Omnipay

Challenge

Payment solutions provider Omnipay had been experimenting with the VMware ESX software in its office environment on a spread of different test x86 servers. The general driver for this was the need to deploy throwaway servers quickly and cleanly that could be easily scrubbed after a short period. The company were very satisfied with the stability and performance of those servers and decided to put a more permanent solution in place to cater for larger and more scalable virtual server deployments, within their office environment.

Omnipay contacted IT Solutions provider Origina to assist it with in de- ciding on a reliable hardware solution to facilitate this platform. Its Origina technical relationship manager suc- cessfully understood its requirements and helped it in finding the most cost effective solution that would meet its needs and requirements, without compromising on performance or ease of use.

Solution

The solution consisted of an IBM X3850 X5 (64Gb RAM, 2 x 4 port 10/100/100 NIC for ISCSI connections, 2 x 4 core CPU) and the Huawei S2600 storage systems with 8Tb of available storage. Origina had been introduced to Huawei by their distributor CMS Peripherals. “CMS Peripherals have always been one of our most proactive distributors.

We consider them as extended members of our innovation team as they continuously brings us new ideas, cost-effective products and companies who would make ideal partners”, commented Tomás O’Leary, Managing Director of Origina. Due to the strong relationship between with CMS Peripherals, Origina was able to present Huawei as a unique and cost-effective storage solution that would meet Omnipay’s specific requirements. “This is a great example of channel collaboration”, said Michael Callaghan, MD of CMS Peripherals, Ireland. “Origina understands its customer and requirements and drawing on our resources, together we are able to scope, configure and install the best solution for Omnipay.” Huawei OceanStor S2600 is a storage product for small and medium-sized businesses (SMBs). Based on a creative architecture design, the S2600 offers a complete storage solution with the five E-features – Evolutionary, Easy, Enhanced, Energy-saving, and Economical. Origina guided Omnipay through the selection, procurement and onsite implementation of the OceanStor S2600 system and facilitated engagement with Huawei for on-going support after the arrival of the system at its Clonskeagh data centre.

Value

The main benefits to Omnipay are the options this storage system brings, that are not generally found in any of the competing products in that price range. “The Huawei storage array punches above its weight, is highly scalable, very resilient with dual PSU and dual controllers, can be configured for iSCSI or FC, has energy efficient disk spin down capabilities and optional data replication capabilities to a sister device. “Most of these options are generally available only on higher-end systems,” observes David O’Brien, Production Support Manager with OmniPay.

Now Omnipay is able to deploy fit-for- purpose servers more quickly to the end user or service when they are needed. This saves on procurement and engineering setup time and ensures its business needs are met in an efficient manner.