CHAPTER 5:
Infrastructures: Sustainable Technologies
MIS infrastructure, which includes the plans for how a firm will build, deploy, use, and share its data,
processes, and MIS assets. A solid MIS infrastructure can reduce costs, improve productivity, optimize
business operations, generate growth, and increase profitability.
Hardware consists of the physical devices associated with a computer system
Software is the set of instructions the hardware executes to carry out specific tasks
A network is a communications system created by linking two or more devices and establishing a
standard methodology in which they can communicate
Specific form of network infrastructure:
A client is a computer designed to request information from a server.
A server is a computer dedicated to providing information in response to requests. A good way
to understand this is when someone uses a web browser (this would be the client) to access a
website (this would be a server that would respond with the web page being requested by the
client).
An enterprise architect is a person grounded in technology, fluent in business, and able to provide the
important bridge between MIS and the business. Firms employ enterprise architects to help manage
change and dynamically update MIS infrastructure.
Supporting operations:Information MIS infrastructure identifies where and how important
information, such as customer records, is maintained and secured.
Supporting change:Agile MIS infrastructure includes the hardware, software, and
telecommunications equipment that, when combined, provides the underlying foundation to
support the organization’s goals.
MIS infrastructure – Includes the plans for how a firm will build, deploy, use, and share
its data, processes, and MIS assets
■Hardware
■Software
■Network
■Client
■Server
Supporting operations
■Information MIS infrastructure
Supporting change
■Agile MIS Infrastructure
Supporting the environment
■Sustainable MIS infrastructure
Information MIS Infrastructure:
-Backup and recovery plan
-Disaster recovery plan
-Business continuity plan
Backup – An exact copy of a system’s information
Recovery – The ability to get a system up and running in the event of a system crash or
failure
-Fault tolerance
-Failover
-Failback
Disaster recovery plan – A detailed process for recovering information or an IT system
in the event of a catastrophic disaster such as a fire or flood
Disaster recovery cost curve – Charts (1) the cost to the organization of the
unavailability of information and technology and (2) the cost to the organization of
recovering from a disaster over time
Hot site – A separate and fully equipped facility where the company can
move immediately after a disaster and resume business
Cold site – A separate facility that does not have any computer equipment,
but is a place where employees can move after a disaster
Warm site – A separate facility with computer equipment that requires
installation and configuration
Business continuity planning (BCP) – A plan for how an organization will