Migrate and modernize IBM Maximo with AWS and Red Hat

This post was co-authored by Eric Libow, CTO, Asset Management Solutions, Sustainability Software, IBM, Balaji Santhanakrishnan Global Technical Sales Leader, Sustainability Software, IBM, Tommy Hamilton, App Platform Sales Specialist, Red Hat and Andy Grimes, Emerging Sales Specialist, Red Hat 

Introduction

IBM Maximo has been a leading enterprise asset management solution in the industry for four decades. They help customers streamline work processes with a centralized platform for managing tasks, inventory, regulatory compliance, and reporting capabilities. IBM Maximo Application Suite (MAS) is the next generation of IBM Maximo that provides better integration, AI analytics, cloud deployment options, and a better user experience (UX). IBM MAS provides organizations with a robust and modern asset management solution.

IBM MAS is an integrated application suite built on Red Hat OpenShift, offering portability with support for hybrid and on-premises deployments. It is an enterprise cloud-based asset management platform, taking advantage of AI, IoT, and analytics to help optimize equipment performance, extend asset lifecycles, and reduce operational downtime and costs. With IBM MAS, users can conveniently access key monitoring, maintenance, and reliability applications from a single, integrated platform, enabling seamless management across the business.

The next-generation IBM MAS streamlines installation and administration while enhancing user experience with shared data, workflow, UX, and flexible application usage. With expanded access to computerized maintenance management system (CMMS), enterprise asset management (EAM) capabilities, and asset performance management applications, you and your team will be on the path to obtaining greater operational visibility of your assets through their lifecycle with faster ROI, increased productivity, and operational uptime.

IBM Maximo customers will be required to move to IBM MAS when Maximo 7.x reaches end of life (EOL). IBM MAS has been containerized to run specifically on Red Hat OpenShift. To ease this transition for customers unfamiliar with running containers in production, Amazon Web Services (AWS) has partnered with IBM and Red Hat to develop an IBM MAS on Red Hat OpenShift Service for AWS (ROSA) reference architecture.

In this blog post, we walk through the recommended options for running IBM MAS on AWS, dive deep into the architecture, and describe how the IBM, Red Hat, and AWS components come together to provide a solid foundation for running IBM MAS. We also explore the architectural decisions to consider so you can choose the solution that best fits your organization’s preferences and needs.

Why ROSA for Maximo in AWS?

Red Hat OpenShift Service on AWS (ROSA) is a fully managed, turnkey application platform that allows you to focus on deploying applications and accelerate innovation by off-loading the cluster lifecycle management to Red Hat and AWS. ROSA is jointly developed and jointly supported by AWS and Red Hat. It is native in the AWS console and integrates with other commonly used AWS services.

ROSA provides a managed Red Hat OpenShift cluster and is a supported configuration for IBM MAS. This means that customers don’t have to create, manage, and maintain their own Red Hat OpenShift clusters for IBM MAS. Using ROSA allows customers to focus their resources on delivering business value rather than spending valuable time on the undifferentiated management of the underlying platform.

Prerequisites

MAS runs on Red Hat OpenShift. In order to configure MAS, you must have a Red Hat OpenShift cluster configured and running. For more information on prerequisites for your MAS installation, please refer to the IBM MAS documentation.

In this post, we cover three ways to run IBM MAS on AWS:

1) MAS SaaS on AWS (powered by ROSA)

2) MAS dedicated on AWS (powered by ROSA)

3) MAS on customer hosted (ROSA)

IBM MAS SaaS on AWS (powered by ROSA)

IBM Maximo Application Suite as a Service (IBM MAS SaaS) on AWS offers a solution for organizations seeking to use IBM MAS on AWS through the convenience of a SaaS model managed by IBM. This option eliminates the need for managing hardware and infrastructure independently, providing access to the software and its functionalities via browser-based solutions.

The are several advantages of IBM MAS SaaS on AWS. It’s a fully managed and scalable option, enabling resource adjustments to meet varying demand levels. The default high availability and fault-tolerance guardrails ensure a reliable and stable environment. With IBM MAS SaaS on AWS, customers can benefit from the latest features through a predefined update schedule.

