The rise of the local cloud

Posted on By Mark Wilson

The discount retailer Lidl recently found its way into the news as its parent company began offering cloud services to outside organisations. That got us thinking about Node4’s UK-based cloud services, and how, sometimes, a local cloud is exactly the solution that’s required to meet clients’ needs.

The rise of self-service cloud services

Its well-known that Amazon Web Services (AWS) began when Amazon realised the value of its own IT systems and the investment it had made in shared services. Amazon had created a shared IT platform so its engineering organisations, which were previously spending a high proportion of their time on IT infrastructure problems, could instead focus on customer-facing innovation. As the shared services provided value for amazon.com, Amazon saw the potential in providing web services to other organisations and AWS was born. Through AWS, Amazon began providing external customers access to an on-demand cloud computing platform on a pay-as-you-go basis.

Since then, we’ve seen Microsoft (Azure) and Google Cloud Platform (GCP) launch and compete with AWS. In the US, Europe and elsewhere, these three “hyperscale platforms” dominate cloud computing services.

Unexpected item in the bagging area

With the rise of the hyperscalers, the major systems integrators suddenly had new competition. Companies didn’t have to invest in their own infrastructure – they could consume services according to demand. And if they weren’t running their own infrastructure, then they didn’t need someone to host and manage it for them.

Some of the major SIs launched their own clouds, but they have never had the scale or the traction of the hyperscalers. So, the SIs partnered with one or more of the hyperscalers, albeit reluctantly, to respond to customer demand.

Germany is particularly well-known for its stringent privacy and data protection laws but it’s not unique. In response to this, the hyperscalers began placing datacentres in specific regions to address data sovereignty concerns. Here in the UK, Microsoft opened the UK South and UK West regions in Azure. AWS and GCP made similar investments. And let’s not forget that markets like China are so large that they have their own hyperscale providers!

In the middle at Lidl

Recently, the German discount retailer Lidl made the news as its parent company Schwarz Group started to offer cloud computing and cybersecurity services to corporate customers.

In a remarkable parallel with AWS’ history, the Irish Times reported that Schwarz started with a system built for internal use in 2021. Schwarz Digits, an IT unit that initially served only the group’s internal needs branched out to serve external clients in 2022. Now there’s an independent company within the Schwarz Group, StackIT, existing alongside XM Cyber and the group’s minority investment in a German AI startup called Aleph Alpha.

Marketed as “the German business cloud”, StackIT’s main selling point is that all client data is processed and stored exclusively in Germany and Austria. It offers a suite of cloud services, focused on the German retail (unsurprisingly), health and public sectors.

The case for local cloud

So why am I writing on the Node4 blog about a German retailer’s entry in to cloud services? Surely they are a competitor? Well, yes and no. StackIT is all about the German market – it’s their USP. Node4 is expert in the UK mid-market. We don’t compete, but there are some parallels. Whilst Node4 hasn’t grown out of a retailer (we were born into datacentre hosting and connectivity), we do have a local cloud for UK-based clients.

So why might you want a local cloud?

  • The most obvious reason is data sovereignty. Depending on the service that your company provides to its customers, you might be required to keep data in-country. This may be for regulatory purposes or simply to meet a contractual requirement.
  • Whilst public cloud can be made secure, some organisations may have heightened security requirements that necessitate keeping data within national borders to mitigate risks associated with transferring data outside the local jurisdiction.
  • If performance is a concern, running services locally can reduce latency and improve performance, especially for applications that require real-time processing or have high bandwidth needs. And sometimes it’s just about keeping application layers close to one another.
  • From a corporate social responsibility perspective, it’s good to support the local economy. And other economic and political factors may mean that avoiding the potential geopolitical risks associated with relying on foreign cloud providers is prudent. If the war in Ukraine has made us question our energy and food sources, for some organisations the source of their IT services is critical too.
  • And sometimes, particularly if your application workload is to be “lifted and shifted”, with limited or no transformation, then a local cloud can be more cost-effective than the hyperscale platforms.

Node4’s Virtual Datacentre (VDC) is designed to address the needs of clients who need a local, UK-based cloud. We can offer a geo-resilient UK-based self-service cloud platform, with full automation, predictable consumption billing and 24×7 support. As a bonus, if you’re currently struggling with Broadcom price increases, it’s simple to migrate into our cloud too!

