AIB has relocated one of its two data centres in a deal worth almost €2m. The move, which was necessitated by a dramatic increase in data volumes, will improve capacity by 50pc.
AIB has relocated one of its two data centres in a deal worth almost €2m. The move, which was necessitated by a dramatic increase in data volumes, will improve capacity by 50pc.
The data centre, including its tape backup infrastructure, was moved to new premises in Dublin using Sun Microsystem StorageTek products.
“New personal and business customers have resulted in a huge increase in banking transactions,” said Tom Hayes, senior manager, IT Infrastructure Management, AIB. “Customer information itself has expanded beyond traditional account details and name and address. An increase in tailored marketing and finance products, requiring the use of data warehouse technology, has further increased the volume of data and incidents of data access. As a result we have experienced increased pressure on our data storage infrastructure with data volumes more than trebling in the past two years.”
Compliance with Basel II accord and Sarbanes-Oxley requires AIB, by law, to regulate data access, storage, security and privacy. With higher levels of data retention and higher service level requirements including 24×7 operations, internet banking and third copy of data for backup and reporting purposes, the company’s data storage capabilities are continually tested.
“A smooth and seamless transition to the new technology carried out on time and within budget were of paramount importance to AIB,” said Paul O’Neill, senior IT manager, AIB. “We chose Sun because we have a long history of using StorageTek products to manage our storage needs. We also required two live mirrored production sites in continuous service to the banking group at all times during the move and upgrade. Sun delivered on all requirements and we now have a highly scalable system which has increased capacity by 50pc.”
“Sun’s professional services team firstly assessed the exact requirements of AIB deciding to install a powerful Sun StorageTek Streamline SL8500 modular library system and a StorageTek Virtual Storage Manager (VSM),” explained Declan Carr, sales manager, Sun Microsystems Ireland. “The new system ensured a seamless transition with no downtime or interruption to service for AIB customers or employees.
“Sun’s VSM will improve operating efficiencies while lowering total cost of ownership,” added Carr. “It will manage explosive data growth while optimising storage resources. It will also provide faster backups and data recall resulting in more efficient use of tape drives, increased productivity, business resumption and lower management costs.”
By Niall Byrne
