Kevin Stone, a friend and associate who is now Manager of Enterprise Monitoring at Advertising.com, introduced me to a neat book, The Visible Ops Handbook. It is a smal book, ideal for on-the-job use, to aid in implementing ITIL (Infrastructure Technology Infrastructure Library). ITIL is a process and methodology developed by the United Kingdom's Office of Government Commerce to formalize the process of managing information technology. The book's introduction includes a list of common characteristics of high-performing IT organizations:
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High service levels and availability
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High throughput of effective change
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Higher investment early in the IT lifecycle
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Early and consistent process integration between IT operations and IT security
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Posture of compliance
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Collaborative working relationships between functions
- Server to system administrator ratios greater than 100:1
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Low amounts of unplanned work
What's interesting to me about this list are the last two items. The high server to adminstrator ratios means a more efficient team exists, which reduces the amount of communications required to run the infrastructure. The low amounts of unplanned work translates into reduction of firefighting activities. Having designed and run operational networks, anything that can help reduce firefighting is definitely worth investigating.
The core of the book is only 66 pages, with an additional appendix of 28 pages, so it isn't overwhelming. The key message, if I may boil it down to one concept, is to implement processes and mechanisms that have demonstrated ability to reduce unplanned outages and work. The authors provide specific recommendations with examples of how the recommendations translate into improvements in the operation of the infrastructure.
What I find missing from this book is a discussion about tying the IT infrastructure to the business requirements. Given that different businesses have vastly different requirements, one might consider this to be an omission of necessity. But I think that there should be some statement given about tying the infrastructure to the business requirements. After all, it is the business operations that generates money for the company and if the network doesn't support the business operations that generate money, there's little purpose for the network. One could also argue that such a discussion could or should be another book or perhaps an appendix in this book, just to keep focus on the respective topics.
Overall, I highly recommend this book for anyone running a major part of any organizaiton's IT infrastructure. Just keep in mind the link between the infrastructure and the business processes that it must support and you'll be set.
-Terry