The Pragmatic Cloud

At Node4, we talk about the “Pragmatic Cloud”. We are open and transparent about the reasons for the recommendations that we make to our clients about their cloud investments. We can do this because Node4 is in a reasonably unusual position within mid-market managed services providers. We partner with Microsoft to provide hyperscale capabilities in the public cloud, but we also have our own hosting and connectivity options, including hybrid and edge capabilities. We can offer something for everyone.

So, whether it’s hosting/co-location services for the servers that you run (whether as a private cloud or simply using traditional management methods), self-service infrastructure as a service (IaaS) on our VDC platform, or expert advice on adopting Microsoft Azure to modernise your applications, we can help.

Feel free to get in touch using the contact details below – and let’s have a conversation.

This post was originally published on the Node4 blog.

Featured image by Michael Reichelt from Pixabay.

Unveiling the real treasure: moving beyond ERP to unleash (and protect) the power of data

Posted on By Mark Wilson

In our rapidly changing world, sophisticated ERP solutions are becoming more crucial than ever for organisations looking to streamline operations and strive for operational excellence. But whilst the ERP plays an instrumental role in that, it’s vitally important to recognise that it’s not just the ERP system that holds value – the real treasure is the data within these systems.

For years now, IT leaders have been talking about a “data-centric world” and how to “democratise” access to the hidden treasure that an organisation’s data contains. And it’s still the case that the monumental value and potential of business data should not be understated. But since 2023, we’ve seen a shift. No longer is it just about the data – the rise of generative Artificial Intelligence (AI) tools has moved the conversation on to how AI can be used to help us better understand and use the data that we hold.

When I’ve spoken to our clients, I’ve seen their thirst for AI-driven insights. AI, coupled with robust data, holds the potential to shift paradigms, drive smart decisions and boost operational efficiency. However, before we can unlock this vast potential, the data needs to be structured and labelled correctly.

The value of structured data and correct labelling

When correctly structured and labelled, data empowers organisations to accurately understand their operations, pinpoint potential bottlenecks and unleash the value nestled in their ERP solutions.

In refining this data, we allow AI models to consume it effectively, driving insights that empower organisations to predict trends, anticipate customer needs, enhance supply chain processes, reduce overhead and foster innovation. Essentially, we convert the commonly inaccessible gold beneath the ERP systems into a well-drilled, fully accessible mine that yields precious insights — the real treasure.

But there’s another source of data that exists outside the core business systems. The ERP holds a trove of operational data that we can index, query and search, but our unstructured data has potential, too. We can ingest it to a modern data platform where it can be cleansed and interrogated. The raw information, once difficult to analyse and gain insights from, becomes useful, and the rise of AI assistants like Microsoft Copilot means we need to think about how these new tools can and should be used.

Getting ready for Copilot

As one of the largest Microsoft partners in the UK, Node4 hears a lot of buzz about Microsoft’s Copilot AI Assistants (of which there are several).

Just as Delve taught organisations to think about what could be indexed and searched in SharePoint and elsewhere, there are some preparatory steps needed for Copilot too. Copilot can only see what an individual can see, but often that’s more than was intended.

Node4 can work with clients to assess readiness including privacy, policies, monitoring, integration and training. And, of course, we’re constantly monitoring developments so we can advise on new announcements, like Copilot+.

The spectre of ransomware

Another trend that we’re seeing is the rise in ransomware attacks. Cyber-insurance data from September 2023 showed not only a 12% increase in ransomware claims frequency; but that that 36% of claimants paid ransoms (often after negotiating down the amount). 

In 2024, ransomware attacks are expected to evolve with more sophisticated techniques. And, in the same way that more extreme weather events have demonstrated we really can’t ignore climate change, the rise in ransomware means we can’t say “they won’t go after us” anymore. Ransomware is not just an issue for large multinational organisations – it’s increasingly a problem for small and medium enterprises too.

What this means is that all that data that we’re talking about unlocking value from needs to be protected. Our clients are talking to us about resilience and immutability – the ability to protect their data from attack.

Data resilience and immutability: the cornerstones of a data-centric approach

Data resilience and immutability (the ability of data to endure and remain unchanged, respectively) are vital. They ensure businesses can withstand unexpected events and safeguard their strategic intelligence. This is particularly true in the light of today’s escalating threats, such as ransomware attacks, which have jeopardised many businesses’ operations globally.

