This study explores areas where the utilisation of on-premise compute power is preferable to public cloud computing, looking at a scenario where our client brsk in partnership with Pipe Ten Hosting chose to move their public cloud based operations over to an on-premise alternative.
Brsk is an independent Full Fibre broadband network provider, with their senior technology team working out of Sheffield, UK.
We are Pipe Ten Hosting a full-stack application (SaaS), platform (PaaS) and infrastructure (IaaS) as a service provider and are primarily based in Sheffield, UK.
Background
Brsk has experienced substantial growth, becoming a leading supplier in the UK market. Supporting operations brsk built a Kubernetes cluster within AWS public cloud through multiple EC2 instances. The resource requirements to run their application are significant and growing.
While public cloud is a great tool it’s not necessarily that suitable for all workloads and can get expensive quickly. We run a third party platform that requires a large amount of resources to run smoothly and as we’ve grown we’ve seen costs increase and performance start to decrease. We made a decision to look at alternative options, one of which was to move to dedicated hardware. We engaged with Pipe Ten and they’ve worked closely with us to understand our specific technical requirements and propose a suitable solution, and between us we iterated to a great solution. It’s been a very collaborative process which has delivered positive results all round.
Senior Platform Engineer at brsk
Problem
As brsk’s network infrastructure expanded and customer base grew, they found themselves facing challenges in supporting their backend system infrastructure needs effectively within the public cloud space owing in part to increasing resource requirements and related costs. In addition to their expanding production operations, brsk needed to support their continual improvement drives through on-going research, development and test labs for change control and update rollout.
The pricing model of public cloud hasn’t been effective in supporting growth and its related resource expansion, a lack of fine grade increases to existing servers mean costs increasing exponentially in line with these requirements, this raises concern over cost predictability and complexities of future budgetary planning. Time involved in managing this takes focus away from business development.
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In order to support their growth and maintain a competitive edge in the market, they sought a solution that would provide greater control over their infrastructure to meet their specific technical requirements offering increased compute power, scalability, and cost-efficiency.
Solution
After thorough evaluation and discussions, brsk in partnership with Pipe Ten Hosting, proposed a migration from public cloud hosting to on-premise server hosting. The following factors played a key role in addressing brsk’s challenges and providing an optimal solution:
Use of Existing Infrastructure and Expertise
Leveraging our well-established data center infrastructure, Pipe Ten Hosting can provide brsk with immediate access to managed rack space with network connectivity and redundant power infrastructure.
Bespoke Server Specification
Working closely with brsk on their current and projected system load allows us to design and build a server specification tailored to their application, ensuring optimal performance and resource utilization as the resource requirement expands.
Enhanced Control and Security
With on-premise hosting, brsk can gain greater control over their backend system infrastructure, enabling them to implement security measures to meet their specific compliance and data protection requirements.
Cost Optimisation
Migrating to our on-premise hosting solution allows brsk to optimise costs and reduce budgetary management burden.
Implementation
Pipe Ten Hosting purchased and built bespoke servers to specification deployed to our existing data centre infrastructure by our experienced engineers, choosing our closest physical site to allow ease of physical access to the client should this be required.
We provided secure remote access capabilities by means of an out of bound firewall external to the customers hardware, enabling them to maintain control and efficiently manage their servers from their own work spaces.
As a local company, we established a close working relationship with brsk. Our proximity allowed for convenient face-to-face meetings and enhanced communication, ensuring a deep understanding of their unique technical requirements. This close collaboration enabled us to deliver personalized support and proactive solutions to meet their needs effectively.
Conclusion
By partnering with Pipe Ten Hosting utilising our existing infrastructure and expertise, brsk were promptly provided a platform for a seamless and successful transition from public cloud hosting to on-premise infrastructure without incurring any additional management burden often associated with on-premise hosting.
The additional resources provided by the bespoke server hardware has both improved performance and increased scalability, better supporting the demands of their expanding operations in both live systems and continuous improvement labs. The additional resources allow for a larger scale change control environment reducing risk when upgrading their live operations system without incurring further costs.
By eliminating the incremental costs associated with increasing resources within the public cloud model, brsk now benefits from cost predictability and improved financial planning allowing for more focus on business.
Author: David Hooper
David is a seasoned engineer that has been leading the technical team at Pipe Ten since 2006. With a wealth of diverse experience he has a robust background in networking, server management, firewall configuration, as well as managing physical hardware across various data centres, David is widely considered to be versatile industry expert in managed infrastructure technology. Over the years, David has spearheaded numerous complex projects and as a natural leader, David excels in team management, fostering collaboration, and nurturing talent, inspiring innovation and excellence.