Nutanix Database Service has enabled us to build new databases with one-click simplicity. We’ve been building databases on legacy architecture up to now, so this is a revolutionary change. It makes database operations management simple enough that even those without special database management skills can serve as database admins, so this will hopefully also help resolve the shortage of qualified personnel.
– Naoki Endo, Senior Engineer, Data Management, EC Management Dept., EC Services, SB Technology Corp.
BENEFITS
- Database modernization in just two months through database deployment automation
- Significant reduction of operation burdens through automatic database backup and speedier restoration
- Database management becomes intuitive for non-specialists, reducing stress from lack of qualified staff
- Driving Kubernetes-based in-house development of modern applications
INDUSTRY
Information Service
CHALLENGES
- Aging hardware and software, expired database system maintenance
- Complexity of managing database provisioning and other operations
- Time and effort required by manual database backup and restore
- Low scalability and redundancy
SOLUTION
- Nutanix Cloud Platform
- Nutanix AOS
- Nutanix AHV
- Nutanix Database Service
- Nutanix Karbon
- Nutanix Prism Pro
- Nutanix Consulting Services
- NDB Design and Implementation Support
- NDB Design and Implementation Support
APPLICATIONS
- Microsoft SQL Server AlwaysOn Availability Group
CHALLENGES
SB Technology Corporation is an ICT service provider belonging to the SoftBank Group. Since its establishment in 1990, it has grown steadily, and has in recent years been focusing on Microsoft Azure-based corporate IT cloud migration and business co-creation for the new normal era.
SB Technology’s EC Services Division serves as an agent for NortonLifeLock Inc., handling online sales of the latter’s security software. Because both the hardware and software supporting the database system for this business was old and had reached the end of maintenance support in 2020, it needed total renewal.
EC Services had been using Microsoft SQL Server in a legacy architecture-based virtualized infrastructure, using Microsoft Windows Server Failover Cluster (WSFC) to ensure database availability, but managing operations under this arrangement was taking more and more time and effort as the data workload increased.
It urgently needed to streamline database deployment, automate backup, and reduce restore times. Also, given the increase in remote work with more and more people working alone, the company was looking for a system that would enable personnel without advanced database skills to achieve the same results.
I was astounded by the power of Nutanix Database Service backup functions, the way they display calendar and time axes so that you can intuitively pick points in time and control how to restore the relevant data.
– Kazuaki Sakashita, Manager, Data Management, EC Management Dept. EC Services, SB Technology Corp.
It was the first time I’d ever tried an SQL Server renewal and migration to a new environment, but Nutanix Database Service simple user interface made everything very easy.
– Hayato Sekine, Data Management, EC Management Dept., EC Services, SB Technology Corp.
SOLUTION
To simplify operation management, EC Services decided to migrate from legacy architecture to Nutanix Cloud Platform, and switch from the old WSFC database architecture to Microsoft SQL Server AlwaysOn Availability Groups (AG), which does not require shared storage. “Transitioning our database system structure to a combination of Nutanix and AG enabled us to resolve a whole host of operation management issues at once,” says Naoki Endo, senior engineer in the Data Management Group in EC Services’ EC Management Department. “It simplified database deployment, enabled automated backup, and cut restore times.”
Nutanix Database Service, which enables Database as a Service (DBaaS) delivery, was used to surmount migration issues. “We originally planned on doing in-house database construction, even though we knew it would take considerable time. However, NDB enabled us to automate database provisioning and build new databases with one-click simplicity,” says Kazuaki Sakashita, manager in the Data Management Group in EC Services’ EC Management Department. “We could also replicate running databases to another location and carry out testing while syncing data without affecting the production environment. The way that NDB addressed almost all our needs such as backup automation and quicker restore was also key in persuading us to choose it.”
With the support of Nutanix Consulting Service, the EC Services Division was able to complete construction of the new database system in just two months, taking it live in May 2021 to streamline operation management of the whole new system.
CUSTOMER OUTCOMES
Sakashita says that the automation of database deployment enabled new databases to be built very quickly, thereby facilitating overall system renewal. Endo agrees, saying, “We’ve been building databases on 3-tier architecture up to now, so this kind of one-click construction was a revolutionary change for us. And thanks to this change, it took us only two months from designing the new database system to carry out careful testing and complete construction of the production system, which is amazingly fast. Another major benefit is that even people without special skills will be able to serve as database admins.”
“It was the first time I’d ever tried an SQL Server renewal and migration to a new environment, but Nutanix Database Service simple user interface made everything very easy,” says Hayato Sekine of the Data Management Group in the EC Services Division’s EC Management Department. “I think the ease of operation of NDB deserves special mention.” The Data Management Group used to develop its own automatic backup and restore mechanisms using SQL Server backup functions and third-party tools, but the deployment of NDB not only enabled automatic backup based on the same mechanisms, but also simpler and faster restore operations. “I was astounded by the power of NDB backup functions, the way they display calendar and time axes so that you can intuitively pick points in time and control how to restore the relevant data,” says Endo.
NEXT STEPS
Together with its database system renewal, the EC Services Division also deployed Nutanix Karbon, which simplifies the construction of Kubernetes environments.
“Nutanix Karbon deployment brings us one step closer to the creation of a cloud-seamless development environment,” says Endo. “While it will be used for the internal shared system of commercial services for now, we are planning to use it for the development of EC services as well. We would like to drive system autonomy with the AI-based operation automation function "X-Play," which is implemented in Nutanix Prism Pro. We also look forward to using Nutanix Clusters on Azure and hope to make further improvements through seamless integration with the cloud including disaster recovery (DR).”