There are some things to consider with a SaaS option. A shared platform can reduce your ability to customize the environment. In addition, integrations can be limited when compared to the other dedicated options for running IBM MAS at AWS discussed in this post.

Overall, MAS SaaS on AWS presents an attractive option for organizations looking to streamline their Maximo Application Suite experience with the added convenience of cloud-based deployment. The following image shows the high-level architecture for MAS SaaS.

IBM MAS Dedicated on AWS (powered by ROSA)

The MAS Dedicated on AWS option presents a compelling solution for organizations seeking a tailored Maximo Application Suite experience within AWS. With this option, MAS is hosted on dedicated infrastructure exclusively reserved for a single organization, ensuring optimum performance and security managed by IBM. This offers the customer increased control over the infrastructure, updates, and upgrade schedule within IBM’s supported version policy. The dedicated infrastructure provides better isolation and enhanced data privacy and protection.

There are considerations to be aware of when choosing this option. While it provides control, customizations are limited when compared to the customer owned option. Opting for the IBM MAS Dedicated on AWS option includes additional infrastructure costs compared to the IBM MAS SaaS offerings.

Overall, the IBM MAS Dedicated AWS option offers a robust and secure solution for organizations seeking an exclusive and highly controlled IBM MAS environment within AWS. The following image shows the high-level reference architecture for MAS Dedicated.

IBM MAS on customer hosted ROSA

The customer hosted ROSA option offers a powerful solution for hosting IBM MAS in a customer’s VPC with ROSA. As a container application platform, ROSA enables seamless deployment, scaling, and management of containerized applications, making it an ideal choice for a MAS deployment.

The advantages of this option are significant. Organizations have full control over the infrastructure, still subject to the organization’s monitoring, controls, and governance policies, allowing greater customization and flexibility to tailor the environment precisely to their needs. This control extends to implementing additional MAS integrations, such as SAP, and the ability to enforce existing cloud security and governance policies. Also, ROSA charges are consolidated into the unified AWS bill and, they draw down on any AWS Enterprise Agreement, streamlining financial management.

Customers who have an AWS Enterprise Agreement or a Compute Savings Plan can take advantage of savings for the underlying infrastructure supporting the MAS implementation. Likewise, because the ROSA cluster runs in the customer’s AWS account, they have the option of purchasing upfront ROSA contracts and receiving either about 33 percent off (1-year) or about 65 percent off (3-year) the ROSA service fee.

This option allows customers to observe and control their MAS platform while off-loading the underlying OpenShift cluster lifecycle management to Red Hat cite reliability engineers (SREs).

There are some things to consider with the customer hosted option. This option entails separate purchases of ROSA and IBM MAS, adding to the financial costs. Additionally, while Red Hat SREs are managing the ROSA cluster, there is still operational overhead for configuration and management of the IBM MAS application on ROSA.

Overall, the customer owned ROSA option empowers organizations with full control and customization, making it a compelling choice for hosting IBM MAS on AWS with Red Hat OpenShift. The following image shows the high-level architecture for cutomer owned ROSA.

Conclusion

Each IBM MAS deployment option, MAS SaaS on AWS, MAS Dedicated AWS, and IBM MAS on customer hosted ROSA, presents distinct advantages and limitations. Customers should review these factors to align their deployment with specific business needs and requirements.

IBM MAS SaaS on AWS offers convenience and managed scalability, while IBM MAS Dedicated AWS provides enhanced control and isolation, while customer hosted ROSA grants full customization, flexibility within the customer’s VPC, and the ability to take advantage of existing AWS Enterprise Agreements.

Customers should assess their infrastructure, customization, and cost considerations to make an informed decision that ensures a successful and efficient IBM MAS deployment. By understanding the strengths and limitations of each option, customers can choose the deployment option that meets their business objectives.

To learn more about running IBM MAS on AWS, reach out to your IBM, Red Hat, or AWS account team for help in selecting the right option for you.