TxMQ’s Hybrid Cloud Practice

Most companies today have a huge investment in legacy systems and applications. Some may be mainframe based, containing collections of old Cobol code that continue to run the business. Other situations find companies with ERP or MRP systems that have been customized and retooled so much, they barely resemble the original out-of-the-box application that was originally purchased. Whatever the case, chances are high your legacy systems requires support and ongoing management by a team of developers and admins – likely many of whom are beginning to plan their retirements. Do you have a plan in place to handle this not-so-far-off future?
Cloud is all the buzz today, but you are stuck in the past with systems and technology that just can’t be ‘lifted and shifted’ to the cloud. It’s either that, or you are hamstrung by regulatory requirements that simply preclude much of your data from a cloud migration.

APIs are a part of the Hybrid Cloud answer (or at least will get you started down the right path)

An API strategy allows you to leverage your back end assets by exposing them for consumption to trusted partners, or even end consumers. All while ensuring the security and reliability of your legacy systems.
This approach is one we call ‘Hybrid Cloud’. It is the first step in a cloud strategy that doesn’t have to involve anything more than rethinking how legacy workloads are used and accessed. At the same time, this strategy allows a rethinking of new workload deployments, and new ways of working.

DevOps

A DevOps approach allows for a continuous, rapid, iterative application development cycle, while ensure equally continuous testing of new applications and code and while automating code deployment. IBM’s Urban Code Deploy is an important part of a Dev Ops strategy for customers with extensive legacy workloads and compliance concerns.
Today’s developers want to work in a more rapid and nimble way. ‘Failing fast’ is the new mantra, and maps well to line of business (LOB) owners pushing for quicker time to market for their applications. Historically, this way of working wouldn’t play well with legacy shops. Yet with the introduction of a Hybrid Cloud approach, companies can rethink new workloads and new application requests, including non-production environments, to leverage DevOps. Furthermore, companies can begin to look at Platform as a Service (PaaS) options allowing for more rapid environment spin ups, and more stable and rapid application testing.
Also, this Hybrid Cloud approach allows for the rapid integration of cloud based solutions like Workday, Salesforce, Netsuite, and other web based technologies companies continue to adopt.
TxMQ helps companies evaluate their legacy infrastructure to identify quick wins leadership can use to begin a roadmapping and ‘future planning’ strategy. Get in touch today to learn how we can help you create a future that leverages next generation options for aging infrastructure and applications.
Next time, we’ll discuss the next step on this journey…converged or hyper converged infrastructure.