Every data-generated insight within an ERP environment is a precious source of intelligence. This intelligence can provide an invaluable competitive edge, and so it’s not surprising that it’s become an enticing target for malicious attacks. Ransomware, in particular, can hold this treasure hostage, dramatically disrupting a business’ operations and possibly leading to insurmountable financial or reputational damage.

In this context, it’s crucial to secure data with impregnable defences against such threats. At Node4, we prioritise data protection, resilience and immutability as cornerstones of our service offerings. The prosperous mine of business intelligence in ERP systems demands top-notch security protocols and safeguards.

The critical necessity of securing data

Just as an ERP system is valueless without correctly structured and labelled data, the impact and efficiency of this data can be catastrophically neutralised without adequate backup and security measures. Recovering data after a devastating event like a ransomware attack can be a painful, costly and time-consuming undertaking. However, these hurdles can be significantly mitigated, if not entirely avoided, through effective backup strategies and stringent data security policies.

At Node4, we believe that securing and regularly backing up data is not just an option – it’s a critical necessity. That’s why we’ve invested in state-of-the-art data centres with high performance interconnects and immutable storage options. The fact that we run our own data centres, as well as being one of Microsoft’s strongest UK partners means we’re able to work with clients for private, hybrid or public cloud. Our business continuity and recovery solutions cover all aspects of data resilience, and this comprehensive protection is imperative to maintain the integrity and availability of data essential to ERP processes.

The journey ahead: from ERP to data-driven intelligence

ERP solutions are undoubtedly substantive components of a robust business structure. They serve as the backbone of operational processes and hold potential to streamline business workflows. Yet it’s crucial to shift our focus beyond the ERP system and unlock the real source of value residing within – structured, organised, and secured data.

As we continue to take organisations on a digital transformation journey, the true winners will be those who understand and master the mechanism that turns raw data into decisive insights. These forward-thinking organisations will harness the power of AI effectively, backed by well-structured and secure data, to drive efficiency, innovation and competitive advantage, while diligently protecting their treasure from emerging threats. This is what we call AI transformation.

The journey from ERP to data-driven intelligence is underway. Embarking on it will not only shape the future of organisations across the world, but also dictate their survival in an increasingly interconnected and data-driven world. In the orchestration of this transformation, the ERP may conduct the score, but it’s the data that composes the symphony and, ultimately, steals the show.

This post was originally published on the Node4 blog.

Featured image by yatsusimnetcojp from Pixabay.

An updated approach to Virtual Desktop Infrastructure: Azure Virtual Desktop on Azure Stack HCI

Posted on By Mark Wilson

With the general availability of Azure Virtual Desktop (AVD) on Azure Stack HCI, organisations have a powerful new platform for providing virtual desktop infrastructure (VDI) services. No longer torn between complex and expensive server farms, or desktops running in the cloud – the best of both worlds is here.

The complexities of managing an end user computing service

Over the many years I’ve consulted with IT departments, one of the many common themes has been around the complexities of managing end user computing services.

It used to be that their investments in standard PC builds had led to a plethora of additional management products. These days, Windows (or, more accurately, Microsoft 365) does that to such a level that the layers of added products are not needed. With a Modern Workplace solution, we can deploy a new PC from a factory image, log on with a username from a recognised domain (for example user@node4.co.uk), build that PC to meet corporate standards and get the end user up and running quickly with access to their data, all in a secure and compliant manner.

But there have always been edge cases. The legacy application that is critical to the business but doesn’t run on a modern version of Windows. Or the application with a licensing model that doesn’t lend itself to being installed on everyone’s PC for occasional use. For these cases, virtual desktop infrastructure has been a common approach to publish an application or a desktop.

For other organisations, the use of VDI is seen as an opportunity to abstract the desktop from the device. Either saving on device costs by buying lightweight terminal devices that connect to a farm of virtual desktops, or by using the secure desktop container as an opportunity to allow access from pretty much anywhere, because the device doesn’t directly access the organisation’s data.

I’m not going to advocate for one approach over another. Of course, I have Opinions but, at Node4, we start from the position of understanding the business problem we’re trying to solve, and then working out which technology will best support that outcome.

