The FINANCIAL -- Cisco on November 3 announced that Previder (formerly Introweb BV), a provider of virtual services to the IT specialist, software vendor and Internet service provider (ISP) sectors, has deployed the Cisco Unified Computing SystemTM in its data centers.

By adopting the Cisco technology, Previder can now offer its partners new and competitive IT solutions such as Web hosting, streaming media servers, DNS and mail servers, faster than ever before while reducing its physical server count by 94 per cent (from 30 racks down to just 2).

"With the Cisco Unified Computing System, Previder is maximizing the power of virtualization by uniting its server, network, storage and virtualization capabilities into one energy-efficient system that significantly reduces the cost and complexity of its IT infrastructure. Previder can now offer its hosted services on a much larger scale than previously possible, enabling its partners, which include system integrators, software houses and Internet service providers, to provide services to end users that have traditionally only been available to large enterprises. The end users benefiting from Previder's services range from schools to care institutions, local government departments, and finance and health care institutions," Cisco informs.

Facts:

Prior to deploying the Cisco Unified Computing System, Previder's data center was based on an array of different servers, switches and storage systems delivering services for thousands of customers. The servers consumed a significant amount of the data center's physical, power and cooling capacity, and were very time-consuming to manage.

The Cisco Unified Computing System deployment uses a triple chassis with a total of 25 blades, divided across Previder's two high-end data centers.

For storage, Previder uses the Cisco Unified Computing System with a NetApp Metro Cluster 3140 and a NetApp FAS2050 as backup. This setup offers Previder's customers high-availability computing and storage solutions, with data and information available at all times, even during system malfunctions.

Technology and Business Benefits:

The move to the Cisco Unified Computing System will help enable Previder and its partners to develop and deploy more flexible and innovative hosted services to small and medium-sized organisations at a fraction of the time previously required.

The Cisco Unified Computing System will reduce Previder's total cost of ownership by allowing hundreds of servers and virtual machines to be easily managed by the technical team as a single system. The unified management system also requires fewer personnel to manage the platform.

Consolidating the data center infrastructure also means significant savings in electricity and cooling costs.

The Cisco Unified Computing System saves space: More than 30 racks in the old Previder infrastructure are replaced by just two racks of the Cisco Unified Computing System. Previder can now use the additional capacity toward revenue generating capabilities.

The deployment of the Cisco Unified Computing System also allowed Previder to move its services to a new data center with zero downtime.

Supporting Quotes

Ewald Lucas, commercial manager at Previder:

"With the advent of software-as-a-service and cloud computing, the way organisations make use of technology is changing. Rather than having to make large investments in physical infrastructure in-house, organisations can now rent any type of service from the cloud. The Cisco Unified Computing System helps us to become a key player in this rapidly changing IT landscape and offer our partners more innovative services more flexibly and faster, while transforming our data center into a new revenue stream."

Fred Gerritse, director, partner organisation, Cisco Netherlands:

"Previder's deployment of the Cisco Unified Computing System is a textbook example of the benefits that virtualization can bring to a business. By realising the full potential of virtualization, Previder has been able to not just cut costs significantly, but also open up new revenue opportunities by delivering competitive new services to its customers and free up assets for further growth."

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