SAMPLEMANAGER ON AZURE

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SampleManager on Azure

SampleManager on Azure increases computing power and reduces management costs

NO Ownership costs (TCO)

NO

  • Hardware to run the system – servers, network infrastructure, uninterruptible power supply etc.
  • Operating system licenses (i.e. Windows Server licensing).
  • Database software licenses (e.g. Oracle or SQL Server).
  • Other associated software costs such as backup software licenses.
  • The license purchase for the SampleManager software itself.

NO Ongoing costs

 NO

  • Electricity for powering the hardware and ensuring the environment is cooled.
  • Hardware maintenance costs including maintenance contracts and replacement parts.
  • Depreciation of hardware and replacement costs.
  • Hardware upgrades as system usage expands.
  • IT Staff to keep the system up and running.
  • Staff training.
  • SampleManager upgrades.

NO Compromises

YES

  • High Availability.
  • Enterprise-scale Business Continuity solutions.
  • Enterprise-scale Business Disaster Recovery solutions.

Resources

FROM CLOUD-READY TO CLOUD-OPTIMISED

SampleManager can be considered “Cloud Infrastructure-Ready”. As a starting point, an organization could move SampleManager to the cloud with a simple “Lift-and-Shift” approach.

However, this approach does not leverage Platform-as-a-Service (PaaS) offerings. We must manage virtual machines and databases. We need connectivity to on-premises resources such as instrument files and ERP systems.

What if we could de-compose SampleManager into pieces and deploy those pieces in concert using the appropriate cloud-based technologies?

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Cloud Optimized

Database

DECOMPOSE AND RE-ASSEMBLE

  • As a PaaS offering, SQL Azure Database does not require us to manage a virtual machine.
  • Database License costs are included (you can even bring your own licenses using Azure Hybrid benefit).
  • Dynamically scalable.
  • Predictable performance that can be dialed up or down.
  • Availability backed by replicas and an uptime SLA.
  • Data Protection via Auditing, Point-in-time Restore and Geo-Replication.
  • Self-managed for near-zero maintenance.

Folder Structure

Application Server Tier

  • Really, really, cheap redundant storage of the instance files
    • Locally-Redundant Storage (LRS)
    • Zone-Redundant Storage (ZRS)
    • Geo-Redundant Storage (GRS)
  • We can use Azure Backup to take periodic snapshots of the file share to protect against data corruption or accidental deletions or updates.
  • The “Application Server” for SM now only deals with static configuration
  • The application just needs to “point” to the file share and database.

Connection from On-Premises

Our “Application Server” can be deployed to a virtual network in Azure. Using a VPN Gateway, a secure Site-to-Site (S2S) connection can be made between your on-premises gateway. This effectively brings the SampleManager Azure system onto your network and it can be accessed as if it was locally hosted.

Before

At a high level, our Azure SampleManager deployment now looks like this.

SampleManager in a Docker Container

We can get SampleManager to run in a Windows-based Docker container. This container encapsulates all the server components and can be pointed to the Database and File Share. It is the SampleManager engine, but it does not contain any data or files that need to be persisted or protected.

After

Our Azure SampleManager deployment now looks like this.

Managed service

Azure offers a container hosting service called Azure Container Instances (ACI) where you can deploy a container without having to worry about the underlying infrastructure. Microsoft manages the patching and maintenance of the infrastructure.

Ready

All that remains is to manage the replacement of the container, as necessary. This can be done as a managed service, so you do not have to do anything!

Conclusions

The potential benefits of deploying SampleManager as a cloud-optimized solution in Azure are huge. In addition to the cost savings, the agility that the platform provides is not something that could be achieved on-premises. 

But the story does not end there. By moving to Azure you expose your system to a myriad of opportunities.

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Knowledge Base

White Papers

Methods Database Project

Orbis Labsystems in collaboration with ZONTAL, Pistoia Alliance, and Agilent contributed to the development of a Methods Database to simplify reuse and sharing of Empower CDS methods between different systems and companies.

Project Management

Project Management Orbis Labsystems focuses on optimum deployment of resources with risk management to ensure successful delivery of our solutions. We recognize that the two greatest challenges in a project are the quality of the requirements which drive the solution...

Project Planning and the Business Case

Project Planning and the Business Case With over thirty years experience in laboratory informatics Orbis Labsystems has a wealth of experience to guide our customers to successful outcomes with their projects. Each project assignment starts with an assessment of the...

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Get the Benefits of Cloud Computing into your Laboratory Today

SampleManager on Azure increases computing power and reduces management costs.

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