SQL Server Data Platform Modernisation for an Oil & Gas company

The client conducted their own internal Microsoft licensing audit before their annual 'true-up'. This indicated a licensing shortfall, requiring £500,000 of additional licensing purchases to remedy.

At this point, DSP suggested a data platform modernisation exercise to examine the current set-up and find ways the consolidate the footprint, rather than purchasing additional licenses.

We approached this project by starting with a 7-day discovery exercise utilising the MAP tool kit. This established the details required to make appropriate recommendations and alongside workshops with application owners, we determine how to group together the 50+ SQL server instances and databases to make the required license saving, based on service level and version compatibility. As a result of our investigations, DSP presented a design document and a conservative estimate in savings of £250,000 in licenses. The consolidation into AAG clusters also helped with maintenance moving forwards for patching and upgrades, as the SQL sprawl had been dramatically reduced.