IT Infrastructure Transformation via Virtualization and Governance

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Solution Overview

Problem

Legacy IT infrastructure in financial services enterprises is ill-equipped to meet the demands of industry growth, complexity, and rapid technological change, leading to inefficiencies and increased operational risk due to duplication, redundancy, and low server utilization.

Innovation Solution

A transformation engine that determines the current status of the legacy IT infrastructure, compares it to idealized parameters, and identifies control points requiring enterprise-wide governance to transform it into an on-demand operating model, focusing on user, process, development, and infrastructure domains.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Reliability

If servers are dedicated to particular applications, then application reliability is improved, but infrastructure utilization deteriorates (5-15% utilization)

Engineering Contradiction:
Improveapplication reliabilityVSAvoidinfrastructure utilization
Core Design Contradiction:
ReliabilityVSProductivity

Solution Approach 1:

The patent implements virtualization technology that allows physical servers to host multiple virtual machines and applications simultaneously. The infrastructure is transformed from dedicated single-purpose servers to universal multi-functional platforms where resources are dynamically allocated across multiple applications, achieving both reliability through virtualization management and high utilization through shared resource pools.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #6Universality (Multi-functionality)

Solution Approach 2:

The patent consolidates multiple dedicated servers into unified infrastructure platforms by merging their computational, storage, and networking resources. This combining approach allows underutilized resources from one application to support other applications, transforming the infrastructure from fragmented dedicated units to integrated shared systems that achieve 70-90% utilization while maintaining application isolation and reliability.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #5Merging (Combining)

2Adaptability or versatility

If IT infrastructure complexity increases to support growth, then business capability is improved, but adaptability deteriorates (slower response to market changes)

Engineering Contradiction:
Improveresponse to market changesVSAvoidIT infrastructure complexity
Core Design Contradiction:
Adaptability or versatilityVSDevice complexity

Solution Approach 1:

The patent segments the monolithic IT infrastructure into modular virtualized components and service units. By dividing the infrastructure into discrete, independently manageable virtual machines, containers, and microservices, the system enables rapid deployment, scaling, and modification of specific functions without affecting the entire infrastructure, thus improving adaptability while managing complexity through standardization.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #1Segmentation

Solution Approach 2:

The patent introduces virtualization layers and service orchestration platforms as intermediaries between physical infrastructure and applications. These intermediary layers abstract complexity, providing standardized interfaces and automation capabilities that enable rapid response to market changes without requiring direct manipulation of underlying complex hardware, thus decoupling adaptability from infrastructure complexity.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #24Intermediary (Mediator)

3Productivity

If geographic expansion and mergers are pursued, then business growth is improved, but infrastructure complexity increases (duplication and redundancy)

Engineering Contradiction:
Improvebusiness growthVSAvoidinfrastructure complexity
Core Design Contradiction:
ProductivityVSDevice complexity

Solution Approach 1:

The patent creates a universal infrastructure platform through virtualization that can serve multiple business units, acquired companies, and geographic regions from a single consolidated base. This universal platform eliminates the need for separate dedicated infrastructures for each expansion or merger, allowing the same physical resources to support diverse applications and organizations, thus enabling business growth without proportional increases in infrastructure complexity.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #6Universality (Multi-functionality)

Solution Approach 2:

The patent applies consolidation strategies that merge infrastructures from acquired companies or expanded regions into the existing virtualized platform. By combining redundant systems into unified resource pools and eliminating duplicate functionalities through shared services, the infrastructure complexity grows much slower than business规模, transforming the traditional pattern where each merger adds proportional infrastructure overhead.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #5Merging (Combining)

4Speed

If rapid technology adoption is implemented, then competitive advantage is improved, but operational risk increases (deployment faster than maintenance lifecycle)

Engineering Contradiction:
Improvetechnology deployment speedVSAvoidoperational risk
Core Design Contradiction:
SpeedVSReliability

Solution Approach 1:

The patent implements dynamic infrastructure through virtualization and orchestration that enables flexible, on-demand provisioning and decommissioning of technology components. This dynamic approach allows rapid adoption of new technologies by spinning up virtual environments quickly while maintaining automated lifecycle management, security updates, and monitoring that mitigate operational risks even as deployment speeds increase beyond traditional maintenance cycles.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #15Dynamics

Data Source

PatentUS8775232B2Transforming a legacy IT infrastructure into an on-demand operating environment
Publication Date: 2014.07.08 INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS MACHINE CORPORATION
  • US8775232B2 patent drawing
  • US8775232B2 patent drawing
  • US8775232B2 patent drawing

AI summary

A transformation engine for transforming a legacy IT infrastructure into an on-demand IT infrastructure in a financial services enterprise, the transformation engine comprising: a determiner component for determining a current status of the legacy IT infrastructure; a comparator component for comparing the determined current status to an idealised set of outcome parameters to determine a set of deviation parameters; and the determiner component determining at least one control point within the set of deviation parameters which require enterprise wide governance.