Scaling Smarter:
How a Strategic Cloud Migration Eliminated Idle Capcity and Boosted Agility
How One Financial Firm Cut Fixed Costs, Strengthening Agility, Leading to Better Business Outcomes.
A large financial enterprise running critical workloads on IBMi and AIX systems was operating under a traditional, hardware-based infrastructure model.
For years, this organization relied on a traditional five-year hardware purchase cycle, outsourcing its infrastructure to a third-party provider. To prepare for peak usage and anticipated growth, they overbought compute and storage capacity—building in a 40% storage buffer that often sat idle. One of their three workloads was planned for retirement after only two years, meaning they were paying for capacity they would never use.
The Challenge of Managing IT Capacity to Meet Peaks and Valleys
The fixed nature of dedicated on-premises hardware created challenges. Seasonal and short-term workloads still required permanent investment, and scaling up to meet new demands meant significant cost and lead time. Even when demand decreased, the cost of maintaining unused capacity continued.
The organization had purchased 10 dedicated units of compute and storage, sized 40% above current needs to accommodate peaks, seasonal demand, and planned workload expansions. These resources sat in a data centre and required ongoing capital and operational expenditures, even for workloads that would later be retired.
Three workloads were hosted on this infrastructure, with one planned for decommission after just two years. Despite this, the company was still paying for the unused capacity.
The inflexibility of physical hardware meant:
- Paying for growth years before it was needed.
- Carrying for 40% idle storage capacity.
- No cost relief when workloads were retired.
- Slow reaction time to new business opportunities.
Unlocking Operational Efficiencies with IBM Cloud Resource Agility
IBM Power Virtual Servers on IBM Cloud
The turning point came when Cover-All migrated our new client from dedicated hardware housed in a third-party data centre to IBM Power Virtual Server (PowerVS) in the Cloud, supported by Cover-All’s IBMi and AIX Managed Services.
With Power VS, the client now runs the same IBM Power System architecture they used to on-prem, but with all the elasticity and cost efficiency of the Cloud. IBM Power VS delivers the same enterprise-grade security features as dedicated IBM Power Systems on-premises, including logical partition isolation, encrypted data at rest and in transit, and robust role-based access controls. By running on IBM Cloud’s hardened infrastructure, backed by continuous monitoring, compliance certifications, and geographically diverse disaster recovery, organizations often achieve equal or greater security than on-prem environments.
With IBM Cloud, they now pay only for what they need and can scale resources up or down within two to three days. Seasonal workloads can be expanded during peak periods and powered down when no longer required—immediately reducing costs. When a new workload is introduced, capacity can be added without a significant capital investment. And when an old workload was retired, costs disappeared along with it.
On-Demand Scaling: The company can now scale compute and storage up or down in two to three days, responding quickly to business changes.
Pay for what you use: No more paying for decommissioned workloads or idle capacity.
Seasonal flexibility: Resources are increased during peak seasons and reduced during slower periods.
Geographically diverse disaster recovery: Build into IBM Cloud, providing enterprise-grade resilience.
Workload Portability: The same technology stacks exist on-prem and in the Cloud, ensuring smooth migration and hybrid flexibility.
Cover-All provided our client with end-to-end IBMi and AIX Managed Services on IBM Cloud, helping to optimize workloads, reduce IT costs, and gain the agility needed to compete in today’s fast-moving business environment.
By partnering with Cover-All and leveraging IBM Cloud’s scalability, the organization replaced costly idle capacity with a dynamic, responsive IT model—turning infrastructure into a strategic advantage.
To discover how Cover-All Managed Cloud and IT Services can help you achieve positive business outcomes, call 1-833-268-3788, or visit https://www.coverallmcits.ca/cloud-services/ to learn more.