ITS supports campus technology with on-campus and offsite data centers. Recently, our offsite data center raised its rates. To avoid increasing our annual costs, ITS is moving our offsite data center to a new location. At the same time, we are replacing aging equipment and improving internet connectivity by offering additional redundancy for campus. A project team has been created and is currently planning this work. 

Below are a few key project dates: 

• Spring Break (March 18 and 19) – Preparation work will begin by bringing new server storage online and moving some servers.
• Mid-April – New internet connections will be established and network communication equipment will be placed in our new location.
• After Relays – Equipment will be moved from the old offsite data center to the new offsite data center. The team will also make sure the new offsite data center communicates properly with the main data center.

Watch for additional OnCampus articles updating you on the project in April, May, and June. Also, ITS leadership will be providing more detailed information to some key stakeholder groups in the near future.

Please be aware that moving the offsite data center introduces the risk that campus technology may become unavailable. This is because for a period of time we will be unable to fail over to our offsite data center. The team is working to identify ways to minimize or eliminate any potential outages. In the event that any outages do occur, we will notify campus through our regular communication channels. 

Kris Brewster, ITS