Lecture 4:

IT Infrastructure and
Emerging Technologies

ISIT224 Management Information Systems

IT Infrastructure and Emerging Technologies

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Lecture Outline
• What is IT infrastructure?
– the components of IT infrastructure
– What are the stages of IT infrastructure
evolution?

• Emerging technologies
– Cloud computing
– Mobile technologies
• how these technologies actually work
• how businesses are using them today

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IT Infrastructure Components

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Evolution of IT Infrastructure
• General-purpose mainframe and minicomputer era: 1959 to
present
– 1958: IBM first mainframes introduced
– 1965: Less expensive DEC minicomputers introduced
Evolution of IT Infrastructure
• Personal computer era: 1981 to present
– 1981: Introduction of IBM PC
– Proliferation in 80s, 90s resulted in growth of
personal software

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Evolution of IT Infrastructure
• Client/server era: 1983 to present
– Desktop clients networked to servers, with processing
work split between clients and servers
– Various types of servers (network, application, Web)

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Evolution of IT Infrastructure

• Three-tier architecture
– Extends two-tier architecture
• Allows additional processing before server responds to
client’s request
– Often includes databases and related software applications
• Supplies information to the Web server
– Web server uses software applications’ output when
responding to client requests

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Evolution of IT Infrastructure
• Enterprise computing era: 1992 to present
– Enterprise Internet: TCP/IP suite enables enterprises to link disparate
devices and local area networks (LANs) into single enterprise-wise
networks.
– Move toward integrating disparate networks, applications using Internet
standards and enterprise applications

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Evolution of IT Infrastructure
• Cloud and mobile computing: 2000 to present
– Cloud computing: computing power and software
applications supplied over the Internet or other network
• Fastest growing form of computing
• “as needed” basis

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Evolution of IT Infrastructure

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Current Trends in Computer Hardware
Platforms
• The mobile digital platform
• Consumerization of IT and BYOD
• Quantum computing
• Virtualisation
• Cloud computing
• Green computing
• High performance and power-saving processors

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Current Computer Software Platforms
and Trends
• Linux and open source software
• Software for the Web: Java, HTML and HTML5
• Web services and service-oriented architecture
• Software outsourcing and Cloud services

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Cloud Computing
Cloud Computing
• Cloud computing is a set of technical concepts that allow data,
applications, and services which are running on several
computers that are distributed somewhere in the world, but are
just interconnected through some real-time communication
network like the Internet.

• The National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST)

defines cloud computing as:
– “a model for enabling convenient, on-demand network access
to a shared pool of configurable computing resources (e.g.,
networks, servers, storage, applications, and services) that
can be rapidly provisioned and released with minimal
management effort or service provider interaction”

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Characteristics of Cloud Computing
• Self-service and on-demand
– Can sign up the service at any time, and directly start using those
resources
• E.g., Amazon web services, Microsoft Azure and Google Cloud

• Usage/metered billing
– “Pay as you go” model: only pay the amount that you are using
• Beneficial for small and medium-sized companies

• Broad network access

– Can be accessed from many different types of devices from any
place in the world
• E.g., Web browsers, mobile phones, tablets

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Characteristics of Cloud Computing
• Multi-tenancy/Resource pooling
– Shared resources are catered to many users at the same
time

• Rapid elasticity/Agility
– Provider can efficiently allocate slice(s) of unused
computing resources to other tenants
• E.g., in case of higher demand, easy to re-allocate;
• E.g., release resources when don’t need them

• Reliability
– No need to worry about data backup

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Traditional Computing Model

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 Software Software

Operating System Operating System

Virtualization Abstractio
n layer

Hardware Hardware Pooled

resources

Server 1 Server 2
Virtualization
• A technology that allows us to create virtual versions of
hardware and software that operate in isolated execution
environments.
– Storage virtualization (aggregation of multiple storage devices into what
appears to be a single storage device)
– Server virtualization (partitioning of a single physical server into smaller
virtual servers and hosting multiple clients)
– Network virtualization (using network resources through a logical
segmentation of a single physical network)
– Operation systems virtualization (a type of server virtualization at
the kernel layer)

• Partitioning the shared pool of resources and dedicating

slices of this to different services or different tenants.

