Your IT light is on: get revved up over a speedy new way to upgrade

Introduction

Picture all of the parts that make up your IT infrastructure. Much like an automobile, each year manufacturers produce new

models and update parts to make the latest data center faster and more efficient than the last. Preparing your car for the

open highway is much like updating your IT foundation: there are many interacting parts to consider, and while you pore

over the best map, the odometer ticks.

Your IT light is on

Like choosing an engine, an IT infrastructure is made up of interconnected parts: servers, storage and networking hardware

paired with management and virtualization software that support the flow and processing of information. With the right

platform, you can choose how you want your business to drive today, while keeping it well-oiled for any speed bumps

tomorrow. All it takes is a good look underneath the hood.

An assessment of your IT infrastructure helps you decide which parts to replace and which parts can stay.

Your IT light is on: get revved up over a speedy new way to upgrade1

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Take your infrastructure for a tune-up

When it’s time to upgrade, getting a new system up and running can take months – from mulling over hardware costs and

deciding specs to deploying the solution. Then, development operations take 30-90 days for provisioning, then configurations

and then months of additional fine tuning.

What if you could opt for a system integrated by design? Everything is pre-configured in the background.

Gentlemen, start your engines – the NGP has arrived

The IBM PureFlex system is a member of a new family of expert-integrated systems called IBM PureSystems. PureFlex is a

factory-integrated and optimized set of hardware. PureFlex allows you to build your system infrastructure with integrated

management, automation and optimization expertise built in. It addresses complex business operational tasks (like manual

set-up and provisioning) automatically and tunes your systems for optimal performance and resource efficiency.

From design to purchase to maintenance, it’s a pretty streamlined IT infrastructure deployment method.

PureFlex comes in three pre-configured set-ups or built-to-order. A pre-configured PureFlex is like driving a brand new

automobile off the lot. A built-to-order PureFlex is like dropping new parts and a bossy new powertrain into a classic car.

Regardless, if you want to rip-and-replace your infrastructure or simply upgrade hardware, PureFlex can manage the new

hardware and integrate nicely with the existing hardware.

Depending on the configuration you choose, PureFlex is preconfigured for auto provisioning and scalability.

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Under the hood of IBM PureFlex

How does it work? On a technical level, it’s codified best practices for presetting configuration options by type of selected

web application (e.g. high availability, high security etc.) On a simple level, it’s a pre-configured IT infrastructure in-a-box.

The number one feature of this product is its simplicity. Simply order the servers, storage and networking hardware that’s

best for your organization and you receive a box carrying a fully integrated next-generation platform pre-loaded with

management software. Then, power it up. You will notice a pre-loaded UI, work through a brief wizard and relax while the

system recognizes the technology in the box. No connecting cables, entering worldwide names, zoning the infrastructure

and all of that rack n’ stack. Your infrastructure can be fully operational within hours.

In recent years, IBM has focused on open standards. While there is a need for integrating legacy and 3rd party solutions into

infrastructure upgrades, IBM has made a hairpin turn with PureFlex because it’s compatible across hypervisors, operating

systems and open infrastructures. PureFlex is made up of several infrastructure parts that are usually integrated separately

and at different stages:

Your IT light is on: get revved up over a speedy new way to upgrade3

NGP spec sheet

• All configurations are Cloud-ready with addition of

SmartCloud Entry software

• Choice of IBM POWER7 or Intel x86 processors

• Choice of PowerVM, KVM, VMware, or Microsoft Hyper-V

• Choice of AIX, IBM i, Microsoft Windows®, and Linux from

Red Hat or SUSE

• Any combination of POWER7/PowerVM and x86 with KVM,

VMware or Hyper-V

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Chassis14 half-widebays for nodes

Compute nodesPower 2S/4S*x86 2S/4S

Networking10/40GbE, FCoE, IB8/16Gb FC

Storage nodeV7000 Expansion inside or outside chassis

Management ApplianceOptional

ExpansionPCIeCaptive Storage

How to order IBM PureFlex

PureFlex can be built-to-order starting from the chassis, or you can order a chassis and any combination of servers, storage,

networking and management. Individual components can be mixed, matched and integrated with optional management.

IBM offers three pre-defined options:

• Express PureFlex – The most affordable entry point and a starting line to integrate IBM PureFlex in a small area like QA or

test DEV environment

• Standard PureFlex – Adds a level of management to the infrastructure for application servers with supporting storage and

networking and integration of additional cloud functionality

• Enterprise PureFlex – Preconfigured for large enterprises buying a rack at a time. This set up includes redundancy for

resilient operation, infrastructure for transactional and database systems and additional cloud functionality.

PureFlex takes advantage of proven best practices and expertise for complex tasks learned from decades of client and

partner engagements that IBM captured, lab-tested and optimized and then built into the system.

Your IT light is on: get revved up over a speedy new way to upgrade4

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What does this mean for me?

The IBM PureFlex system is cool because it automates most of the integration process suffered by IT. By combining hardware

in an efficient manner, IBM has reduced the manual steps to integrate new hardware into an IT infrastructure; saving money,

time and the sanity of IT resources.

As part of IBM PureSystems suite (and to complement PureFlex), IBM also offers PureApplication, an application systems and

software module that simplifies the management and provisioning of applications running on your PureFlex hardware.

From beginning to virtualize or standardize, to moving the phase of optimization and automation, every business is

somewhere along the road to Cloud computing. Regardless of your stage, you will need to take advantage of newer

technology and better ways to manage your infrastructure. With a fully-integrated infrastructure in-a-box topped with

pre-loaded management software, PureFlex is like the all-inclusive rest-stop on your road trip to an efficient infrastructure.

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Your IT light is on: get revved up over a speedy new way to upgrade6

A better business

Softchoice believes in helping build better businesses for our

customers. Our goal is to help your organization become more

successful, more productive and more competitive.

Softchoice Services drives results by combining deep expertise

and proven processes that correlate to your unique situation.

Softchoice’s experienced team of certified experts is dedicated

to helping you manage your technology challenges today.

From design and planning to implementation, integration and

migration, Softchoice’s data center experts can help streamline

your operations, improve availability, reliability

and performance.

How can you define a roadmap to success?

At Softchoice, we believe that any IT project must start with

a good plan. Whatever the project, the only way to really

understand the scope and breadth is by uncovering the current

state, identifying potential roadblocks and mapping out the

future in logical phases.

Over 800 Softchoice assessment and advisory services

completed in 2011

The Softchoice Assessment and Advisory teams specialize in

identifying, analyzing and helping you evaluate technology

opportunities so you have a clear picture of the implications

for your business and can develop a comprehensive strategy

that optimizes your data center investment.

Softchoice’s data center advisory services – connecting your

business to technology opportunities by:

• Assessing your organization’s existing physical environment

• Collecting and analyzing utilization metrics and modeling

the physical infrastructure in a projected virtual environment

• Analyzing and interpreting financial payback metrics to

determine the benefits of investing in virtualization

Connect with us today. 1.800.268.7638 | www.softchoice.com/optimizedatacenter

Learn more about how Softchoice partners with customers so

they can make informed decisions that reduce their risks and

help them gain a competitive edge.

Together we can develop solutions that drive a better business

for you: » Contact us today for more information.

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Common Infrastructure Challenges:

• Length of time to get new hardware up and running

• Finding the right configuration for your business

• Hassle of manual fine tuning, maintenance and provisioning