Lee “slimming down” computing systems

3rd September | No Comments | posted by Caleb Bell | in For Students, Faculty and Staff

Lee University is really cutting back on its hardware usage. In fact, thin clients are becoming a significant part of the computing infrastructure at Lee University, with around 125 now located around campus.

A thin client is a physical user interface (monitor, keyboard and mouse) connected to a virtual computer located on a remote server. All of Lee’s thin clients access these virtual computers, which are hosted on servers in IT Operations’ data center, via the campus network.

After a student logs off, the virtual computer reboots and refreshes, wiping any changes made to the system. When the user logs on again, it is as if it were a new computer.

This virtual computing system allows one to connect to his/her computer without having to work with a physical desktop machine. Chris Golden, director of IT Operations for Lee University, said that fewer physical computers mean a better system all around.

“The goal is to decrease the cost of the actual computer, reduce the time of maintenance, be able to provide better software… quicker and more efficiently and also increase the life expectancy of [the] computer,” Golden said.

Thin clients are becoming a popular option in both educational and corporate environments, Golden said. “Bring your own device,” or BYOD, has become a popular phrase in organizational technology. Employees bring their own laptops or tablets to the office and connect to a virtual desktop using the organization’s network, thus eliminating the need for bulky desktop computers.

Golden said that the use of thin clients on campus should significantly reduce hardware replacements. Rather than replace machines every four years as Lee does now, he hopes to extend the life of hardware to seven or eight years.

 

Workstation Replacement Program updates computers

| No Comments | posted by Caleb Bell | in About IT Staff and Student Workers, For Students, Faculty and Staff

IT Systems replaced computers for 40 departments around campus over the summer as a part of the Workstation Replacement Program (WRP) for 2012.

Morgan Adams, projects manager for IT Systems, said that IT updates the computers in order to maintain Lee’s technological relevancy and maintain cost effectiveness.

“We do that to keep computers up to date, keep software up to date; they’re easier to service if they’re all the same… [They’re] cheaper to keep in warranty” Adams said.

This summer is only the first phase of WRP 2012. This phase has 142 new computers coming in, eight of which are Apple products. Adams said that he expects at least one more phase in the process this year due to additional hired staff or faculty. Phase Two will be on a much smaller scale.

The process began in February with the IT Systems department requesting quotes from various leasing agencies. From there, IT Systems chose a provider, ordered the computers, and will have finished replacing machines across campus by the end of May.

Adams revealed that this year’s replacement is a small one; next year Lee will be replacing almost 350 different computers.

Lee leases the computers from an agency rather than buying them outright, and replaces them every four years. In addition to the replaced computers, departments are allowed to use budgets to purchase additional computers if they see a justified need.