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Virtualization Software
• Virtualization software or virtual machine managers
– Type 1 hypervisor or bare metal hypervisors
• Run directly on top of the actual hardware resources
• E.g., VMware Fusion, Parallels and VMware Workstation
– Type 2 hypervisor
• Client installed and installed on top of an existing operating system
• E.g., VMware ESX/ ESXi, Xen, Oracle
• Main difference:
Software
Type 2 hypervisor
Operating
System
Type 1 hypervisor
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Hardware
Cloud Computing Service Models
SaaS
• Traditional software model:
– Purchase a software license and install it on the client’s host
machine
• One-time cost for the client
• Future upgrades to newer software versions would either be free or
come at some additional cost

• SaaS:
– On-demand model
– “Pay-as-you-go” over contract period (months or years)
• Some SaaS provide a usage-based billing by the minutes (e.g.,
Next Phase Virtual Call Center)

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SaaS
• SaaS applications:
– Customer relationship management (CRM) – Salesforce
– Accounting and financial management, Sales, Expense management –
ADP payroll and HR solutions, WorkdayHuman Capital Management and
SAP SuccessFactors HR
– Virtual collaboration – Google Apps, Citrix’s GoToMeeting, Cisco’s WebEx

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PaaS
• A cloud computing service that facilitates quick software development
without investments in hardware and operating system
– Can simply upload and develop software code on the cloud platform
– E.g., shared web hosting services that will allow you to create and host
your own web page; app hosting services
– E.g., storage services, notification and payment services

– Amazon Web Services, Google App Engine and Microsoft Azure,

Salesforce, Heroku

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PaaS
• PaaS is especially useful in any situation where:
– Collaborative development effort across multiple software developers
– Need for automated testing and deployment
– Development of agile software

• Not suitable when:

– Application needs hosting portability
– Proprietary approaches can impact on the development process
– Application performance requires customization of the underlying
hardware and software

• Considerations include assessing vendor’s long-term health,

lock-in potential, and I/O performance

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IaaS
• Traditional model:
– Company telephone PBS system
• Physical fixed line telephone system (e.g., from Nortel, Bell systems)
• Install it within the company’s premise
• Purchase and interconnect all the telephony devices to telephone
exchange system  expensive and labor intensive

• IaaS: a way of delivering cloud computing infrastructure (i.e.,

servers, storage, network and operating systems) as an on-
demand service
– With hosted voice over IP (VoIP) solutions, instead of buying the
physical switch box, the client can have VoIP-enabled telephones on
every office desk that connect to a central server of the IaaS provider
that is hosted on the Internet
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Public, Private and Hybrid Clouds

Public clouds share their

resources with many
Private cloud: kept on premise behind an
clients.
organization's firewall and controlled by
the organization's own IT personnel.
• Overcome privacy and security
concerns
• Typically more expensive with
additional upfront cost
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 • Cost-effective and easy • Control
deployments – Critical application (e.g.,
– Speed to market a part of the core business
processes)
– Upfront cost and
maintenance cost – Regulatory compliance
(e.g., data security, privacy
requirements)
On-demand scalability
– Frequent demand surges Integration points
– Too many integration
points

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Public, Private and Hybrid Clouds

• Hybrid cloud:
– A cloud computing environment in which a company provides and
manages some of the resources in house, that is on a private cloud
behind its firewall, and other services are provided externally, such as
hosted on a public cloud

e.g., maintain e.g., use

in-house Amazon S3 for
storage servers storing archive
for operational data
customer data

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Data Center

• Data center:
– A facility that centralizes IT operations and equipment, as well as where
it stores, manages, and disseminates its data
– Typical hierarchical structure or topology: used to partition the different
parts of a data center so that they can be used very efficiently

Blade server Data center

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Data Center

• Data center:
– Moving from hierarchical topology to flat topology
• A much higher degree of interconnection between the
switches
• Easier to move a particular service or an application from
one part of the data center to another part of the data center
without having to go through many hierarchies

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Emerging Trends in Cloud

• Fog computing:
– Fog computing is a term created by Cisco that refers to
extending cloud computing to the edge of an enterprise's
network. Also known as Edge Computing or fogging

– Fog computing
facilitates the operation
of computing, storage
and networking services
between end devices and
cloud computing data
centers
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Emerging Trends in Cloud

• Fog computing:
– A proliferation of Internet of Things
• E.g., smart watches, smart vehicles, thermostats for your smart
homes and so on
• Tons of sensors that are communicating and sending out
information
– Traditional solution: send all the data to a data center over the
cloud for analysis
– New solution: intelligence in the edge
• Edge Router with intelligence (e.g., Cisco IOS router ) to decide
what data needs to be sent to a data center (complex functions),
and what data needs to be processed locally (simpler tasks)

