C a s e s t u d y
SGF
Société générale de financement du Québec
QLogic iSR6142 router helps
prevent financial disasters
Challenge
Find a way to quickly and cost-effectively implement a
remote disaster recovery solution for mission-critical
applications and data.
Solution
The QLogic iSR6142 intelligent Storage Router
provides high-speed, reliable distance connectivity
over the metropolitan area network (MAN). IBM
DS4000 storage and GlobalMirror software complete
the solution for disaster recovery using asynchronous
remote mirroring.
Result
Using the QLogic iSR6142 router enabled the Société
générale de financement du Québec (SGF) to improve
several areas in their day-to-day operations. Mission-
critical application data could be mirrored across
the MAN from Montreal to Québec (250km), without
impacting productivity or requiring additional IT
management resources.
Building Opportunities by Building a SAN
Société générale de financement du Québec (SGF) was founded in 1962 with
the express purpose of playing a key role to enable development activity,
business investments and provide financial expertise within Québec’s
industrial community. SGF’s investment portfolio totaled nearly $2.5 billion
at the end of 2007, creating 9,580 direct and indirect (person-years) jobs
that year.
As with many companies today, fast growth leads to new IT requirements.
SGF recruited Robert Bryant to oversee their system enhancements. The
first thing that Bryant encountered was possible improvements through
storage consolidation: each server used internal or direct-attached storage.
Furthermore, the expected growth of SGF indicated that a remote site for
storing and protecting data would ensure uninterrupted operations.
To provide a smooth integration, Bryant engaged an outside audit firm to
help with the analysis and recommendations. They presented three key
findings to management:
Current operations were acceptable, but SGF’s strategic growth would
1.
need an expanded data infrastructure and network topology.
A remote disaster recovery plan was needed to prevent catastrophic
2.
interruptions in day-to-day operations.
Storage consolidation within a SAN environment would help support the
3.
DR solution, insure sustained growth and reduce IT management costs.
The team quickly realized that SGF should expand and upgrade their data
storage environment to continue their mission of providing financial growth
opportunities to Québec’s business community. Bryant and his team were
immediately commissioned to create requirements and a deployment plan.
“The QLogic iSR6142 was really the only viable choice for our DR plan. I had tried
other router products at a previous company, but switched to the iSR6142 for its
low-cost, worry-free operation and excellent customer support. When it came to
picking a solution for SGF, nothing else came close to QLogic.”
—Robert Bryant, IT Technical Coordinator,
Société générale de financement du Québec