A shift in the landscape

Whilst Microsoft has had its own remote desktop offerings over the years, they’ve tended to partner with companies like Citrix rather than develop a full-blown solution. Meanwhile, companies like VMware had their own products – though with the Broadcom acquisition and sale of its VDI products (including Workspace One and Horizon), their future looks uncertain.

This makes customers uneasy. But there is hope.

Microsoft has not stood still and, for a few years it’s been maturing its VDI in the cloud service – Azure Virtual Desktop.

AVD provides a secure, remote desktop experience from anywhere, delivering a virtualised desktop experience that’s fully optimised for Windows 11 and Windows 10 multi-session capabilities. With various licensing options including within key Microsoft 365 subscription plans, AVD is now an established service. So much so that there are even products and services to help with managing AVD environments – for example from Nerdio. But, until recently, the biggest drawback with AVD was that it only ran in the public cloud – and whilst that’s exactly what some organisations need, it’s not suitable for some others.

A true hybrid cloud solution

(At this point, I’m tempted to introduce a metaphor about when cloud computing comes to ground. But fog and mist don’t conjure up the image I’m trying to project here…)

Recently, there has been a significant development with AVD. It’s largely gone unnoticed – but AVD is now generally available on Azure Stack HCI.

Azure Stack extends the robust capabilities of Azure’s cloud services to be run locally – either in an on-premises or an edge computing scenario. Azure Stack hyperconverged infrastructure (HCI) is a hybrid product that connects on-premises systems to Azure for cloud-based services, monitoring, and management. Effectively, Azure Stack HCI provides many of the benefits of public cloud infrastructure whilst meeting the use case and regulatory requirements for specialised workloads that can’t be run in the public cloud. 

Some of the benefits of running Azure Virtual Desktop on Azure Stack HCI

There are many advantages to running software locally. Immediate examples are to address data residency requirements, latency-sensitive workloads, or those with data proximity requirements. Looking specifically at Azure Virtual Desktop on Azure Stack HCI, we can:

  • Improve performance by placing session hosts closer to the end users.
  • Keep application and user data on-premises and so local to the users.
  • Improve access and performance for legacy client-server applications by co-locating the application and its data sources.
  • Provide a full Windows 11 experience regardless of the device used for access.
  • Unified management with other Azure resources.
  • Make use of fully patched operating system images from the Azure Marketplace.

What about my existing VDI?

Node4 will aid you in finding the best path from your existing VDI to AVD. Our consultants are experienced in using Microsoft’s Cloud Adoption Framework for Azure to establish an AVD landing zone and to take a structured approach to assessing and migrating existing workloads, user profiles and data to AVD.

Why Node4 is best positioned to help

I’ve already written about how Node4’s expert Consultants can help deploy Azure Virtual Desktop to meet your organisation’s specific needs but that’s only looking at one small part of the picture.

Because, for those organisations who don’t want to invest in hardware solutions, we have hosted services for Azure Stack HCI. We also provide flexible and secure communications solutions. And we’re an Azure Expert Managed Services Provider (MSP).

I may be a little biased, but I think that’s a pretty strong set of services. Put them all together and we are uniquely positioned to help you make the most of AVD on-premises, co-located in one of our datacentres, on a Node4 hosted platform, or in the public cloud.

So, if you are looking at how to modernise your VDI, we’d love to hear from you. Feel free to get in touch using the contact details below – and let’s have a conversation.

This post was originally published on the Node4 blog.

Monthly Retrospective: May 2024

Posted on By Mark Wilson

May’s update was late, and June’s is in danger of rolling into July, so here’s a few highlights from my life in and around tech…

At work

On the work front, it was a short month – I was on holiday for the last week and with public holidays too there was lots to cram into a few short weeks. Nevertheless, I still managed to:

  • Continue to develop Node4’s new ransomware scanning service.
  • Finalise a dozen product data sheets for our public cloud services.
  • Submit some blog posts to our marketing team to support upcoming campaigns.
  • Keep pushing some pre-sales activities forwards.
  • And mine and Bjoern Hirtenjohann (/in/BjoernHirtenjohann)’s internal Node4 podcast on public cloud was released:

But the biggest activity in the month was presenting at Node4’s Infrastructure Symposium. One of our Practice Directors brought all his teams together to learn about the products and services that we jointly deliver. With four (or five, depending on how you look at it) companies all merged, there’s been a lot of change at Node4 over the last year or so. Getting everyone together is a great way to break down boundaries and understand the direction we’re headed in. And for me it was a chance to outline that our cloud offers span public, private and hybrid delivery models – and that we will deliver what’s right for the client, not for us. We call this Pragmatic Cloud (and I freely admit we didn’t come up with the term, but it I like it a lot).

