1	"Revisiting K-12 Technology" Revisiting K-12 Technology By: Ryan Leestma, CISSP, MCSE, MCDBA, CCNA rleestma@isigr.com
2	Personal Bio Ryan Leestma – rleestma@isigr.com Christian School Graduate DeMotte Christian – DeMotte, IN Illiana Christian – Lansing, IL Covenant College www.covenant.edu – Chattanooga, TN B.A. Business Administration Certifications CISSP – Certified Information Systems Security Professional MCSE – Microsoft Certified Systems Engineer MCDBA – Microsoft Certified Database Administrator CCNA – Cisco Certified Network Associate
3	Company Bio Started in 2001 Business Consulting Firm Using Technology as a Tool Solution Vendors Microsoft, Cisco, HP, IBM Solutions Education Solution Mobility, wireless, collaboration Youthful Company Fastest-growing IT solutions company in West Michigan!
4	ISI and Christian Education Belief in Christian Education System Commitment to Christian Education Staff background in Christian Education
5	Why are we here? The big problem Scarce Resources Specifically… Workstation Replacement Cycle Inferior Equipment Hand-me-downs Software Replacement Cycle Maintenance and Labor Installation (Management) It all adds up! Beating the public schools: Making IT a commodity, not a black hole for dollars
6	Symptoms Lowered exposure to technology Less familiarity Ex. Office 12 Lowered emphasis on technology Inferior workplace skill sets Internal Distractions Raising funds, coordinating migrations, etc.
7	The Status Quo Data Servers Primarily house data Minor network services AD, DNS, Anti-virus Workstations Varying flavors 98 2000 XP
8	The Status Quo – What it looks like
9	Breaking down the diagram Hardware Software Management Security Performance
10	Hardware Analysis Server Usage Data Storage Logon Processing Workstation usage Workstation is doing all the work Data is pulled from server, processed, and sent back
11	Hardware Inefficiencies Server inefficiencies Server is primarily a spinning disk! Low processor utilization Low memory utilization Workstation inefficiencies Workstations are mostly sitting idle Brief moments of frenzied activity followed by long periods of inactivity Exception: Cad, Video Rendering, etc. Every workstation is an independent depreciation center
12	Software Analysis Each individual desktop is licensed for: Network Access Open Source an exception Application Access Anti-virus
13	Software Inefficiencies Each individual desktop is licensed for software when requirements and duties are nearly identical! Management purposes
14	Management Analysis High levels of interaction required Experts required Grows organically
15	Management Inefficiencies Each workstation has separate software configuration that must be managed! Can be modified Can be hacked Can be infected Can be compromised Ghost-type utilities can lessen impact Costly (per desktop fee) PC’s support distracts teachers from teaching So many variables! Summer weeks spent working on IT Difficult to monitor usage without 3^rd Party Applications Difficult to enforce acceptable usage policies “out of the box”
16	Security Analysis Threats coming from… Viruses Spyware Warez Unauthorized installations Unauthorized modifications / deletions Accidental modifications / deletions Removable media
17	Security Inefficiencies Each desktop must be individually managed for all threats No centralization without 3^rd party apps Logging Monitoring Roughly linear costs
18	Performance Analysis Data can only be accessed as fast as cabling infrastructure allows 100MB cabling No economies of scale Workstations Servers Application performance dependent upon each individual workstation P2 vs P4
19	Performance Inefficiencies No way to consolidate power Workstations not being used by students cannot be used for anything else! Introduction: Grid Computing IT as Electricity Story: 19^th century electricity vs. 20th century 1 to 8’s rule
20	Lots of Waste! Inefficiencies = Wasted Dollars Wasted Time An inferior product Why do we keep investing in this inefficient machine? Lack of options Lack of expertise Fear of change
21	The philosophy moving forwards Centralization Elimination of independent depreciation centers Introduction of a system with real economies of scale The bigger it gets, the more we save! Philosophy of IT as a commodity Doing more with less Measuring, controlling, adapting “If it can’t be measured it’s not worth doing”
22	Progression History IT, just as with anything else, is characterized by antithetical swings Note the progression Mainframes Centralization / Control Apple II’s – 1984 Flexibility, Freedom, and Expensive IBM Personal Computers (Love my Thinkpad BTW) Flexibility, Freedom, and less expensive What if we could combine the best of both worlds?
