1. ITEC N453 – Information
Technology Practices
201220 - Week 05 - Lecture 01
• IT Infrastructure

2. IT infrastructure
• The shared technology resources that provide the platform
for the firm’s specific information system applications.
• IT infrastructure includes investment in
hardware, software, and services – such as
consulting, education, and training – that are shared
across the entire firm or across entire business unites in
the firm.
• Investments in infrastructure account for 25 and 35
percent of IT expenditure in large firms.
[2] Laudon, K. Laudon, J. “Management Information Systems” 2010, 11/e

3. Defining IT infrastructure
• IT infrastructure consists of a set of physical devices and
software applications that are required to operate the
entire enterprise.
• IT infrastructure is also a set of firm wide services
budgeted by management and comprising both human
and technical capabilities.

4. Defining IT infrastructure (Cont.)
• Computing platforms
• Used to provide computing services that connect
employees, customers, and suppliers into a coherent digital
environment, including large mainframes, desktop and laptop
computers, and PDAs and internet appliances.
• Telecommunications services
• Provide data, voice, and video connectivity to
employees, customers, and suppliers.
• Data management services
• Store and manage corporate data and provide capabilities for
analyzing the data.
[2] Laudon, K. Laudon, J. “Management Information Systems” 2010, 11/e

5. Defining IT infrastructure (Cont.)
• Application software services
• provide enterprise-wide capabilities such as
ERP, CRM, SCM, KMS, that are shared by all business units.
• Physical facilities management services
• Develop and manage the physical installations required for
computing, telecommunications, and data management services.
• IT management services
• Plan and develop the infrastructure, coordinate with the business
units for IT services, manage accounting for the IT expenditure, and
provide project management services.
[2] Laudon, K. Laudon, J. “Management Information Systems” 2010, 11/e

6. Defining IT infrastructure (Cont.)
• IT standards services
• Provide the firm and its business units with policies that determine
which IT will be used, when, and how.
• IT education services
• provide training in system use to employees and offer managers
training in how to plan for and manage IT investments.
• IT research and development services
• Provide the firm with research on potential future IT project and
investments that could help the firm differentiate itself in the
marketplace.
[2] Laudon, K. Laudon, J. “Management Information Systems” 2010, 11/e

7. IT infrastructure components
• Computer Hardware Platforms
• Dell, IBM, Sun, HP, Apple
• OS platforms
• MS Windows, UNIX, Linux, Mac OS X
• Enterprise Software Applications
• SAP, Oracle, MS, BEA
• Networking/Telecommunications
• Linus, Cisco, Lucent, Nortel, AT&T, Verizon
• Consultant and system integrators
• IBM, EDS, Accenture
• Data Management and Storage
• IBM DB2, Oracle, SQL Server, Sybase, MySQL, EMC Systems
• Internet Platforms
• Apache, MS IIS, MS.NET, UNIX, Cisco, Java

8. Computer Hardware Platforms
• In 2008, 258 million PCs were shipped worldwide ($253
billion) [2, P.204]
• U.S firms spent about $150 billion in 2008 on computer
hardware (client machine and servers)
• Client machine (PCs, Mobile computing devices such as
iPhone, Blackberrys, and laptops) [2, P.204]
• Servers (Intel, AMD, IBM processors)

9. OS platforms
• At client level 95% of PCs and 45% of handheld devices
use some form of MS Windows OS.
• Window comprises 70% of the server operating market
• 30% of corporate servers using some form of the Unix OS
or Linux.
• Windows server 2008
• Capable of providing enterprise-wide OS and network services
• Appeals to organizations seeking Windows-based IT
infrastructures.

10. Enterprise Software Applications
• US firms spend about $250 billion in 2008 on SW for
enterprise applications that are treated as components of
IT infrastructure.
• Largest providers are SAP and Oracle (acquired
PeopleSoft)
• Middleware software supplied by vendors such as BEA
(acquired by Oracle in 2008)
• MS attempting to move into the lower ends of this market
by focusing on SME

11. Data Management and Storage
• Few choices
• Leading DB software providers are:
• IBM (DB2)
• Oracle
• MS (SQL Server)
• Sybase (Adaptive Server Enterprise)
• MySQL (growing new entrant from Linux supported by HP and
others)
• Physical data storage
• Market is dominated by EMC for large scale systems
• Seagate, Maxtor, and Western Digital (small market)
• SANs connects multiple storage devices on a separate high-speed
network dedicated to storage. (Large firms _

12. Networking/Telecommunications
• US firms in 2008 spend $210 billion a year (hardware)
• $850 billion on networking services (telecommunications
and telephony company charges for voice lines and
internet access
• LAN/WAN use TCP/IP
• Leading networking hardware providers
(Cisco, Lucent, Nortel and Juniper networks)

13. Internet Platforms
• U.S firms spend in 2008 an estimated $52 billion on Internet-related
infrastructure
• HW & SW
• Management services to support a firm’s Web site including Web hosting
services and for LANs and WANs
• Overlap with, and must relate to:
• Firm’s general networking infrastructure
• Firm’s hardware and software platforms.
• Internet HW server market concentrated in the hands of
dell, HP/Compaq, and IBM.
• Major SW application development tools and suites supplied by MS
(.NET using ASP) Sun (Sun’s Java for developing interactive Web
applications), Macromedia (Flash) Media software (Real Media) Text
tools (Adobe Acrobat)

14. Consulting and system integrators
• Even Large firms cannot implement all its own IT infrastructure?
Why?
• Large firms do not have the staff, the skills, the budget, or the necessary
experience to implement all its own IT infrastructure.
• Implementing new infrastructure requires?
• Significant changes in business processes and procedures
• Training an education
• Software integration
• Leading consulting firms providing this expertise?
• Accenture,
• IBM Global Services,
• Electronic Data Systems,
• HP Technology Solutions,
• Infosys,
• Wipro Technologies

15. Consulting and system integrators (Cont.)
• Software integration?
• Ensuring the new infrastructure works with the firm’s older, so –
called legacy systems and ensuring the new element of the
infrastructure work with tone another.
• Legacy systems?
• Older transaction processing systems created for mainframe
computer that continue to be used to avoid the high cost of
replacing or redesigning them.
• Replacing these system is cost prohibitive
• Generally not necessary if these older systems can be
integrated into a contemporary infrastructure.

16. End of Lecture
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