Virtualizing the data center for a leading Charleston law firm: Young Clement Rivers
Young Clement Rivers, a leading Charleston law firm, was straining to manage an all-physical server environment. Katalyst migrated it to a VMware virtualized cluster and handed back clean, scalable control.
About Young Clement Rivers
Young Clement Rivers (YCR) is a law firm headquartered in downtown Charleston, South Carolina, recognized locally, nationally, and internationally as a leading force in complex litigation and transactional work. YCR's seasoned attorneys practice across nineteen legal areas, representing clients in nearly every aspect of civil law from Admiralty to Workers' Compensation.
The Challenge
YCR had enjoyed years of operational success with its expanding local data center, but managing and implementing new servers in an all-physical environment was straining the organization. Upper-level management noticed declining operational efficiency across the board, and YCR needed an effective way to fully manage the local data center stack while keeping control over server and application growth.
"They got what we needed without trying to oversell us. They spent a lot of time on site understanding the dynamics of our firm and our users' needs, and designed the perfect solution to help us achieve our goals."
Young Clement RiversThe Solution
YCR partnered with Katalyst to migrate all physical servers to a new VMware virtualized cluster. At YCR's request, the design used Dell hardware for both storage and compute, with Dell ESXi hosts, a Dell EqualLogic iSCSI SAN, and a Dell Force10 iSCSI switch stack, all under the control and oversight of VMware vCenter. The solution also included new Citrix application and Microsoft Exchange clusters to handle increased user demand. In-progress project and subject-matter training guided a smooth transition to YCR staff oversight and management of the new local data center.
The Results
Virtualization replaced a hard-to-manage all-physical stack with a flexible, vCenter-managed cluster that YCR's own team could confidently oversee. The firm gained easier server and application management, headroom to grow, and the redundancy and control that a modern environment provides, without losing ownership of its data center.
Key Takeaways
- No overselling. A solution scoped to what the firm actually needed.
- Physical to virtual. The full server environment moved onto a managed VMware cluster.
- Preferred hardware honored. A Dell-based design built around YCR's standards.
- Confident handoff. Training and guidance so in-house staff could take the reins.
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