23	We’re all going this way… Government Acknowledgement of Need for Change HIPAA Sarbanes-Oxley Industry’s acknowledgement of Need for Change Worms, expense Microsoft “Do More with Less”
24	The Next Step Managing IT like a commodity Providing cost-effective, measurable IT resources to all members of school Server Based Computing The only way!
25	What is Server Based Computing? Reminder: Data Centralization Application processing centralization Continuing the paradigm Powerful Servers Simple Clients No OS No moving parts Drastic Cost Savings 57% reduction in management costs!
26	Hardware Efficiencies Server Efficiencies Server is kept busy all day! Higher processor utilization Higher memory utilization Great economies of scale! Terminal Efficiencies Terminals have few moving parts MTBF 10 Years! Low heat, small footprint, low power consumption (10%!) Terminals can be laptops, tablets, desktops, pocket pc’s, even web browsers! UNIQUE ISI ADDITION! Linux software that turns obsolete workstations into useable terminals!
27	Software Efficiencies Application roll-outs take minutes, not hours Software usage is controlled based on group memberships No imaging No software repairs 99.5% of all Windows applications run! 24-bit Video, 16-bit Audio capabilities! Software is centrally installed and deployed on server Software applications controlled centrally through server Assignments by grade
28	Management Efficiencies Terminals are completely plug and play Pull out of box, type in server name, click connect Absolutely no set-up time Teachers do not deal with helpdesk issues Complete network migrations take days, not weeks Built-in monitoring capability for each and every student Faculty and administration can “shadow” students without their knowledge Group policies enforce acceptable usage policies Complete logging and monitoring done directly on server for later analysis
29	Security Efficiencies If server is locked down tightly, all users will be protected Central anti-virus management Central spyware management No distraction caused by workstation issues
30	Performance Efficiencies Data accessed at drive-level speeds Power is completely consolidated and centralized Server rarely, if ever, sits idle Economies of scale in lab environments Doubling processing power is as simple as adding processors to ONE machine
31	Other benefits Instant Remote Access Virtualization Abilities Effortless scaling Processing Storage Users CSI Capabilities? IT wholesaling capabilities to home-schoolers Reduced need for in-house IT staff Potential complication
32	The slam-dunk The ISI hook: Utilize your out of date hardware! Completely usable Requirements: Pentium I, 32MB RAM Works for laptops and desktops! Steady stream of equipment donated from parents Only server is required! No Mac’s please Story: Borculo Christian Provide a completely managed, Microsoft Windows environment at a fraction of the cost! ISI has developed a custom distribution of Linux to save Christian schools the $400 / seat that would normally have to be spent on thin client hardware!
33	What it looks like…
34	Top-down View
35	How it saves… Dramatic cost savings Quantitative Virtual elimination of annual workstation investments 57% reduction in labor Qualitative User frustration Each desktop is universally accessible on any terminal Users can access their personal desktop from at home as well! Teacher Frustration
36	Help me save!
37	Making technology accessible to all
38	A managed solution
39	Who’s doing it? Zion Christian – Grand Rapids, MI Calvin Christian – Grand Rapids, MI Rollout this summer Rehobeth Christian Citrix variant, not taking advantage of Linux hardware conversion (bulk of cost savings) Lee County, Ft Myers Florida http://www.wyse.com/overview/success/leecounty.htm 70,000 Students Dozens of Commercial ISI clients Robeson County Schools Orange County Public Schools Gwinnett Public Schools Every Fourtune 500 Company Hundreds of other organizations
40	Choose your benefit… Both choices come with… Increased manageability Increased security Increased accessibility Choose huge cost savings… Or choose a little less cost savings with greater performance!
41	I’ll take the savings please… Re-invest saved dollars into… Projectors Laptops Handhelds Communication Servers Exchange Inbox, Task Delegation, Group scheduling, announcements board
42	Summary The key to student success is making sure they’re on the right side of the digital divide Christian Education does not have to come at the expense of technology Exercise better stewardship over resources Together we can work smarter, not harder!
43	Other Solutions Watchguard Firebox Line Border Gateway Security Web Filtering, E-mail filtering Cisco Voip Great for multi-campus schools Mobility Solutions Keep faculty connected to school in real-time Projectors
44	Quick Tangent: Linux Gaining traction Good for commodity applications Web Servers File Servers Print Servers Thin clients! But still not mature No wide-spread application support Little consulting support Few line-of-business solutions
45	Discussion