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Emerging Trends in Cloud

• Benefits of fog computing:

– Reduces bandwidth usage
– Provides better security
– Improves the scalability of the cloud architecture

• Synergistic and complementary to the Cloud computing

– Cloud computing: greater capacity for processing and
storing data centrally
– Fog computing: more distributed model of looking at the
data coming out of Internet of Things at the edge itself

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Mobile Technologies
Basics of Wireless Communications
• Wireless communication systems use electromagnetic waves
– Are coupled electrical and magnetic waves which can
occupy different frequencies
– To transmit wireless signals

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How Wireless Signals are Transmitted?
• Analog Signals
– Continuous waves
– Transmit information by
altering the amplitude and
frequency of the waves

• Digital Signals
– Discrete pulses, either on
or off
– Convey information in a
binary form

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How Wireless Signals are Transmitted?
• Functions of the Modem:
– A modem is a device that translates digital signals into analog form
(and vice versa) so that computers can transmit data over analog
networks such as telephone and cable networks
– Modem (Modulator-Demodulator)
• Modulation
– Digital signals to analog signals
• Demodulation
– Analog signals to digital signals

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How Wireless Signals are Transmitted?
Transmission Media:
• Wireless Media
– Satellites
• E.g., used for transmitting Global
Positioning System
(GPS) information

– Microwave transmission
• E.g., microwave radio relay system
• E.g., microwave radar is widely used
for air traffic control, weather
forecasting, navigation of ships, and
speed limit enforcement

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How Wireless Signals are Transmitted?
Transmission Media:
• Wireless Media
– Cellular systems
• Reply on the antennas at different
microwave station to transmit
signals
• Signals will be automatically picked
up by these different stations in
these cells

– Infrared (IR)
• E.g., IR radiation used in TV’s
remote controller

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Wireless Networks
• Short-Range Wireless Networks
– E.g., Bluetooth, Ultra-wideband (UWB), Near-Field
Communications (NFC)
– Simplify the task of connecting one device to another, eliminating
wires and enabling users to move around while they use the
devices
• Medium-Range (Local-Area) Wireless Networks
– E.g. Wireless Fidelity (Wi-Fi) and ZigBee
– Provides fast and easy Internet or Intranet broadband access from
public hotspots
• Long-Range (Wide-Area) Wireless Networks
– E.g. Cellular radio (2G/3G/4G/5G) and WiMAX
– Connect users to the Internet over geographically dispersed
territory
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Wireless Networks
• Different wireless networks:
– Offer different benefits
– Range vs. Speed

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Short Range Wireless Networks

• Barcodes
– Patterns of white and black stripes
corresponding to zeros and ones
• light from the scanner projected onto the
surface, it reflects back some light
• the black stripes would absorb more light
than the white stripes and so the scanner
can detect the pattern based on the amount
of light reflected back
– Widely used in encoding information
about product prices, shopping
destination information, etc.

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Short Range Wireless Networks

• QR codes
– Take the idea of barcodes into two dimensions
– Three squares: provide vertical and horizontal reference
point to scanner about where to scan from
– Black and white dots as digital format of zeros and
ones in which the information is encoded

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Short Range Wireless Networks
• Barcodes & QR codes
• Both work on the basis of reflection
– Can only happen within a short range

• Pros: Useful in marketing and logistics

• Cons: No built-in scanner on smart phones
– Apps are non-standardized with advertisement distractions
– User interface issues with content display

• Example: Tesco QR Code Subway Store (2:30)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h7HnR02kJxY

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Short Range Wireless Networks

• RFID (Stands for Radio Frequency Identification System)

– Examples: EZPass Automated toll-collection, tracking goods in a
supply chain, retail
– Tags: containing data about an item and location; has antennas to
transmit radio signals over short distances to special RFID readers
– RFID readers: capture the data from the tag and sends them over a
network to a host computer for processing

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Short Range Wireless Networks
• Applications of RFID
– Asset tracking
– Inventory management
– Retail anti-theft
– Books tracking (Libary)
– Toll gates fare collection
– Healthcare
– Animal identification & tracking
– Sports
– Electronic passport
– Luggage tracking
– Parking systems

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Short Range Wireless Networks
• NFC (Near field communication)
– Is a proximity card technology that works based on electromagnetic
induction in loop antennas located within each other’s near field
– Used for contactless payments through credit cards, mobile wallets
• E.g., Visa Paywave, Mastercard Paypass, Apple pay, Android pay
– By 2018, around 68% of all mobile devices are supported with NFC

