Reply to: 'Spurious Data'

[cojak]

Vey few talked about fault tolerance, time to recover and backup strategies. None talked about Change and Configuration management and very few talked about problem management which is the one function that adds immediate value if done properly.

None talked about software management...

AKA The Important But Boring Stuff.

And when I realised that Service Owners were only there to take the blame instead of Directors I retired and walked away without looking back.

And don’t talk to me about the inverse Customer Service of airlines and airports…

[willendure]

One of the words in the title of this post is "Spurious"
The documentation for a lot of ITT's can be light enough in some cases to be spurious!

True, but thats why you write tests. So that any data a system will accept cannot put it into an incorrect state, and any data that could gets rejected. Domain modelling 101 and property based or fuzz testing.

I just built a realtime application layer network protocol for some projects I am working on. In this day and age its even not hard to get AI to build some TLA+ models of all the protocol interactions to verify them. Which I did, even though its not a system that is going to cause damage if it fails.

Annoys me to see a mission critical system like this implemented in a tulip way. People should pay me to do stuff like this, I actually have a brain and software engineering talent, and this country is run by ******* managers that haven't got a clue about anything.

[courtg9000]

My point is that if it's not in the ITT it doesn't get offered in the proposed solution...

Also the outsourcer can't run a CMDB effectively rom outside the organisation, not can they operate code validation and testing services on behalf of the software teams. Especially f the client hasn't budgeted for such services.

But look at what some outsourcers staff can do with just an IP, a username and password allegedley!

[malvolio]

One of the words in the title of this post is "Spurious"
The documentation for a lot of ITT's can be light enough in some cases to be spurious!

My point is that if it's not in the ITT it doesn't get offered in the proposed solution...

Also the outsourcer can't run a CMDB effectively rom outside the organisation, not can they operate code validation and testing services on behalf of the software teams. Especially f the client hasn't budgeted for such services.

[courtg9000]

Having worked on responses to many Ministry outsourcing ITTs in the past, they all follow the same general pattern. Provide a datacentre that can move all our exiting core infrastructure into the cloud, provide a service desk function to operate it and support our non-technical staff, and provide a function to measure every conceivable operations variable from how many rings to pick up the phone (no mention on online self-support services of course) to specific percentage availabilities per service (often different for each one) and here are a list of financial penalties if you don't meet them.

Vey few talked about fault tolerance, time to recover and backup strategies. None talked about Change and Configuration management and very few talked about problem management which is the one function that adds immediate value if done properly.

None talked about software management...

One of the words in the title of this post is "Spurious"
The documentation for a lot of ITT's can be light enough in some cases to be spurious!

[malvolio]

Im not sure exactly what is outsourced. I just know from a quick google that CGI and BT have the contracts. BT for me is very scary, Crapita even worse. TCS however could give me sleepless nights.

Having worked on responses to many Ministry outsourcing ITTs in the past, they all follow the same general pattern. Provide a datacentre that can move all our exiting core infrastructure into the cloud, provide a service desk function to operate it and support our non-technical staff, and provide a function to measure every conceivable operations variable from how many rings to pick up the phone (no mention on online self-support services of course) to specific percentage availabilities per service (often different for each one) and here are a list of financial penalties if you don't meet them.

Vey few talked about fault tolerance, time to recover and backup strategies. None talked about Change and Configuration management and very few talked about problem management which is the one function that adds immediate value if done properly.

None talked about software management...

[courtg9000]

What would anyone be comfortable outsourcing on a system like this?

For a control system I'd want to keep control of design, test and operations, maybe outsource some coding ... OTOH, outsourcing the billing system would probably be okay.

Im not sure exactly what is outsourced. I just know from a quick google that CGI and BT have the contracts. BT for me is very scary, Crapita even worse. TCS however could give me sleepless nights.

[Protagoras]

CGI and BT have the IT contracts apparently. I dont know CGI but I have had experience of BT's IT outsourcing - painful is the word I would use! Only outfit I think I have seen that are worse than Crapita!

What would anyone be comfortable outsourcing on a system like this?

For a control system I'd want to keep control of design, test and operations, maybe outsource some coding ... OTOH, outsourcing the billing system would probably be okay.

[courtg9000]

Who the feck is taking care of their Service Management? (No one competent apparently.)

CGI and BT have the IT contracts apparently. I dont know CGI but I have had experience of BT's IT outsourcing - painful is the word I would use! Only outfit I think I have seen that are worse than Crapita!

[willendure]

They obviously never heard of "parse don't validate". Reject malformed data at the system boundary. FFS.

[cojak]

Who the feck is taking care of their Service Management? (No one competent apparently.)

[Protagoras]

Oops, broken again!

Weekend upgrades anyone?

The absence of passenger compensation/ insurance payouts is going to be a problem for many. If this keeps up more holiday bookings will be for package holidays.

[sadkingbilly]

does it run on an ICL <fujitsu> still?
might explain a lot.

[cojak]

It sounds like someone was just paying lip service to GRC there, and I don't mean the lowly pay grades either...

Is Agile still a thing because this cock-up sounds right up it's alley.

[ladymuck]

This sounds like the same problem that caused the previous meltdown.