I also celebrated my 9 year anniversary of joining risual/Node4 in May. And, for those who were confused by my comments last month, I was saying that my recent move has been overwhelmingly positive and I’m in a better place than I have been for a long while!

Elsewhere

Away from work…

  • My youngest son, Ben, passed his driving test. I was ready for a big insurance bill, but what I wasn’t ready for was: a) no decrease on the bill for the 19 year-old’s insurance (now with 2 years’ experience); and b) a 350% increase in premiums between him passing his test 2 years ago and the 17 year-old passing now. Even with a black box, parents as named drivers, etc. the car insurance bill for the two old cars that our family share with the teenagers was around £4500. For contrast, the bill for my Volvo (with just me and Mrs W as drivers) actually fell and is now back under £500. Public transport is just not reliable enough where we live, so the choices are: a) drive the teenagers everywhere; or b) pay the money. I’m still getting over this assault on our savings… some families just won’t have that money and I dread to think how many uninsured cars there are on the road as a consequence.
  • My eldest son, Matt, continues to race his bike up and down the country. After a catastrophic failure of the fork steerer tube, his Canyon road bike was hastily replaced. That meant a drive to Wakefield to collect the new bike, but it is rather lovely. I don’t get to all his races these days but I did manage to watch him in Ixworth and I was in the team car again for the Lincoln GP. Unfortunately, when he went to Ireland to race the Rás Tailteann I had to make do with watching for updates on Twitter!
  • Ben and I have been planning our Interrail trip – and now we have bought our passes along with inbound/outbound travel. Plus, we’re going to be taking the NightJet sleeper train from Berlin to Vienna! There were a few challenges with seat availability (things have changed since last time I went – we can use high speed rail, but there’s limited availability and we need to pay a supplement). This is more of a problem when dates are fixed so we had to change our route a little. On the flip side, with the start and end locked in, the middle section of the holiday is now free for us to be flexible.
  • I completed the home network upgrade. Was the switch from AmpliFi to UniFi worth it? Time will tell. It’s certainly more flexible but it’s cost me more and my house does not lend itself to structured cable runs. Maybe I should have just replaced the broken AmpliFi mesh point but it felt like I could fall into the trap of the sunk cost fallacy.
  • On the home automation front:
    • Octopus Energy sent us a Home Mini, which should give more granular data on electricity consumption, once I get the Home Assistant configuration right (I’m still tweaking).
    • I’ve also continued to play around with Home Assistant, including a bed occupancy sensor (which I can link to turning off the lights). I will admit that’s probably a step too far into nerd territory.
  • The month ended with a short break in Spain. Originally scheduled for May 2021, we never did get to go on a family holiday to Barcelona and the Costa Brava, though Matt made it out there on a training trip to Girona earlier this year. So, half the holiday, with only one of the “children” (though he is now twice the size!), Nikki, Ben and I spent a glorious few days in an around Begur.

Writing

These retrospectives are a bit of a blogging catch-all, but I did write a post on LinkedIn that turned into a blog in its own right. You can read it at the link below:

Photographing

Bits and pieces

  • 300m short of 200km!
  • Choose your PIN wisely:
  • Commentary on technical debt and the British Library’s ransomware attack woes:
  • Who doesn’t love a bit of Top Gun?
  • Thoughts on location tracking for family members:
  • Why it’s better to find a real application compatibility fix instead of just giving users admin access:
  • And why encrypted messaging is difficult:
  • Finally, shipping sunlight for green energy. Not as bonkers as it sounds!

Featured image: author’s own

Monthly Retrospective: April 2024

Posted on By Mark Wilson

Another look back at some of the things I’ve been up to over the last few weeks…

At work

April marks a year since I started my transition to a new role at Node4. I didn’t move over full-time until July, but that’s when I stopped running what was formerly risual’s Architecture team and joined the Office of the CTO. This is not the forum to share the full details but suffice to say I had manouevred myself into a position where I was very unhappy – neither close to the tech nor able to best use my skills to provide value to the organisation and to our clients.

