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EDUCATION

250 EMPLOYEES

CUSTOMER SINCE

2013

BENEFITS

• Flexibility to cope with

changing demands

• Faster integration of new

hardware and systems

• Easy customization so the

system can be adapted to

different needs on the fly

• Reduced complexity so a

smaller team can do more

SOFTWARE AND SERVICES

Red Hat® Enterprise Linux®

Red Hat Enterprise Linux

OpenStack® Platform

Red Hat CloudForms

Red Hat Satellite

Cloud GPS (managed services)

HARDWARE

Dell

Yale-NUS College, a joint venture between Yale University and the National University of

Singapore (NUS), was established in 2013. With 250 staff and 1,000 students, the college

has varied and evolving computing needs, from general administration to intensive research.

Their IT systems needed to be created from scratch, so the team took a new, more flexible

approach, partnering with Red Hat to create a hybrid cloud in one of the first installations of

its type in the region.

HEADQUARTERS

“Red Hat has an understanding of what we’re trying to do and have bent over backwards

to fit our unique needs. This solution has enabled us to do more with less.”

DARWIN GOSAL

SENIOR MANAGER, IT SERVICES, YALE-NUS COLLEGE

Singapore

CUSTOMER CASE STUDY

YALE-NUS COLLEGE BUILDS SOFTWARE-DEFINED DATACENTER ON RED HAT CLOUD INFRASTRUCTURE

2redhat.com CUSTOMER CASE STUDY  Yale-NUS College builds software-defined datacenter on Red Hat  Cloud Infrastructure

BUSINESS CHALLENGE

The existing IT systems at NUS were based on a more traditional approach and have historically

delivered good results. However, there was high capital expenditure with the systems as well as a

lack of flexibility. Therefore, when it came time to build their new infrastructure, the college chose

not to simply replicate the existing limitations and, instead, took the opportunity to maximize the

potential of a new cloud deployment.

“One of the nice things is that this is a ‘green field’ implementation,” said Darwin Gosal, senior

manager of IT Infrastructure and Services. “We’re embedded within the National University of

Singapore ecosystem, but we can choose where we want to be independent.”

When deciding on the strategy, there were several factors to be taken into account. The solution had

to be advanced enough to cater to a wide variety of computing needs, from teaching and admin-

istration to broad-based research. Limited budgets were an issue as well. The solution had to be

cost effective and, just as importantly, flexible enough to cope with increased demands or reduced

funding in the future. As a new institution, it was likely that demands would change over time as

Yale-NUS evolves, so it was important that the datacenter could cater to those changes without the

need for heavy capital expenditure.

Finally, whatever solution adopted would have to be managed by a team of just six IT staff members—

meaning that staff would have to be able to multitask, requiring the system to maintain a high

degree of automation and long-term stability to minimize any downtime.

SOLUTION

Yale-NUS built a software-defined datacenter on Red Hat Cloud Infrastructure with Smart

Management, using hardware from Dell. Additionally, where needed, public cloud systems were also

used — but to address concerns over legal compliance, the team opted for a hybrid strategy of public

and private clouds.

Red Hat Enterprise Linux OpenStack Platform was selected as the broad encompassing cloud foun-

dation for Yale-NUS, making it easier to find skilled staff and to integrate the technologies with

broad range of open infrastructure.

FLEXIBILITY

Although the IT team had a reasonably good idea of what end users would require from the system,

based on their experience at NUS, Yale-NUS is a new institution and, inevitably, those needs will

be expected to evolve. Their new deployment now provides the flexibility to add or remove capac-

ity quickly and easily. Software can be moved from commercially supported to community projects

easily, while hardware can be used more efficiently. For example, the system uses software-defined

storage which eliminates the need for different storage arrays for objects, files, and blocks. This

storage can be allocated and reallocated as demand dictates.

3redhat.com CUSTOMER CASE STUDY  Yale-NUS College builds software-defined datacenter on Red Hat  Cloud Infrastructure

SPEED

Relying on commodity hardware saves time and budget. Not only does it eliminate the need to

order specialized components, but the hardware can be installed faster. “Red Hat wrote all the

configuration of how the servers should behave,” said Gosal. “So we first design the data center,

then we reformat the whole thing, plug in the laptop, leave it for lunch, and one hour later the

whole infrastructure is up and running.”

To scale up further is simply a matter of reusing the code, both speeding up further expansion and

keeping manpower requirements down.

CUSTOMIZATION

One of the most useful elements of the system is the ease of customization. A traditional educa-

tional IT system has computer labs full of machines that are used in lessons and then sit idle. By

taking a software-based approach, resources are no longer wasted.

For example, to teach a class requiring Python on Linux is simply a matter of scaling down back-

ground tasks, such as research, then creating a virtual machine environment for students to log in to,

using remote desktop on their own laptops. “When the class is finished, the whole thing is destroyed

and the pool is given back to the research computing,” said Gosal. “It’s truly Infrastructure-as-a-

Service.” The next step, Gosal hopes, is to do away with virtual machines and let users log in via their

web browsers to an instances hosted via an Platform-as-a-Service (Paas) solution.

BETTER USE OF RESOURCES

By reducing complexity and increasing flexibility, the team can do more with less. Traditional data

centers require many different skillsets, often resulting in large teams. However, the only main

requirement to work on their new hybrid cloud model is a good understanding of Linux. That means

that just nine staff are able to manage the entire IT infrastructure for 200 faculty, staff members,

and around 1,000 students.

RECOGNITION

The college has attracted attention from government and other academic institutions around the

region who are keen to learn from the project. They are also planning to submit the project for SS

584 certification, a Singapore standard for cloud security. “That will give the assurance that open

source can provide the reliability you would expect from a more traditional solution,” said Gosal.

RESULTS

Although the project is still in its early stages, the results are already clear. Thanks to Red Hat’s

involvement, the time to install new server hardware has been cut from days to one or two hours,

both reducing the workload and increasing the system’s flexibility. Capital requirements have also

been cut through a reduction of specialized hardware and the fact that students can access the

system through their own laptops, reducing the need for computer labs with underutilized machines.

Aside from certification to further prove the concept, the team is looking at implementing “work-

station as a service” which would enable students to access application over the cloud, rather than

having licenses tied to individual machines.

Gosal is very pleased with the results of the partnership so far. “Red Hat has an understanding of

what we’re trying to do and has bent over backwards to fit our unique needs,” he said. “This solution

has really enabled us to do more with less.”

Copyright © 2015 Red Hat, Inc. Red Hat, Red Hat Enterprise Linux, the Shadowman logo, and JBoss are trademarks of Red Hat, Inc., registered in the U.S. and other countries. Linux® is the registered trademark of Linus Torvalds in the U.S. and other countries.

The OpenStack® Word Mark and OpenStack Logo are either registered trademarks / service marks or trademarks / service marks of the OpenStack Foundation, in the United States and other countries and are used with the OpenStack Foundation’s permission. We are not affiliated with, endorsed or sponsored by the OpenStack Foundation or the OpenStack community.

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redhat.com INC0233358_ INC0271423_V2_0615

ABOUT YALE NUS COLLEGE

Yale-NUS College, a liberal arts college located in Singapore, aims to redefine liberal arts and

science education for a complex, interconnected world. As an intimate liberal arts college, dedicated

to undergraduate education, Yale-NUS draws on the resources and traditions of 2 great universi-

ties. The college pursues excellence through innovative teaching and research, and provides global

opportunities for its students.

CUSTOMER CASE STUDY Yale-NUS College builds software-defined datacenter on Red Hat Cloud Infrastructure