Create an IT Infrastructure (ITIL)
Network, Storage and Computing Components
In this topic, you learn the basic steps of creating an IT Infrastructure (ITIL) on Dragon1.
The IT Infrastructure template is a framework for educating stakeholders, developing innovative IT environments or documenting current and future state IT Infrastructures.
The three primary components of any IT Infrastructure are addressed: Network, Storage and Computing.
This template of an IT Infrastructure is the perfect solution to help you understand and communicate about your computer networks much better. This is an unambiguous and structured way.
On the Dragon1 Platform, the IT Infrastructure is available as a template and accessible in the Viewer and the Visual Designer.
This is an example IT Infrastructure in the Viewer.
IT Infrastructure in a Nutshell
The term IT infrastructure is defined by the Dragon1 architecture method as a coherent set of hardware, software, networks, storage and computing facilities (including all of the information technology-related equipment) used to develop, test, deliver, monitor, control, or support IT services. Associated people, processes, and documentation are very relevant but are not considered to be part of IT Infrastructure.
Most IT Infrastructures are constructed with the following eight types of components:
- Network Switch - A device that physically connects devices with each other
- Router - A device that routes packets between devices, from IP to address to IP address
- Firewall - A security device at the end of a network
- Server - A network computer with a large set of resources. There are many standard types of servers: database server, application, server, directory, web server and file server
- Physical Plant - This is all the network cabling of your IT Infrastructure. Note: This is always a very weak link in terms of security
- People - Strictly speaking people are not part of the IT infrastructure, but they are vital in maintaining it
- Data Center (Server Room) - The location where the servers are placed, secured and protected
- Infrastructure Software - An IT environment cannot run without driver software, computer BIOS software, operating system software and directory service software
- Domains - An IT infrastructure normally is made less complex by dividing it up into functional groups. Common groups are: Develop, Test, Production, Archive, Storage, Business, Consumer and Cloud (these domains are visible on the Dragon1 IT Infrastructure Canvas
A cloud can be seen as a scalable IT infrastructure that can be accessed via the Internet.
How To View an IT Infrastructure
To view an IT Infrastructure:
- Go to the Viewer
- Click on the IT Infrastructure Canvas
- Now you see an interactive/clickable IT Infrastructure generated from a .dragon1 file
- NOTE I: If you are logged in, you need to select "show demos" in the Viewer, to see the ITIL template
- Click on a shape in the diagram to see the details of the item you clicked on at the left.
- NOTE II: As a user, you can choose to work with data in a repository or with data in a file.
Download and view the .dragon1 File
Dragon1 offers you to work file-based (JSON structured) and repository-based (in a SQL Server database management system).
The example above has the data in a .dragon1 file. A .dragon1 file is JSON structured on the inside.
To download and view this ITIL template file:
- Click on this link to download the it-infrastructure-canvas.dragon1 file containing the IT Infrastructure data.
- You can open and edit the file in any text editor, like Notepad
- To view your edits, go to the Viewer
- Click on the Upload button at the right top
- Select your file in the dialog
- Now you see your IT Infrastructure in the ITIL template
- NOTE: You need to be logged in to be able to save changes in a .dragon1 file or in the repository.
IT Infrastructure Shapes
Dragon1 supports modeling IT at a conceptual, logical and physical level. Below you see the most commonly used shapes:
| Object | Shape | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Domain / Architecture Area |  | An abstract object for grouping other objects. |
| Site |  | A physical location. |
| Organization Unit |  | A group, department, function, or other collection of people or organization units |
| Actor |  | A person, an individual. |
| Role |  | A set of responsibilities |
| Network |  | Any kind of connected computers. |
| Software Server |  | A commercial software environment |
| Hardware Server |  | A high availability resource machine |
| Firewall |  | A server protecting the network |
| Workstation |  | A client machine |
| Mobile Device |  | A handheld client |
| Network Node | | Can represent various kinds of network components |
| Deployment Instance |  | An instance of an object defined elsewhere |
| Infrastructure Link |  | A link between elements in a technology layer diagram |
How To Create an IT Infrastructure
You can create an ITIL diagram on the fly, directly in the Viewer, or in the Data Dashboard or in the Visual Designer.
An IT Infrastructure template in the Visual Designer
We will first describe the viewer-way.
To create an IT Infrastructure:
- Go to the Viewer
- Click on the Edit button (in the button bar below).
- Click on the Atlas icon (in the button bar above).
- Select the basic atlas template.
- Click on a page.
- Select the IT Infrastructure template.
- Click on the Clipart menu item (at the right top of the shapes toolbar).
- Now you can drag shapes onto the canvas (they will be instantiated as data in the repository or file.
- Click on a shape and on the left-hand side click on the name of the shape. Now you can edit the name.
- Press TAB to update the name in the visualization.
- Or click on the Properties icon in the top button bar to edit all the properties of the selected shape.
- To delete a shape: click on a shape in the diagram and click on the cross in the smart tools menu with the shape.
- You can drag any shape to the IT Infrastructure, like the clipart shapes, to make it more appealing for the Viewer.
- NOTE: You need to be logged in to be able to save changes in a .dragon1 file or in the repository.
Now you have created an IT Infrastructure in a .dragon1 file.
If you want to be guided by a chatbot in creating an IT Infrastructure, click on the Chatbot button.
Create an ITIL with the Data Dashboard and the Repository
To create an ITIL via the Data Dashboard and the Repository:
- Log in.
- Go to the Data Dashboard via the collaboration menu item.
- Follow the instructions to create an atlas
- Follow the instructions to create an atlas page. Link the atlas page to the atlas
- Follow the instructions to create a visualization and select the IT Infrastructure Template. Link the visualization to the atlas page
- Follow the instructions to add infrastructure items, like servers, firewalls, routers and devices in the repository.
- Follow the instructions to create a model by creating relationships between the infrastructure items.
- Link the model to the visualization
- Go to the Viewer
- Select the created atlas
- View your IT Infrastructure
How to manage your IT Infrastructure
Read the following use cases and best practices on how to manage with this diagram:
- Documenting IT infrastructure - report with diagrams what is [not] documented yet.
- IT Cost Reduction - visualize where and how you can save the budget (f.i. with deduplication or replacing legacy.
- Risk Mitigation - visualize where your risk is and how to reduce them.
- Standardization - visualize what is [not] standardized and the impact of standardization.
- Improving Security - visualize how secure your IT environment is and how to make it more secure.