G5 COMPACT 1 2 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 POWER SUPPLY SUPPLY POWER SPARE ONLINE MIRROR CAGE RISER PCI PROCPROC LOCK INTER TEMP OVER FANS PPM PPM DIMMS SVR-BHAM-010301 440 I CRITICAL MAJOR MINOR USER COMPACT microsystems 440 I CRITICAL MAJOR MINOR USER COMPACT microsystems UK_BIRM_UX01 PROLIANTPROLIANT SERVERWIN0001 tsr 4554 PROLIANTPROLIANT SERVERWIN0099 PROLIANTPROLIANT SERVERWIN00078 www.assetgen.com
- 28. Support Different Needs © AssetGen Limited 29 Claims Processing Payment Module ACCOUNTS Accounts Module SVRWIN001 Accounts Payable Accounts Receivable PAYROLL Sage Payroll Payroll SW-BHAM- CORE1 SW-BHAM- CORE2 SW-BHAM-01 SW-BHAM-03 SW-BHAM-05 SW-BHAM-02SW-BHAM-04SW-BHAM-06 UK_BIRM_UX01 UK_BIRM_UX02 UK_BIRM_UX09 UK_BIRM_UX04UK_BIRM_UX05 UK_BIRM_UX03 UK_BIRM_UX06 UK_BIRM_UX07 UK_BIRM_UX08 UK_BIRM_UX10 99999 99999 UK_BIRMCC_PDU1 UK_BIRMCC_PDU2 PWR01- 03-A PWR01- 04-A PWR01- 05-A PWR01-06- A PWR01- 07-A PWR01- 03-B PWR01-04- B PWR01-05- B PWR01-06- B PWR01-07- B UK_BIRM_UX01 UK_BIRM_UX02 UK_BIRM_UX09 UK_BIRM_UX10 UK_BIRM_UX03 UK_BIRM_UX04 UK_BIRM_UX05 UK_BIRM_UX06 UK_BIRM_UX07 UK_BIRM_UX08 PP01-02-01 RTR-BHAM-01 PWR01-02-A PWR01-02-B NTU-BHAM-01 NTU-TEST03 Floor Plan Rack Position Application/ Service impact Power Supply Network Connections BLADE_BIRM01 UK_BIRM01_BLADE-01 UK_BIRM01_BLADE-02 UK_BIRM01_BLADE-03 UK_BIRM01_BLADE-04 BLADE-BIRM01.BLADE-SW1 BLADE-BIRM01.BLADE-SW2 UK_BIRM01_BLADE-05 UK_BIRM01_BLADE-09 UK_BIRM01_BLADE-10 UK_BIRM01_BLADE-12 H/W Build
- 29. Reduce The Workload! Excel Visio Floor box list Floor plan Cabinet list Equipment room floor plan Patch panel list Backbone cabling diagram Inventory Network diagram Inventory Rack diagram Inventory Server connectivity diagram
- 30. Capture – Our Data Capture Approach 1. Document / survey buildings and spaces and put into an infrastructure database. 2. Capture racks and enclosures using paper and then into a spreadsheet format. Enables production of Visio floor plans and supports audit packs 3. Capture inventory into an upload spreadsheet. Creates rack diagrams, floor box layouts, architecture maps 4. Capture connectivity into an upload spreadsheet. Create network, path and other topology diagrams
- 31. Capture – Difference In Approach • Data capture focusses on delivering 3 files • Visualisation is either created automatically, or by combining data with existing backdrops - floor plans • No need to check across multiple documents for consistency and format A faster, less complex and less costly audit, which doesn’t require high skill levels within the audit team And delivers an operational system that can be maintained easily! Excel Excel Excel Rack Device Cable
- 32. Maintain - Infrastructure Knowledge Project and task Manage and Coordinate Ease and speed of creation Ease of distribution Flexible to meet task needs Limited training Ease of use by many Structured for integration & reporting Support for multiple processes Wide scope – the big picture! 33 Record planning decisions in the operational system Produce project docs for/from the operational system Plan Build Operate Risk Dispose
- 33. Maintain – Keeping Data Up to Date • Project teams can assess current state and capacity without the need to survey for every request. • Design teams can allocate and manage existing infrastructure resource capacity. • Projects go faster, less change conflicts, reduced cost of meeting infrastructure change requests. • Operations teams do not have to maintain detailed data, they feed off project updates. – Overnight updates of inventory / diagrams – Ad hoc query / checking to help resolve service problems • Management and capacity data is always available – Space, connectivity, power, changes, audit trails
- 34. Summary • Campus infrastructure is physically dispersed, supports multiple services and scale / complexity limits MS office tools suitability. • Reducing multiple spreadsheets into a database helps, even more so when that same system creates a variety of Visio outputs automatically. • A systems approach to documentation directly reduces change costs and project delivery times – with the starting point being a baseline!
- 35. Additional Material www.squaremilesystems.com Training/workshops Technical / management aspects of data centers Webinars Visio automation, documenting cabling, etc. Videos Free SMS Visio utilities www.assetgen.com Evaluation software Free “DCIM” evaluation version Webinars Data center practices, Visio integration Videos Visio automation, change impact analysis