Getting Out of the Repair Business



David Jensen, technology manager for The Bush School in Seattle, was faced with the never-ending problem of keeping a disparate collection of PCs up and running.ulf Coast District Gets Disaster-Ready

We
Need…

1
...Relief from too much computer maintenance protection and integrity
Our school had become a breeding ground for donated and“retired” computers. Keeping them patched and runningconsumed too much of our time and money. Maintaining acornucopia of spare parts was not the best use of ourstorage space, either. With a total IT staff of only one fulltimerand one half-timer to support 680 students, faculty,and staff using 240-plus computers spread over a nineacrecampus, standardization went from a wish to a need.
2
...Affordable computers that could remain viable
Too many times, we’ve had to deal with the legacy of IT purchasesthat were made to solve an immediate problem, butthe question, “Will this still be viable four years from now?”was never asked. More often than not, buying the cheapestsolution is not the most cost-effective; 64-bit processorsare out there now, but are they the right solution?
3
...168 hard drives without installation woes
Hard drives are the bottleneck when it comes to performancein today’s gigahertz world. To maximize the performanceof our new computers, we decided that they wouldbe configured with two hard drives, one for the operatingsystem and one for applications. If the job of installing168 hard drives were left to our 1.5-person staff,we’d still be at it.
4
...Tools for quick deployments and updates
It’s impractical for a small IT staff to do handcraftedsetups of individual computers and have to visit eachmachine to update basic components like the BIOS ordrivers. Spending only 10 minutes at each one, we wouldneed 40 hours just to update the BIOS on our entire fleet.

Our
Solutions:

1
CDW-G, Hewlett-Packard, IBM/Lenovo
Rather than replacing computers as needed, or replacing25 percent of them each year, we replaced all of them atonce through CDW-G. Buying in bulk gaveus four times the purchasing power with our vendors—that meant bigger discounts. Now every desktop computeron campus is a Hewlett-Packard dx5150,and every laptop is an IBM/Lenovo R52.This has dramatically reduced support incidences, and wehave been able to donate busloads of our retired computersand parts to InterConnection.
2
HP
No one can argue that 64-bit computing is ready for everyonein today’s desktop world. That won’t be the case fouryears from now, either. But as more and more applicationsare written to take advantage of it, its performance andsecurity advantages will be evident. HP’s 64-bit desktopdx5150 allows us to run in 32-bit mode today and move to64-bit tomorrow, so four years from now, people won’t bescreaming, "These computers are so slow!"
3
CDW-G
It would have been impractical for us to install all thosehard drives ourselves, and it would have taken too muchtime and money to arrange to have someone come in anddo it for us. At no extra cost, CDW-G installed the harddrives for us so they arrived ready to go.
4
Microsoft, HP
Microsoft’s remote installation services,built into Windows Server 2003, let us deploy a labfulof computers within an hour, going from bare metal to fullyfunctional PCs with updated BIOS and firmware. Anotherbenefit of new hardware is the support tools from the manufacturers.HP’s System Software Manager allows us toupdate the BIOS and drivers from one central location.

To submit your own Wishlist/Shortlist, email [email protected].
We will pay $100 for accepted submissions.

Featured

  • cloud icon with a padlock overlay set against a digital background featuring binary code and network nodes

    Cloud Security Auditing Tool Uses AI to Validate Providers' Security Assessments

    The Cloud Security Alliance has unveiled a new artificial intelligence-powered system that automates the validation of cloud service providers' (CSPs) security assessments, aiming to improve transparency and trust across the cloud computing landscape.

  • robot brain with various technology and business icons

    Google Cloud Study: Early Agentic AI Adopters See Better ROI

    Google Cloud has released its second annual ROI of AI study, finding that 52% of enterprise organizations now deploy AI agents in production environments. The comprehensive survey of 3,466 senior leaders across 24 countries highlights the emergence of a distinct group of "agentic AI early adopters" who are achieving measurably higher returns on their AI investments.

  • laptop with a neural network image, surrounded by books, notebooks, a magnifying glass, a pencil cup, and a desk lamp

    D2L Updates Lumi with Personalized Study Supports

    Learning platform D2L has introduced new artificial intelligence features for D2L Lumi that help provide more personalized study supports for students.

  • cloud with binary code and technology imagery

    Hybrid and AI Expansion Outpacing Cloud Security

    A survey from the Cloud Security Alliance and Tenable finds that rapid adoption of hybrid, multi-cloud and AI systems is outpacing the security measures meant to protect them, leaving organizations exposed to preventable breaches and identity-related risks.