Written Case Analysis

Name: Kissah A. Neri

Chapter/Topic: Chapter 4/ Business Hardware
Case Title: Lean Times Require Innovative System
Date Submitted: May 4, 2019

Thinking about the Case:

1. Centralization of resources in important in Rock County because it will improve
standardization and simplification. With this, it is easier for them to manage fewer
servers, and there’s also significant cost savings with licensing and maintenance of the
equipment.

2. A storage area network (SAN) also helps maximize the use of county IT resources.
Linking storage equipment on a single network allows Rock County to use the devices
more efficiently. That meant some servers would be using 95 percent of their available
disk space while others would be using only 15 percent. HP SAN technology lets the
county consolidate disk storage and allocate the capacity according to application
requirements.

3. Printer centralization allows agencies to better manage their printing and imaging needs,
which can reduce overall expenses and increase user productivity. Crittenden believes
the county’s current centralization efforts will provide even greater IT efficiencies and
cost savings. However, centralized printing can increase productivity but this is not the
case if the officers or users are dispersed over a large area. There would be difficulty in
the queuing of centralized printing if there a large area. Centralized can work well and
efficiently over a controlled office or over a small area since communication lines are
also direct. Hence, queuing for printing could not affect productivity.

4. Because of the improvement made by Rocky County, the machine each employee uses
will be much cheaper because it needs only a small hard disk. All applications and data
will reside on the servers to which these personal computers are linked, and all files
saved by county workers will be saved on the servers or SAN disks. If access to more
software and files is required, the same desktops can still be used. Instead of upgrading
them, the power of the servers can be upgraded, or the servers themselves, rather than
1,000 desktop computers, can be replaced.

Concept/s or Theory/ies Used in Analyzing the Case:

1. Data storage spaces and tapes.
2. Application and benefit of business hardware – printers