data center consolidation

DOD, Microsoft Agree To Landmark Enterprise Licensing Deal

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The Defense Department has awarded a first of its kind joint enterprise licensing agreement for Microsoft collaboration, mobility, productivity and security tools. Valued at $617 million, the three-year agreement will allow the Army, Air Force and the Defense Information Systems Agency to begin using the latest versions of the company’s products.

The agreement creates a single framework providing all three organizations with a single, standardized way to access new Microsoft technologies. The contract also supports top DOD IT goals for data center consolidation, collaboration, cybersecurity, mobility, cloud computing and big data, company officials said in a statement. Keep reading →

 /  Published January 4, 2013 at 4:33 PM

Staring Over Financial Cliff: Preparing For IT Budget Cuts Across The Board

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With sequestration looming, and 2013 federal IT spending requests having have dropped $1 billion over fiscal year 2012 levels, contracting dollars especially for IT are expected to come under intense scrutiny, and in many cases get shuffled to meet changing needs next year.

Those who follow federal IT spending are already aware that the fiscal 2013 federal IT budget request is approximately $78.9 billion, down from the prior year’s $79.7 billion. However, Congress’ continuing resolution and potential sequestration are likely to lower IT spending to between $73 to $74 billion. Keep reading →

 /  Published November 2, 2012 at 1:15 PM

Information Technology: Cost Or Opportunity For Agencies?

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More federal managers view information technology as an opportunity than as a cost, according to a new survey released this week. But with so many other priorities on executives’ plates, and the sense that IT departments could be delivering more effectively than many are, technology leaders have their work cut out in demonstrating that IT can contribute to real cost savings or to better decision making.

More than two thirds of federal executives believe their IT departments understand their agency’s missions and grasp their agencies core challenges. Keep reading →

 /  Published August 10, 2012 at 4:31 PM

OpenStack Still Part of NASA’s Cloud Landscape

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It’s no surprise that recent reports of NASA’s shift from OpenStack — and open source cloud computing — in favor of a commercial platform stirred some chatter in and around the federal space.

After all, NASA officials foresaw open source cloud computing’s potential and invested in the new phenomenon back in 2008, when it was still just a shimmer on the horizon. Keep reading →

 /  Published July 12, 2012 at 11:00 AM

Clear Skies for Cloud Security: FedRAMP To Bring Service Era

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The benefits of cloud computing are too compelling and numerous for agencies not to take serious adoption steps in this budget-constrained fiscal environment. Some estimate the government can save as much as $14.4 billion through cloud adoption.

Looking ahead, cloud will provide a platform for integrating mobility and BYOD into agencies’ day-to-day operations. The benefits of an increasingly commoditized IT world will be passed along quickly to taxpayers in the form of better and more cost-effective government services delivery. Sooner than expected, the government will be in the “Everything as a Service Era” with the vast majority of IT services being provided virtually via the cloud. Keep reading →

 /  Published June 14, 2012 at 11:00 AM

New Telecom Study Finds Feds and Industry Fundamentally Disagree

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Federal agencies are working closely with private industry partners to embrace telework, cloud computing, smart devices, telecommunications and network technologies. But a new report suggests they fail to see eye to eye in key areas. Keep reading →

 /  Published May 25, 2012 at 1:00 PM

Testimony Points To Innovation As Remedy To Tech Challenges

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The House Oversight and Government Reform Committee held a field hearing on technology and the federal government Friday in Northern Virginia, where they heard testimony from large and small information technology companies and government officials about the top technology issues affecting government today.

The hearing was meant to provide access to extensive private-sector IT expertise within Northern Virginia and the National Capital region. It was also an opportunity for federal officials and state and local government partners to share best technology practices amid top technology challenges, including cybersecurity, cloud conversion and data center consolidation, and look at innovative ways to promote efficiency in government IT operations. Keep reading →

 /  Published May 11, 2012 at 2:00 PM

Feds @ Work: OSTP’s Chris Vein Innovates Innovation Itself

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Chris Vein works for two prominent Obama administration officials who are always in the limelight. Consequently Vein doesn’t get a lot of publicity. If you do a search on his name, the “news” results shows very little.

And that’s all fine with Vein, the deputy Chief Technology Officer. He reports to the chief technology officer (the post Aneesh Chopra held before stepping down earlier this month) and also to John Holdren, the senior advisor to the president for Science and Technology. Both have been highly visible – and in Holdren’s case, controversial – appointees.
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This article originally appeared on FedInsider.com
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 /  Published February 21, 2012 at 11:04 AM

Regional Cloud Hubs: Wave Of The Future For State And Local Governments

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The shape of things to come in government cloud computing will lie in models that are evolving on the state and local level, and may look a lot like what is taking place in Utah and Michigan, according to a new report from research group IDC Government Insights.

The era of the “server down the hall” is over, states the report. Instead, the nascent paradigm for state and local cloud computing will take the form of regional, government-to-government hubs, according to the report. An abstract of the report, entitled “Regional Community Cloud Hubs: the New ‘Trickle Down’ Effect That’s Boosting State and Local Computing” is available at no charge. Keep reading →

 /  Published January 31, 2012 at 10:30 AM

A ‘Shared First’ Approach For The New Year

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Federal Chief Information Officer Steven VanRoekel described his path forward for federal IT in a policy speech in Silicon Valley this October and again in the draft Federal IT Shared Services Strategy released just this month. He articulated a “Shared First” paradigm that will lead agencies to root out waste and duplication by sharing IT services, infrastructure, procurement vehicles, and best practices.
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This article originally appeared on GSA’s Great Government Through Technology blog.
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 /  Published January 3, 2012 at 11:30 AM
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