DGIT Datacenter
New DGIT Datacenter Delivers Next-Generation Services
DGIT is happy to announce a major expansion in service capabilities, made possible by the implementation of a new datacenter space that includes next-generation server, storage, virtualization, backup, and security services.
Mike Shane
Director, Infrastructure
“The opportunity to recruit a new team has been an amazing process. We’ve discovered some incredibly skilled department staff. Combining their expertise and effort will result in more effective and efficient support that benefits the entire organization. Our entire team is experiencing a tremendous growth opportunity, learning to support new technologies as well as operate within a more structured support system.”
- Director of Infrastructure, Mike Shane
What is the DGIT Datacenter?
Housed in the San Diego Supercomputing Center (SDSC), the new facility allows for consolidation of UCLA Health Sciences' data and applications in a secure, reliable space. Data backed up in San Diego will be copied to CHS, creating a level of geographic diversity among data sets. Future iterations will include the ability to back up data to other parts of the United States using cloud-based services such as Amazon AWS.
Why is this new data center so necessary?
Datacenter support has historically been managed at the department level. That service model created challenges we expect the new datacenter will mitigate. Centralizing infrastructure and administration enables DGIT to leverage economy of scale to deliver enterprise-class technology, while standardized systems and process will improve security, reliability, and response.
What benefits do you feel will be the most significant to UCLA Health Sciences faculty, staff and students, and why?
The new datacenter readies the UCLA Health Sciences for next-generation systems, servers, and cloud computing. There are so many benefits, both institutionally and for the user. It delivers key advancements in security, standardization, functionality, deployment time, administration, and data protection.
What will having this new infrastructure in place mean for your team specifically?
The opportunity to recruit a new team has been an amazing process. We’ve discovered some incredibly skilled department staff. Combining their expertise and effort will result in more effective and efficient support that benefits the entire organization. Our entire team is experiencing a tremendous growth opportunity, learning to support new technologies as well as operate within a more structured support system.
What services are available?
- Managed Hosting – DGIT will manage the day-to-day operations of servers, storage, backup, and security. Applications hosted on the DGIT infrastructure can be managed by department or DGIT resources, depending on preference.
- Storage – DGIT will provide storage for databases, applications, and other similar needs.
- Databases – DGIT will provide SQL databases for use by applications, or for faculty and staff development efforts.
- Cloud Storage (coming soon)
- Web Hosting (coming soon)
How do I request services?
The services listed above are available immediately and can be requested by UCLA Health Sciences departments, faculty and staff.
How will this affect me?
These new services offer two significant benefits for users. Firstly, they provide a way for DGIT to ensure the security and reliability of UCLA Health Sciences applications and data. Nearly all systems managed by DGIT will be migrated from locations in CHS and other UCLA Health Sciences buildings to this new space.
Conceptual outline of DGIT infrastructure design
Once there, they acquire the security protocols and services inherent in the network, storage, and backup systems, ensuring HIPAA compliance and adherence with other rigorous standards required by UCLA Health.
DGIT has already begun the process of migrating all UCLA Health Sciences servers and storage to the new datacenter, with an expected completion of December 2018.
And secondly, as not all applications and data in UCLA Health Sciences are managed by DGIT, these new services provide a new, HIPAA-compliant way for faculty, staff, departments, centers, etc., to setup IT applications and services. Traditional methods of setting up systems – often in department closets or at desks – do not meet security standards, are impractical to manage, and cost more than systems procured at scale.
The DGIT-managed services address these issues by covering the cost of HIPAA compliance and daily administration, and passing on only the reduced cost of hardware and software.
“The datacenter simultaneously maximizes your security, compute and storage capabilities while minimizing your overhead,” Budhwani says. “Dedicated IT professionals will provide administrative support for hosting, storing, and securing files, ensuring HIPAA compliance while reducing the cost for providing those services.”
Please see below for more information on the services offered and how to request more information about them.
Please note, while the services described in this announcement are appropriate for most applications, they may not apply to research computing workloads such as high-performance computing clusters, and large (multi-terabyte) data storage and archiving. DGIT offers high-performance computing services designed specifically for research and located in the Amazon AWS cloud platform.
Please reach out to us if you have questions about either set of services.
Arun Budhwani
Former Senior Director of IT Service Delivery
“The datacenter will move our IT systems into the future with new facilities supporting state-of-the-art technology, resulting in better performance, faster deployment speed, and heightened security.”
- Former Senior Director of IT Service Delivery, Arun Budhwani
