2: IT Infrastructure
An information technology infrastructure that efficiently and effectively supports business operations, and appropriately
anticipates future needs.
Other Information:
Infrastructure Support: Because the agency’s small size limited the number of staff that could be dedicated to information
technology operations, it was an ongoing challenge to maintain an IT organization with the necessary range of technical skills.
Maintaining training for evolving products and knowledgeable about emerging technologies also proved to be very difficult
because of the obvious limitations on information technology staff resources. In 2003, the operation and management of the
Finance Board’s information technology infrastructure support was outsourced to Advanced Technology Systems (ATS). This action,
as expected, allowed ISTS to deliver the necessary IT infrastructure more efficiently and at lower cost than when these services
were provided by Finance Board staff. FHFB can also take advantage of ATS’s broad range of skilled IT personnel and resources
to satisfy Finance Board requirements. These efficiencies and economies can occur because ATS skilled resources are also used
to support other clients and are not dedicated to the Finance Board but can be engaged as necessary to support future Finance
Board projects and initiatives. ATS provides a full range of infrastructure support services to the Finance Board’s IT environment.
This includes administration and maintenance of all application, web, email, database and file servers (production and development)
and telecommunications services to their off-site production and back-up facilities hosting Finance Board equipment in a secure
co-location environment. ATS also provides all end-user desktop and laptop workstations. The infrastructure that has been
designed and implemented will provide the flexibility that the Finance Board requires as its mission grows and changes. The
Finance Board has already benefited from the technology within the new infrastructure, such as: · Consolidating servers allowing
the FHFB to have its own dedicated Disaster Recovery Facility (DRF) and an Emergency Operations Center (EOC). · Enhancement
of employee communication through the implementation of RIM Blackberry devices for wireless email and communication. · Establishment
of a remote server farm capability to FHFB employees providing more processing capability for resource intensive applications.
· Deployment of a new Virtual Private Network (VPN) solution, which now allows remote users such as bank examiners access
to CRS during a VPN connection and allows the Helpdesk to remotely control agency workstations. · Completion of a full desktop,
laptop and network printer technology refresh, bringing the FHFB up-to-date with the latest versions of software on improved
hardware Goals for the future: Enhanced Telecommunications - Telecommunications continues to be an evolving and significant
component of a modern computer infrastructure. In the future, ISTS will continue to implement new and innovative telecommunication
solutions which are designed to assist the business units in achieving the mission of the agency. The two key areas of focus
will be the replacement of the outdated telephone system with a state-of-the art and secure Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP)
solution for Headquarters. ISTS will also be piloting secure wireless networking for bank examinations in Fiscal Year (FY)
04. In addition, based on the flexibility and security of the network, ISTS will support an anticipated Telework program which
will allow FHFB employees to work for remote locations as if they were at their desks. This is expected to be piloted and
implemented in FY 05. Staying current with latest technology - As part of the ATS contract, ISTS has already taken steps to
ensure the Finance Board remains current with the latest technology. To that end, ISTS has required ATS to execute a second
full technology refresh within the course of its contract. It is expect that this next refresh will occur sometime in FY 07
and will provide all new laptops, desktops, monitors and network printers to all FHFB employees. It is expected at that time,
the current server hardware and software will be outdated and require upgrading. ATS will provide FHFB with server hosting
services as well. This will provide a server operating system and application refresh that will then be owned and managed
by ATS through FY 09.
Objective(s):
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