The change in role has been a breath of fresh air: the focus has changed a few times and there have been some bumps on the road; but one thing is core – I get up each morning and think about how best to add value. Whether that’s building out collateral for our public cloud portfolio, developing a new offering to guard against ransomware, helping clients with their IT Strategy or getting some structure around our “thought leadership” outputs.

The month ended with Node4’s “Go To Market” conference, in Nottingham. It’s an opportunity to set the agenda for the coming year and make sure we’re all headed in the same direction. This was the first time I’d attended and it was also a brilliant opportunity to meet some of my colleagues from across the business.

I managed to get myself into the video somehow, despite not officially being one of the presenters…

After two days of socialising, I was completely wiped out and needed some time to decompress. It’s left me thinking a lot about introversion. On the flip side, I also need to work on my FOMO… being one of the last to go to bed on the first night was not smart. At my age, I should know better.

Blogging

As usual, I didn’t find much time to blog this month, but I did write a thing about Enterprise Architecture, based on Dave Clark and Sophie Marshall’s good work…

The Enterprise Architecture Stack

Away from work

It’s not often that I go to the theatre but I saw the 1990s TV sitcom Drop the Dead Donkey was returning in theatre format with the original cast. I then failed to book tickets, missing it in Milton Keynes by a week. I asked myself if I could be bothered to go to Birmingham instead? Well, why not… I had a birthday so that was an opportunity to do something different!

I loved it, but it’s definitely written for an audience of a certain age (and I fit that demographic). For those less familiar with the original TV programme, it’s still amusing, but it does help to understand the characters and how they have developed over 30 years.

A matinee theatre show in a major city gave us an opportunity for a day out. So, afterwards we wandered down to The Custard Factory in Digbeth, for food and drink at Sobremesa and Rico Libre.

Oh yes, and I couldn’t help but be amused when I spotted that the image on the vinyl wrap in the train toilets contained an empty vodka bottle…

Playing with tech

If last month was about Meshtastic, this month has been Home Assistant. After initially installing on a Raspberry Pi to try it out, I quickly moved to a dedicated device and bought a Home Assistant Green. There was nothing wrong with the Pi installation, but I could use a Raspberry Pi 5 for other things. I’m still getting to grips with dashboards but Home Assistant has pulled all of my various smart devices together into one platform. This thread tells some of the story:

Annoyingly though, iCloud’s “was this you?” messages are not very helpful when you have automated services using your account:

I’ve also been upgrading the home Wi-Fi, moving from a consumer AmpliFi mesh to a solution based on UniFi equipment. That’s been an adventure in itself and will probably be a blog post in its own right.

And, I “went viral” (well, certainly had far more engagement than my normal tweets do), with a family service announcement for Wi-Fi updates…

Elsewhere on the Internet

  • On the need for critical thinking:
  • On outdated anti-WFH rhetoric:
  • On brilliant advertising:
  • On the decline of reporting:
  • On the value (or otherwise) of a degree:
  • On blogging:
  • On whether or not it’s useful to refer to “cyber”:
  • On the reasons that things sometimes cost more than you think they should:

    Travel

    As is usual, supporting Matt with his cycling races has meant a fair amount of travel and this month’s Premier Inn destinations have been… Tiverton and Stockton-on-Tees. Stockton was the overnight stay for the East Cleveland Classic, where I was in the team car all afternoon – and what an experience that was!

    There was also a race in Leicestershire where Matt was in the break for 2 hours before getting caught and then boxed in on the final sprint.

    But the big one was supposed to have been the CiCLE Classic in Rutland, until it was unfortunately cancelled on the day due to biblical rain. I do feel for the organisers in these scenarios, but even more so for the teams that had travelled from overseas.

    Away from cycling, but very exciting, is starting to plan an Interrail trip with Ben this summer. I only have two weeks’ leave available, but i’m pretty sure we’re going to have a brilliant time. It’s not the first time for me – I went solo in the early 1990s – but things have changed a lot since then.

    This month in photos

    Wrap-up

    That’s all for this month… May’s nearly over now but I have some notes ready for a review – hopefully not too long after the end of the month!

    Featured image taken from Node4’s Go To Market video, on LinkedIn