In the November 27, 2012 Peer Incite Research Meeting, Dag Liodden, Co-Founder and Chief Technology Officer at Tapad, discussed how dynamically-updated, real-time analytic applications are tightly integrated into this ad-tech company’s ad-bidding service.
Tapad’s infrastructure is far removed from the batch-process analytic applications of the past. At companies like Tapad, analytic applications are migrating from off-line batch processes to real-time decision-support systems that are integrated with transaction systems. These systems are not only providing analysis based upon historical data, but increasingly are dynamically updated with the latest transaction data. This tight linkage between transaction systems and analytic applications is driving new requirements for additional infrastructure elements, such as Tapad's use of the Aerospike NoSQL solution and solid state disk, that enable the company to meet the latency, scaling, and performance requirements of real-time analytics for ad serving. This shift impacts more than infrastructure requirements, however.
Dynamically-updated, real-time analytics applications that are integrated with transaction systems require that organizations treat analytics applications more like transaction systems in terms of service levels, business continuity, and disaster recovery. IT professionals responsible for supporting real-time analytic application tied to a 24x7 transaction systems should design for:
- Non-disruptive software and hardware upgrades,
- Non-disruptive maintenance,
- High-availability and automated failover,
- Rapid recovery,
- Limited data loss.
Organizationally this means that owners of analytic applications will need to engage more formally with security, business continuity, disaster recovery, and compliance teams.
Action Item: As analytic applications move from standalone applications to real-time analytics, analytic application owners should prepare for the additional requirements and constraints that come with on-line production applications. The security, business continuity, disaster recovery, and compliance professionals supporting transaction applications are best equipped to assist in meeting these new requirements for analytic applications.
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