21.6.2012
Regional system integrator Combis implemented a Microsoft Private Cloud solution to UniCredit Bank, a leading bank in Bosnia and Herzegovina. With the construction of private cloud, the infrastructure of the bank has been expanded and the availability of data centre services to support bank’s business needs has been increased.
Cloud technology allows banks to transform business processes and gain new momentum of growth in the new markets. Private cloud is the first major step toward the complete cloud computing solutions and is ideal for the financial sector due to a greater degree of control over the entire IT and security. With the private cloud model, banks can place all of their business applications that support their business processes in a private cloud with maximum security, along with benefiting from other additional features of a cloud, such as reduced system complexity, increased flexibility and reduced costs.
- Strategic plan of UniCredit Bank was to increase accessibility and expand its data centre infrastructure to support business services, and of course, optimization of investment costs and operational costs. To fulfil these requirements and better utilize hardware resources, it was necessary to build highly virtualized environment, similar in concept as with the 'Infrastructure as a Service' model. After comparing the technology options on the market and the overall cost of licensing for the entire Private Cloud solution, the choice was made in favour of Microsoft technology - explains Goran Car, Director of Professional Services and System integration Division at Combis.
Microsoft Hyper-V cluster, System Center Operations Manager, System Center Configuration Manager and System Center VMM + SSP 2.0 were implemented. With the optimization of existing Microsoft licensing, there was no need for greater investments in virtualization environment based on Microsoft technologies. Instead, the complete optimization of operational, investment costs and the cost of licensing was achieved.
- Results of the project are increased data centre availability, better utilization and easier expansion of resources, centralized management, optimization of operating costs, and achieved independence of the hardware business services, thereby ensuring a smooth and steady growth of the bank and its services - explained Car.
With this successful implementation Combis confirmed its status as the regional leader in the field of virtualization and cloud technologies.