SUCCESS STORYModernization of data storage and

backup systems at VTB bank

OBJECTIVES

VTB endeavors to offer its clients the entire range of services in line with

international business practices. Business development, the availability of

innovative products and the desire to make its operations as fast and

dependable as possible prompted the bank to modernize its IT systems.

The long�term objectives included:

• migration to a service�oriented architecture;

• deployment of an integrated platform;

• design and deployment of new business applications.

To reach these goals the bank needed to modernize its data storage and

backup systems.

The bank's integrated data storage system consisted of several midrange

and high�end disk arrays by Hitachi Data Systems and Hewlett�Packard

located on two sites and connected into a single storage area network (SAN)

with two fiber optic channels. One of the channels was a DWDM optical

transport system (OTS), the other a direct connection. These channels were

also employed for online data replication between the sites.

The distributed backup system had a daily load of 4.5 Tb. The total amount

of backed�up data was 22 Tb. Tape libraries were connected with media

servers via the SAN. Data were transferred for backup through the SAN and

a LAN.

While the original architecture for the data storage and backup systems was

quite adequate, problems had still accumulated during operation. For

instance, the bank's IT infrastructure had been regularly updated with

hardware that was appropriate at that moment. Servers and disk arrays were

increasingly disparate and some equipment was getting obsolete. Sluggish

backups and disappointing performance had become quite a problem.

The bank needed to increase data storage capacity and consolidate its

archives on a smaller number of disk arrays while maintaining the disk

system performance necessary for business applications. Obsolete

equipment had to be replaced. Moreover, the data storage system needed to

be capable of trouble�free expansion without changing the SAN architecture

or reducing the workload on existing hardware. It also needed to be fully

scalable so that new sites could be connected in the future.

The contractor was also to keep the existing IT infrastructure and all the

investment in the DSS, the backup system and communications channels.

The new system had also to conform to current and prospective software

requirements.

A tender for this project announced by VTB bank was won by Jet Infosystems.

VTB and its subsidiaries (the VTB

Group) form an international financial

group offering a broad range of banking

services and products in Russia, the

CIS and several countries in Western

Europe, Asia and Africa. The VTB

group deals with corporate, retail and

investment banking. Its members

operate under a single brand and share

the same client relationships

philosophy.

Ranking among the largest Russian

banks in terms of equity, VTB is one of

the leaders in the Russian banking

sector with a strong position across all

banking areas. The Government

of the Russian Federation holds

77.5 % of its shares.

Dmitriy Nazipov,

senior Vice�President and CIO,

VTB Bank:

«We have long been feeling that our

data storage and backup systems

require a major overhaul. The new

systems operate on a 24х7х365 basis

and meet all the stringent

performance, accessibility and

reliability standards. They will greatly

contribute to our development and

facilitate dealing with new business

tasks.»

SOLUTION

DSS modernization

Jet Infosystems offered the following solution. First, new high�end disk arrays

by Hitachi Data Systems (USP100 and USP�V with the total available

capacity of over 15 terabytes) were added to the integrated DSS at both sites

to consolidate highly critical data. The disk arrays previously used for this

purpose were either removed from the system or switched to the storage of

less valuable information. Second, the SAN was upgraded. In particular,

the Jet team replaced obsolete and often faulty DWDM multiplexers used for

communication between the sites and connected both channels to a fault�

tolerant OTS. New FC switches (Inter�Switch Links) were installed on each

site to increase the number of ports and carrying capacity.

DWDM serving SAN

Two parallel communications channels with a capacity of at least 8 Gbit/s

each were installed for online data transfer between the sites to boost

the SAN performance. The new communications equipment also

accommodated the existing Brocade FC switches. The number of links in the

system may be increased without laying new lines thanks to optical

multiplexing technology. Existing communications channels were enhanced

with the Nortel Optera Metro 5200 DWDM platform that can transmit four

Site 2

Production serversDisk arrays

HDS 9960

Tape library

Sun SL 500

sw3850_140

Switches

Brocade 3850

Cisco ONS 15540

DWDM

Disk arrays

HDS 9960Production servers Production servers

Production servers

Switches

Brocade 3850

SF 480

NetBackup

Master Server

Tape library

HP MSL 5060

Tape library

Compaq

MSL 5026

Disk arrays

MSA 1000

Disk arrays

MA 12000

sw28_120

sw28_121

sw3850_130

sw3850_141

Cisco ONS 15540

DWDMSite 1

sw3850_131

sw38_101

sw38_100

Switches

Brocade 2800Switches

Brocade 3800

Fig.1 Logical diagram of the data storage system prior to modernization

FC400 and two GE signals. The total current carrying capacity of each

channel is therefore 18 GBit/s. If the backbone communications channel fails

for any reason, all the signals are automatically routed by the DWDM system

to the redundant channel. Jet Infosystems ran advance bench tests on

the integration of new Nortel multiplexers with the SAN and their interaction

with Brocade FC switches. A detailed work schedule was also prepared.

Therefore the actual installation and rewiring, otherwise a pretty time�

consuming operation, was completed in a single day and communication

between the sites was off for just an hour.

Backup system upgrade

The upgrade solution developed by Jet Infosystems and VTB IT staff required

no dramatic changes to the existing backup system.

A new media server was added to the current system for the interaction

between backup clients and a new tape library on the second site, which

resulted in a substantial drop of inter�site LAN and SAN traffic.

Sergey Udalov,

deputy manager, IT

implementation and

maintenance, VTB:

«Thanks to Jet Infosystems our data

storage and backup systems upgrade

had a minimal impact on the existing

IT infrastructure. The system remained

largely familiar to the bank's IT staff

who adapted to it in no time. This

solution was also 30�40% less costly

to implement.»

Multiplexers DWDM

Production servers

(ODSQL, DIASOFT,

Exchange and other)

Production servers

(expansion)

Switches

Brocade 4100

Switches

Brocade 4900

Tape library

HP MSL 5060

Site 2

Production servers

Disk arrays HDS

TagmaStore

UPS100

Switches

Brocade 4900

Tape library

Sun L500Backup servers

Sun x4200

Sun v490

Site 3

Production servers

Disk arrays

Switches

Tape library

Backup server

Backup servers

Site 1

Disk arrays HDS

TagmaStore

UPS100

Switches

Brocade 3850

Fig. 2 DSS and backup system at VTB after the upgrade

14 Bolshaya Novodmitrovskaya St.,

building 1, 127015 Moscow, Russia

Phone (495) 4117601

Fax (495) 4117602

Email: info@jet.msk.su

www.jet.msk.su

Konstantin Kazakov,

director, Banking Technologies

Department, Jet Infosystems:

«VTB staff excel in project

management, planning and gradual

deployment. Our draft project was

presented and approved first by

Jet Infosystems Architecture council.

Endorsement by its sister unit at VTB

followed. It was easy to proceed with

implementation, since the joint project

team agreed on a detailed work

schedule and did some meticulous

resource and procurement planning».

OUTCOME

The DSS and BS upgrade was one of the more fundamental projects

conceived by the VTB IT service to improve the handling of management and

business tasks. The new system features superior performance, larger

storage capacity, greater reliability and superb data management

capabilities. The upgrade also included a powerful and scalable optical data

transfer network. Scalability is the key word: with business growth and

service quality improvements, VTB will certainly need to connect the system

to new offices and data centers in the future.

The entire implementation including bench tests by Jet Infosystems,

equipment delivery and deployment took just about three months.