INTERNET OF THINGS
Let’s take the example of a retail store. Until recently, there
could have been a dozen point of sale (POS) cash registers,
and a couple of desktop computers at the front of the shop
used by managers to access the inventory system. Perhaps
there were a few security cameras. Those devices connect to
servers in a data closet running the commercial automation,
inventory management and video storage applications. Data
was batched and uploaded daily or weekly to a server over the
corporate network.
As we walk into a more modern retail store today, we see
cash registers replaced by tablets equipped with a credit card
reader and running a POS app. Store managers use scanners
and other handheld devices to collect and access inventory
data, and there are security web cameras. Those devices are
often managed through a smartphone app and connected
through a Wi-Fi access point directly with servers in the cloud.
PC computers and closet servers are gone.
In this scenario, there’s a migration of complexity from the
edge of the IT infrastructure to the core. The link between
the remote sites to the Internet becomes more critical, as
each device is now dependent on its connection to a server
in the cloud. Ensuring the resilience of your network is cr itical
to support the distributed business. For implementers of
enterprise IoT, that means a focus on connectivity and need
for failover strategies to cope with link failures.
IoT Data Explosion
As the technologies mature and the enterprise use of the IoT
multiply in the coming years, we’ll eventually see an explosion
of data volumes generated and consumed at the edge of the
network. Continuing with the retail store example, hundreds
of price tags on the shelves can be replaced by smart tags
that can be controlled remotely. Intelligence embedded in
shelves and the products themselves will enable monitoring
and management of inventory levels through a centrally
deployed application, without human intervention. There will
be sensors and beacons distributed throughout the facility to
control and monitor everything – ranging from the customer
movements and environmental conditions, to physical
security etc.
In this scenario it may be necessary to introduce new
IT components closer to the edge of the network again
to aggregate, filter, sort and analyse data to keep it from
unnecessarily flowing to the core of the network. Those
components might include mesh wireless gateways, data
aggregators, local data storage, and analysis engines. In large
IoT deployments, it might be necessary to deploy small data
center-like infrastructures closer to the edge of the network.
With more IT components at the edge, remote provisioning
and out-of-band management technologies will be needed
to minimise the cost of maintaining the IoT infrastructure in
operation. With increased complexity, scale and dispersion
of the IT infrastructure needed to support IoT applications,
automation is an important component of the IT strategy.
Take a long view
Most analysis pieces on consequences of adoption of IoT
in IT Infrastructure will focus on the end scenario where the
technology is adopted and the use cases are fully developed.
We suggest that, in a large development like IoT, it’s
important to see through the hype cycle and note that this
movement happens over a decade, not months. From the
IoT adopter’s perspective, being aware of that can mean the
difference between success and failure.
For most enterprise users, adoption of cloud and mobile
technologies and a focus on Network Resilience is the first
step. As IoT adoption matures, the need to build additional
infrastructure closer to the network edge and focus on
provisioning, remote management and IT automation will
become more important. n
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