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Finding the Balance: Centralized and Distributed IT Models

Finding the Balance: Centralized and Distributed IT Models. Case Study: Princeton University IMAP and Exchange Mail Services. Dan Oberst CSG 01.08.04. IMAP Mail Services. Situation circa 1996: IBM Mainframe Mail (PUCC/RICEMAIL) Unix-based: Terminal (ucb mail/pine/elm/mush)

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Finding the Balance: Centralized and Distributed IT Models

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  1. Finding the Balance: Centralized and Distributed IT Models Case Study: Princeton University IMAP and Exchange Mail Services Dan Oberst CSG 01.08.04

  2. IMAP Mail Services • Situation circa 1996: • IBM Mainframe Mail (PUCC/RICEMAIL) • Unix-based: • Terminal (ucb mail/pine/elm/mush) • POP Service (Eudora) • Novell-based Pegasus Mail • Departmental and Personal Mail Servers: • Unix - POP/ucb mail • NeXTs, Macs, etc. • Central support service for sendmail configs

  3. IMAP • 1997 Testing, IMAP/LDAP implementation • 1998 July 14th Production rollout • IMAP-enabled the campus • Huge data integration & implementation issues • Lesson: Avoid Bastille Day! • Ultimate Success • 1999 Pegasus, IBM Mail phased out • End of sendmail config support • Departments encouraged to use central service

  4. Move to Central IMAP • Uphill struggle: • Email as O2 (prolonged outages not healthy) • Software issues delayed server upgrade • Ultimate success: • Features worth it (attachments, lookups) • Ongoing communications efforts essential • SPAM blacklist, disasters brought in holdouts • Dept. conversions STILL happening • Electrical Engineering - 2003 • Molecular Biology - ?2004 • CS – Never?

  5. Central IMAP Success • “No longer interesting” to depts. • Software matures • Economies of scale: • Servers • Redundant/failover • Lower support/user costs • Software updates: Virus/SPAM filtering • Staffing depth • Vendor support

  6. Central Exchange Service • There go my people. I must follow them, for I am their leader. -- M. Ghandi • In August 2001, 5 departments request that OIT run a centralized Exchange Server • Windows 2000 conversion was being planned • Combined W2K/AD/Exchange Project launched • OIT agreed to fund initial hardware • Funding model to recover staff costs • “Value Added Service” @ $7.50/mailbox/month • Ongoing hardware covered through migration

  7. Exchange • HUGE success: • OIT gained credibility • Broader support for W2K/AD conversion • Few domains, separate forests (e.g. CS) • Fees seen as reasonable • Users get integrated calendar features • Support costs are higher than IMAP • Current usage ~700 mailboxes • Hired Exchange admin (staff are happy) • New services (e.g. Blackberry @$10/mo.) • Issues – outages; MS Support costs

  8. Exchange • WIN-WIN • Departments didn’t want to roll their own • OIT didn’t want to have to bail them out • Funding model was viewed as equitable • Hard to justify with central IT dollars • Depts. covered marginal cost of service • Overall cost to university was less • Depts. perceive improved productivity • Central IT viewed as supportive and flexible

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