Concordia International School Shanghai considers IT technology to be an integral part of the school’s learning environment. The school has always strived for excellence and aims to produce outstanding students. To achieve this goal, the school has been investing heavily in its teaching facilities.
While undertaking the construction of the 12,000 square meter Phase IV building, the school decided to devote a sizeable investment to a complete overhaul of its IT infrastructure. The school intends to gradually switch from the existing PC operating platform to the Apple platform, hoping that such a high level of investment is something that will benefit the students for a considerable period of time to come. Therefore, the school prioritized the transformation of its network and computer infrastructure.
Solutions
In May 2007, Concordia International School Shanghai selected SolutionKeys as the total IT solution provider to deliver the most advanced and comprehensive IT solution. The comprehensive solution includes: design, installation and configuration of a Cisco 10 Gigabit fiber optic backbone; a dual core server environment; an enterprise standard 802.11n wireless network with a central controller to manage the entire campus; upgrading the school’s existing simple Windows server architecture to a server environment deployed with Microsoft Hyper-V virtualization technology; deploying 1:1 Apple laptop program; create an Apple Authorized Service Center on campus; and provide outsourcing services for the entire IT team of the school.
Deployment
During the school’s Phase IV construction, SolutionKeys held regular meetings with the contractor to coordinate the installation of fiber and network equipment. We upgraded the school’s existing Windows server environment to a Hyper-V enabled virtual environment in order to improve the performance, stability and utilization of the existing servers while keeping the physical environment intact.
Through a three-year transition period, the school gradually phased out its original PC desktops and replaced them with Apple’s iMac desktops. The relationship between the school and SolutionKeys has always been positive over time. We set up an on-campus Apple Authorized Service Center, which is in charge of PC and Apple server hardware maintenance and management, and SolutionKeys offer on-site technical support for the school’s PCs and Apple devices.
As of 2023, the two sides have been working together for 16 years. In the foreseeable future, both sides will continue to work together hand in hand!
