Project Meccano

1
Project Meccano

• ICT Services Resource Accounting and
• Usercode Management System

2
Meccano Identity Management System

• Current system performs both Resource Accounting
  and User Provisioning
• IDMS is more than just User Provisioning
• Current Requirements at UC for IDMS
• Central Library external database providers
• BlueFern Supercomputing Services providing
  access to HPC via BeSTGRID
• HR data quality in downstream systems
• Student Admin. Access control to student
  records
• Web team Web Portal, Content Management
  Contacts
• ICT Services user provisioning, access control,
  security audit
• FM Building Management Systems, keys,
  security..
• Meccano focused on ICT resource accounting
• Tight linkage between Meccano and IDMS but
  logically diverse

3
Whats happened so far with IDMS

• Undertaken a survey of most universities in NZ
• All have in-house systems
• Most regret developing it in-house
• Several are moving to implement a brand-name
  IDMS
• Undertaken a survey of similar sized universities
  in Australia
• Some have in-house systems
• Some have hybrid of commercial/open source and
  in-hose components
• They have powerful incentives to move to common
  standards (MAMS)
• Review of offerings by major players
• Presentations from SUN, Novell, IBM, Oracle
  Microsoft (via TechEd)
• In progress of speaking to reference sites
• Obtained ball-park cost estimates

4
Open ource vs ommercial

• Open Source does not mean free or even cheap
• Implementation costs are the same or higher
• Can download the source and get it running for
  free
• Or, pay maintenance fee and get it packaged
  with support
• Commercial offerings can be largely Open Source
• Most major vendors are moving to or have made
  parts of their IDMS Open Source (e.g. IBM,
  Novell)
• Often they have a low license fee on the latest
  version
• Maintenance fees is where everyone makes their
  money
• Open Standards are much more important
• The freedom to buy best bits from several
  vendors, include open source components and write
  others in-hose but all should work together
  seamlessly
• Need to inter-operate with other agencies (we are
  not alone)

5
Some Rough Cost Comparisons
6
IDMS Timeline
7
Implementation Challenges

• Deployment Options
• Big Bang?
• Staff first?
• Students first?
• Clean-up of external users others
• Impact on whole University
• Need Ian Town to be the sponsor
• ICT Services Director wants strong governance