Overcoming the Challenges of Data Center Fabric Adoption

The data landscape is becoming more complex. Companies are often struggling to manage their data effectively and efficiently. Some organizations are turning to solutions like data mesh, but this isn’t allowing businesses to realize their full operating potential. 

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Data silos are another popular solution but this strategy also inhibits data sharing and collaboration. A better option is data fabric adoption. However, overcoming the challenges of adopting data center fabric can leave you wondering if it’s the right solution. We’re looking at the advantages of data center fabric adoption and how your business can tackle any challenges that may pop up.

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What Is a Data Center Fabric?

Before you can adopt data center fabric it helps to know what it is. If you’re familiar with data mesh, you’re off to a good start. Both solutions focus on improving data management but this is where the similarities end.

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While data mesh takes a decentralized approach, data fabric is centralized—this type of approach streamlines data control and access. 

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A decentralized system can be complex. Since data fabric is centralized it works to support and integrate all of your information sources. This makes it easier to locate specific pieces of data, streamlining the work process.

Potential Benefits of Data Center Fabric Adoption

Making changes to your data center’s infrastructure isn’t something businesses take lightly. After all, even the slightest change can significantly impact data flow, and the last thing you want is to make it harder to access data. This can affect almost every aspect of your daily operations. For example, you may not receive metrics from last year’s sales in time to plan for the current season.

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Deciding to adopt a data fabric approach does require adding some infrastructure but it also produces a ton of advantages. Here’s a look at some of the benefits.

Improved Data Clarity

Since data fabric is a centralized approach, employees across all departments can access and analyze the same information. This significantly improves workplace efficiency while also ensuring everyone is drawing the same conclusions.

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Instead of each department only having access to specific data or having to wait for another team to share the information, everyone is working seamlessly together to accurately complete the project.

Boost Security

When data is centralized, it’s easier for your IT team to manage and ensure you’re meeting all industry compliance regulations. Failing to stay in compliance with data governance standards can result in hefty fines and other penalties. Just imagine having to tell your customers their data was breached in a cyberattack. Regaining their lost trust can take years, and your business may never get everyone back.

Flexible Decision-Making

With a data fabric, you have almost instant access to your business information. You can quickly make decisions or changes as the data comes in, which can give you an edge over your competitors. You can more easily adjust to changing situations while your competitors may be struggling to keep up.

Addressing the Challenges of Data Center Fabric

Pretty much any time you make changes, even minor ones, to your data center’s infrastructure you’re probably going to run into at least one challenge. This can be as simple as realizing you don’t have enough electrical outlets so your power supply can’t support the additional equipment. 

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Thankfully, these aren’t the type of challenges you’ll run into with data fabric adoption, and this also doesn’t mean there aren’t a few potential obstacles to overcome.

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Some of your teams may not be thrilled about sharing information with other departments. Even your employees can feel a little protective over the data they use daily. If you’re using a data silo, this can complicate the adoption process. 

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Remember, data silos are decentralized, so you may need to move the stored data to a centralized location before implementing a fabric approach. This can be time-consuming and potentially costly, but you’ll also see an ROI (return on investment). Once your data is easily manageable and accessible, you typically see a boost in employee efficiency and productivity.

How to Adopt a Data Fabric Approach

If you’ve decided that a data fabric approach is the right move for your business, it’s time to start implementing the solution. You have a few options to choose from, each working best in specific scenarios.

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Spine leaf architecture uses switches to connect to your servers and storage devices. This approach is easily managed, scalable, and a good option for businesses that routinely review large amounts of data.

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Traditional three-tier architectures work best in older networks while modern fabric architectures improve data management and help to reduce issues with bottlenecks.

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If your data is in a hybrid or multi-cloud environment, there’s a data fabric approach designed for virtual environments. Once you decide on the right approach, it’s time to start implementing the process. This will require assistance from your IT department and possibly a third-party service provider. You can also go with a data fabric platform that takes care of the adoption process.

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Train Your Employees

Okay, you decided on the type of approach and the adoption process is complete. Now, it’s time to train your employees on the new process—this may take some time, especially if the various departments aren’t used to sharing data and collaborating on tasks. Discuss the benefits of a data fabric with your team, pointing out how the approach can help simplify their tasks.

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Don’t be surprised if it takes some time, but eventually, everyone should get on board. Sometimes, employees only need to experience the benefits before they fully support a data fabric adoption.

Establish Data Center Governance

Yes, a data fabric can help improve security but your team can still open up vulnerabilities hackers can exploit. 

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Simply because teams can more easily share data doesn’t mean you still don’t need to set best practices. Go over these practices with your staff and ensure everyone understands the importance of governance.

Data Center Fabric Adoption Doesn’t Need To Be Difficult

With some planning and the right approach, adopting data center fabric can be a smooth process rather than an overwhelming challenge. Make sure to keep your staff informed throughout the transition to ensure everyone is on the same page. 

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It’s also important to update your data center governance standards to align with the new infrastructure, ensuring that operations run efficiently and securely after the implementation.