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Short Range Wireless Networks

• Bluetooth

A
Bluetooth
Network

– Used for retail: Beacon technology

– E.g., Paypal Beacon mobile payments
• Customer has PayPal app no need to tap the phone or take out the credit card
• Merchant with PayPal Beacon can track customer around the store
• Can better estimate customer behavior and offer hands-free payments
– E.g., iBeacon: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0dfY13xCR4I
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Medium Range Wireless Networks (Local Area
Networks)
• WiFi
– Is technology for radio wireless local area networking of devices based
on the IEEE 802.11 standards

• Femtocell
– A new technology that is going to be implemented in conjunction with
4G or 5G networks
– When mobile phones under coverage of the femtocell, switch over from the macrocell
(outdoor) to the femtocell automatically
– When leaves the femtocell coverage, the phone
hands over seamlessly to the macrocell network
– Requires specific hardware, existing WiFi or DSL
routers cannot be upgraded

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Long Range Wireless Networks
• Main issue: How to allow multiple users share the same
communication channel or the same band of frequencies?
• Three basic standards
– FDMA: Frequency Division Multiple Access (used in technologies like WiMax)
– TDMA: Time Division Multiple Access (e.g., Global System for Mobile (GSM)
standard used in rest of world)
– CDMA: Code Division Multiple Access (used in United States only)

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Long Range Wireless Networks
• FDMA vs. CDMA vs. TDMA

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Long Range Wireless Networks
• Evolution of the cellular networks
• 1G networks: analog (1981)
– Can only used for voice

• 2G networks: convert speech into digital code (1992)

– Most include some kind of messaging, voice mail and caller
ID
– Can send data (only < 10Kbs)
– GSM (Global System of Mobile) communication standard
was the 2G standard
• Even today, GSM has almost 80 percent market share of the 2G
technology worldwide

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Long Range Wireless Networks
• 3G networks (2011)
– Data transfer rates 300-800 Kbps
– Suitable for e-mail access, web browsing

• 4G networks (2012)
– LTE (Long Term Evoluation) and WiMax
– Data transfer rates up to 100 Mbps
– Suitable for Internet video

• 5G networks (2020)
– No standards yet
– Achieve 10 times speed of 4G (1000 Mbps)
– Higher flexibility, scalability, reliability
– Support for mission-critical traffic, IoT

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Features of Mobile Technologies

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Features of Mobile Technologies
• Mobile computing:
– Real-time connection between a mobile device and other computing
environments, such as the Internet or Intranet
– Two characteristics that differentiate it from traditional computing
• Mobility and broad reach

• Mobile computing applications:

– Wireless messaging, wireless portals
– Mobile-CRM, M-SCM, M-ERP
– Mobile marketing

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 Growing Trend of Mobile Marketing

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Mobile Marketing: Data Insights
• Portable & personal device:
– Location data (unique & precise)
• Technology to measure the location has improved
dramatically over the last ten years
• Today we can do so with an accuracy of three meters

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Mobile Marketing: Data Insights
• Location data + time data = better targeting
– For example, you receive two advertisements on a Monday
1pm, which one of these are you more likely to accept?

20% beer 20% coffee

@ The Pub VS @ The Cafe

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Mobile Marketing: Data Insights
• Location data + weather data  better targeting
– For example, you receive two advertisements on a raining
evening, which one of these are you more likely to redeem?

20% pizza 20% off pizza

delivery VS in-store

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Mobile Marketing: Data Insights
• Location data + time data  better targeting
– Geo-fencing entails tracking who are close to your store
(e.g., from real-time WiFi data of a shopping mall to which the customers
have connected to),
and giving them targeted coupons to make
them visit your store

– Geo-conquesting entails tracking those who are visiting

your competitor's store and sending a targeted discount
offer to lure them away from your competitor to your store
• offers are usually momentary and will expire very soon if the
targeted customer does not act on these offers immediately
• implemented in shopping malls using WiFi and iBeacon
technology

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Summary
• IT infrastructure
– Components and evolution

• Cloud computing
– Characterises (Virtualization technology)
– Saas, PaaS, IaaS
– Public cloud, private cloud, hybrid cloud
– Emerging trends (Flat structure & Fog computing)

• Mobile technologies
– Short-range wireless networks
– Medium-range (local-area) wireless networks
– Long-range (wide-area) wireless networks
– Mobile marketing
– Mobile social media

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