How to read a CiRBA Analysis

CiRBA’s power comes from the  intuitive way it allows you to visualize your environment and a path to server consolidation, virtualization or migration.  After the CiRBA solution has completed its rigorous analysis of your environment given the parameters and rules chosen, the software renders a map with color coded scores that illustrate the propensity for any server to be acted upon.  The colors in this map depict a score that is based on something as simple as OS type, or as sophisticated as a combination of  detailed configuration, business constraints such as geography or maintenance windows and workload personalities.

The left side of the map lists the servers being examined. Target servers are listed across the top. Algorithms sort the servers to clump those that are similar into groups.

Examples:

Configuration

A configuration comparison results in a diagonal 100 score (seen in dark green on the screen below) because every server is identical when compared to itself.  The other scores and colors depict differences in comparing the server in the row to the server in the column. Clicking on the cell will show the differences in configuration.

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Workload

A workload comparison illustrates the scoring of servers for moving the workload of a server onto another in the analysis set.  These are read row onto column. A high score indicates that given the CiRBA criteria for workload portability, the workload of the server in the row can move to the server in the column.  These maps tend to be asymmetrical due to the fact that smaller servers can often move to a more powerful one, but not the other way.

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Business Rules

A business rules comparison evaluates servers through non-technical rules such as change windows, service levels, geography or business service. A high score indicates that these servers are similar based on the selected criteria or rule.

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Combined Analysis

The mathematical combination of more than one type of analysis results in the overall compatibility of a group of servers.  Generally this map will look like the configuration analysis but it will be eroded by workload scores and business rules. The result is a visualization of the affinity of servers given all of the selected constraints.

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