No software tool, regardless of how sophisticated, can anticipate every end user need, adapt to every business circumstance, or prioritize end-user data…in short, it cannot completely satisfy end-user expectations or demands. The IT administrator’s challenge then, is to reconcile two somewhat contradictory goals: having systems in place to maintain order and assure smooth business operations while providing end users with a needed degree of flexibility and discretion in their day-to-day work.
Thinking through and developing policies determining how user data will be managed--from departmental to individual--is an important first step in defining the parameters of a storage resource management (SRM) solution. Quotas need to be determined (both hard and soft), as does the manner in which you want file types handled, in addition to all the steps before (i.e., running reports to determine thresholds) and in-between (system optimization, etc.). Making matters more complex and, naturally, management more difficult, is the increasing diversity of storage environments, as more IT organizations integrate NAS devices in their storage “fabric” or move toward SANs.
The heterogeneous nature of these environments would tend to make comprehensive central management a top priority--if not an imperative. However, managing even the most demanding storage infrastructures requires a limited ceding of central control. The very idea of user-directed storage management is, admittedly, something of an oxymoron, as it is premised on the idea that increasing your control across the enterprise means you must yield degrees of control to end users in the (limited) management of their IT resources. But the goal is simple: to coax more responsible user behavior by making them more accountable for--and simply more aware of--their storage use…and introducing incentives and imposing penalties to demonstrate why responsible storage use is in their (and the organization’s) best interest.
Managing Data Storage by Changing User Behavior
Engaging users and giving them a stake in economical and responsible data storage remains the single best approach in making storage management, well, manageable.
While employees tend to view their PC--and certainly their data--with a sense of ownership, they understand the role the IT organization has in maintaining an environment that allows them to function unimpeded, without interruption. This implicit relationship tends to make users more receptive to requests from the IT department, particularly if it were to reach out to users and communicate the need for more responsible storage management. But chances are users will default to previous behaviors; those who previously saved unnecessary or large media files will revert to form and continue to do so. At this point, IT typically throws up its hands and resorts to more draconian measures in the form of hard quotas, setting threshold on what users can and can’t store.
While quotas are a handy--indeed necessary--tool in keeping data to manageable levels, it can cause user backlash and additional administrative headaches. What happens when someone realizes a three month old file that he suddenly needs is not there, as he inadvertently deleted it to stay within the quota? How does an administrator deal with several project teams requesting their quotas be raised for a limited time? A quota system alone can’t respond to issues that crop up on a case-by-case basis. The most efficient system is one that gives users a limited degree of discretion over their allotted storage space and one that facilitates monitoring and communication between IT and end users. In other words, the best system is both self-policing “on the ground” and administered from above. A framework that gives users limited control over their storage is not viewed as an imposition, but as a tool broadening their ability to manage their data. This being the case, they are only too willing to “buy in,” and do what they must, i.e., modify their behavior to continue and enjoy their privileges.
User-Directed SRM: A Real World Example
Using quotas and file blocking without involving users in the process can be counterproductive. For instance, while automating quotas on file or e-mail storage is a globally effective and efficient means of reigning in data and economizing available resources, there is always the chance that valuable user data can be moved, archived or deleted. Automation combined with communications and tools for user involvement in the management of their data is a far safer and more efficient approach. Also, one has to bear in mind that today’s workforce has grown accustomed to virtually unfettered Internet access and views associated technology resources as something of an entitlement--a purely technological solution to the problem will inevitably cause backlash.
An IT administrator’s job is to maintain order and impose discipline, which is no easy task when you’re at odds with a user population that chafes when limits are imposed. Identifying and fixing a system problem is a relatively simple affair; not quite so simple when you have live human beings on the other end who want to know why their remote access to the network is restricted, why they can’t access certain websites, why certain emails are not going through or why they can’t save mp3s to their hard drive.
Experience shows that the best, most effective approach to managing technology assets is to provide incentives for responsible end user-behavior (for instance, allocating a fixed amount of storage space per employee; those who exceed their quota are charged for every additional megabyte). Once your storage policy is set, the next task is to establish a two-way communications conduit, perhaps through a portal that’s integrated into your SRM software. This portal lets you approach the source of unstructured data--your user population--and increase their awareness of individual storage inefficiencies, while giving them the tools to reclaim capacity and providing them with a straight-forward path toward policy compliance. In sum, the storage portal makes efficient, responsible storage use part of your business culture.
Here’s a typical scenario: IT notifies users with a description of the organization’s storage policy; a user immediately understands the policies that pertain to her, as well as the overall status of her usage. With each notification, a link is provided that takes the user to a page that provides access to individual, up-to-date reports on stored content and a status of their storage quota. From there, she can open, move or delete files or groups of files, which allows IT to give her a degree of control while containing what she’s allowed to do. User-focused reports can include a quota status report that displays the user’s current quota status, file age report (interactive report listing oldest files), file size report (a list of a user’s largest files) and media file report (shows users their true media). From this page, the user can open a file and check its content to determine what to do with it -- can I delete it or archive it? She can actively reclaim capacity, clean up their user share or quota and bring it down below threshold.
Users should also be able to request a raise in their quota directly from the portal. They can set rules that automatically control quotas even before requests come in--for instance you can set it up where all members of the engineering group can increase quotas 10% once every 30 days--or handle the requests manually from the administration side of portal. The portal should also give flexibility in customizing the user experience; administrators ought to be able to localize portal messages and use the available text fields to best communicate the details and motivations behind the company's SRM policy.
SRM: Conclusion
The accelerated pace of doing business in today’s world puts organizations under tremendous pressure. They need to be fleet and flexible, able to rapidly respond to opportunities, make decisions and deploy resources. Critical to this is the way information is managed and stored.
Successful organizations realize the difference between storing data and managing it. The former merely approaches it from a "housing" perspective. The latter seeks to extract value from your data: making it readily available to facilitate efficient business processes and communications. Companies realize further bottom-line benefits by reducing admin overhead. Viewed from this perspective, storage management is no longer strictly an IT concern; it is intrinsic to the way your company performs and competes.
The sheer volume of excess data--whether it be outdated, of no intrinsic value or simply redundant --adds time and hassle to information retrieval. Which, over time, can be a major drag on productivity and compromise your organization’s ability to compete in today’s ever-shortening business cycles.
State-of-the-art SRM embeds the intelligence necessary for administrators and users to prioritize and easily manage data, making what’s most important most accessible. Over the past several years, there’s been a lot written about Information Lifecycle Management (ILM). ILM is a philosophy and an approach that begins with management and the IT team harmonizing goals and tactics. Working together they assign value to information and determine how to manage it by establishing rules governing what and how much is stored. The next step in ILM is to bring users into the process. While management and IT establish the overarching storage policies, users are made aware of their stake--and responsibility--in the process, and are empowered with the tools and information required to make sensible storage-related decisions. Such a framework assures that information is up-to-date and that critical information is readily available on-demand. Such a system has far-reaching implications for just about every aspect of business: from efficient and responsive customer relations, to arming your sales force with the real-time information they need to be effective.
Thomas Vernersson is the CEO and founder of Northern.
