By Bharath Vasudevan, HPE Product Manager, Software-defined and Cloud Group Heraclitus, a Greek philosopher, is quoted as saying “change is the only constant in life.” And he wrote that in 500 B.C. I wonder what he would say today about the constant change brought about by technology. The pace of change in business is extraordinary – and if you don’t keep up, you’ll be left behind. Yet how do you know when change is needed for your business — particularly your infrastructure? And how do you decide what change will make you more competitive? A tech refresh is a chance for a business to evaluate the direction of its IT infrastructure and weigh the costs and benefits of trying something new. It’s a good time to look at the current IT environment and research what other options are available that may better suit the needs of the organization. In my time spent talking to IT and business leaders, I’ve come up with some common questions organizations ask themselves before deciding if the time is right to refresh their datacenters. To help decipher what’s most important, here are five things to consider before an IT refresh: 1. Why do we need a tech refresh? Tech refresh is a necessary exercise every IT department goes through every few years. Some IT components last longer than others. Servers, for instance, tend to have a shorter lifespan, while network switch lifespans are a bit longer. But at some point IT components naturally become outdated. In fact, according to 451 Research (a division of The 451 Group), more than 32% of enterprises were planning a major server and storage refresh in 2016. The important thing for businesses to understand is that outdated or deteriorating technology can negatively affect not only the IT team, but the bottom line of the entire business as it eats up valuable resources. Nothing lasts forever, after all. 2. What are the warning signs that a tech refresh is necessary? A common indicator that a tech refresh is needed is a noticeable decrease in system performance and stability. This can lead to frustrated employees as it becomes more obvious that the current solution is simply not meeting the needs of the business. 3. Can consolidating my refresh cycles save time? Traditional tech refreshes can be very time-consuming because there are so many vendors to deal with, new technology for the team to be trained on, and a slew of components that have to be brought into sync with one another. Consolidating to an integrated technology approach means only one vendor to deal with and only one new system to learn; therefore, less time is spent refreshing. 4. How can I cut costs during an IT refresh? The cost of a refresh is dependent on a few factors: How long will the refresh process take and how many IT components are being refreshed. An integrated approach offers a single-vendor solution that may help companies cut costs by integrating a portion, or in some cases all of a traditional IT infrastructure stack into a single platform. What’s even better is a refreshed IT that is ready to grow and refresh again when your business is ready. 5. How can I simplify my IT infrastructure during an IT refresh? As a way to simplify the process of tech refresh, many businesses are investing in hyperconverged solutions. Hyperconverged infrastructure offers businesses a datacenter-in-a-box option that can eliminate much of the time-consuming and complex aspects of tech refresh. Hyperconverged solutions consolidate the functions of a traditional IT infrastructure stack – like servers, storage, network switching, WAN optimization, and inline deduplication – into a single solution that is managed by a single administrator. This means that you not only reduce operational expenses, but you only have one vendor to deal with. And the never-ending lather, rinse, repeat cycle is broken because all of the traditional components are consolidated. As a leader in hyperconverged infrastructure, HPE can get your business on the path to simplicity and efficiency. HPE’s portfolio of hyperconverged solutions allow customers to deploy VMs at cloud speeds, simplify their IT operations and reduce costs—all with an upgrade path to composability. That means that the time, energy, and money you’ve invested in a tech refresh won’t go to waste if you decide to move on to a composable infrastructure in the future. Change can be tough, but it’s a necessary part of life and business. Although support for an IT refresh can be hard to garner, understanding what factors are most important can help make the process easier. As hyperconverged infrastructure continues to gain momentum, the case for an IT refresh will become even simpler to make. Learn more about the basics of hyperconvergence in the Dummies Guide to Hyperconverged Infrastructure. Technology Industry