You may have heard the term ‘IT infrastructure’ before, but what does it mean?
IT infrastructure is the backbone of any business. It encompasses all critical systems and equipment to keep a business running, from computers and networking to phone systems and cybersecurity. For a business to succeed, it needs to have a solid IT infrastructure to handle all its day-to-day operations.
Infrastructure is used to improve system resource availability, utilisation, and performance. Maximising virtualisation involves various components such as storage, network, servers, and security apparatus. To an extent, all businesses have an IT infrastructure; different organisations require different elements within their business infrastructure to optimise day-to-day activities.
Having a strong IT infrastructure in place can improve efficiency and productivity within your organisation. It can help reduce IT costs by making it easier to manage and maintain your IT systems and have them running at optimum level. Having a well-implemented IT infrastructure can make a big difference in how your organisation runs.
So, what exactly is IT infrastructure, and what does it involve? Our team have broken down all the elements of what IT infrastructure involves.
If you would like more information on how your business can benefit from IT support and our other managed services – please do not hesitate to contact our team today.
Hardware
Hardware refers to the physical IT infrastructure needed to deliver IT services. The facilities that house, cool and power datacentres. Hardware solutions include:
- Data centres
- Servers
- Network hubs
- Routers
- Computers, including laptops, tablets, and mobile devices
Software
Software refers to the applications used by businesses. While hardware refers to the machines that make up the IT infrastructure, software applications provide the interface and instructions that make our hardware what we want it to be. There are millions of applications, but we do see more common ones,, which include:
- Content management systems (CMS)
- Customer relationship management (CRM)
- Enterprise resource planning (ERP)
- Operating systems
- Web servers
Networking
As the name suggests, networking enables connectivity between business machines, enabling important functions such as:
- Internet access
- Integrated security monitoring
- Configuration management
- Device access management
Types of IT infrastructure
A traditional IT infrastructure comprises the usual hardware and software components. Typically, this setup requires more power, physical space and money than other types. This type of infrastructure is generally installed on-site for company use or private use. Traditional infrastructure is often expensive to run and requires a large amount of hardware, like servers and power and physical space.
Cloud infrastructure
A cloud computing IT infrastructure system is similar to traditional infrastructure; however, end users can access the platform via the internet.
A cloud provider manages cloud infrastructure. A cloud provider is an organisation that provides cloud-based services, such as storage, computing, and applications. Cloud providers typically own and operate the infrastructure to deliver cloud services.
Cloud infrastructure is designed to be scalable to easily accommodate changes in demand. Scalability is the ability to add or remove resources as needed to meet changing needs. Cloud infrastructure is also designed to be fault-tolerant to continue to function even if some of its components fail.
What optimal IT infrastructure looks like
An IT infrastructure set-up varies by business needs and goals. The optimal infrastructure provides a business with high-performance storage, security, and network. Qualities of a good IT infrastructure include:
- High performance storage
- Secure infrastructure
- Virtualisation
- Zero downtime
- WANs (prioritises traffic giving certain applications bandwidth)
How Xenace can help with your IT infrastructure
Xenace’s IT infrastructure services are custom tailored based upon your business needs. Our IT infrastructure services align network architecture and end-to-end communication to ensure your company has the best IT solutions built by our engineers.
Speak to our team today for all your IT requirements