UPDATED: December 7, 2023
Scalability should be the top word in your mind when you are planning for any IT solution. The basic definition of scalability is something that you can easily explain, upgrade, and improve upon on demand. This equates to any new product. You should be able to ask yourself: how easy is it to grow with this service/product? In the world of IT, scalability is a feature that can make or break a business’s experience with technology.
"Why do I need to care about that? If I need the product, it doesn't matter if it's scalable." A scalable IT product needs to do more than just expand or upgrade easily as demands increase: it has to work. And if it's not scalable, you're looking at a lot of not working.
When an IT partner says that their product is highly scalable, be it a server, storage, networking, or other component, what they’re really saying is that their product was designed to grow with your business.
Learn more about scalability, and why it should be a priority when you are making decisions about your technology investments.
When considering how to implement a scalable infrastructure to grow your business, you need to consider the following types of servers, storage, and other components that will contribute to whether or not you're growing with your technology solutions. 20% of businesses fail in the first year and only half make it to their five year mark, so in order to stay afloat, you need to implements scalable solutions that work for you.
Your infrastructure is the core of your business, and the beating heart of it is your server and its parts. If your server is weak, then so will the rest of your operations. When you select a server, make sure that you do not just opt for the “cheapest one.” In this case, the lesson is not, “you get what you pay for,” but more like, “you lose what you pay for, and then have to spend more money later.”
Invest in servers that use parts made by best-of-breed manufacturers, like Cisco. This allows your business to start from a solid foundation. Whether you realize it or not, your IT resources are intrinsically linked to the efficiency of your business.
The way we store data is dramatically changing. Previously, data was stored on rotating disks. This, however, limited the amount of data you could store and impeded the speed at which you could reclaim it. Additionally, modern day storage has to be flexible enough to accommodate technology’s ever changing demands, including the demand for virtualization.
New technologies offer what storage models of the past could not: high scalability. Tools like Microsoft Azure provide enterprise level capabilities that not only store your data, but keep it secure and provide enhanced availability. In short, a scalable storage solution stores more data, keeps it secure, and allows you to access it faster.
Your infrastructure is more than just servers and storage, and fortunately, you are running your business in an age where almost every component of your infrastructure can be scalable, including your:
Despite the amount of innovations to scalable IT, it isn’t enough just to purchase the products. If you don’t have a dedicated IT solutions team to manage it, you may not be using your tools to their highest potential. Luckily, we can help you with that.
Centre Technologies was built on the principle of providing our customers with the best value for their IT investment, and one of the ways we fulfill this promise is by providing high scalability to businesses just like yours.
Now that you have an idea of what highly scalable servers and storage solutions can do separately, try to imagine what they can do together. If you need help or you're concerned with the level of effort this can be, let us know. We can be an extension of your IT department or be your IT guru when you need it.