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ITA Spotlight of the Month, Spring 2024

Posted on 06/05/2024
computer laptop
So much of what we do runs on critical IT infrastructure. For this reason, the Spring 2024 ITA Spotlight shines on one of our infrastructure teams, the Enterprise Systems and Operations Services Division (ITA-ESOSD). The team is responsible for managing and maintaining the Hybrid (private and public) infrastructures encompassing the on-premise ITA Data Center, Storage, Servers, VMware and the Cloud environments (AWS, GCP, and Azure). These crucial infrastructures serve as the backbone used for City operations. 
 
The ITA-ESOSD team provides support City-wide, usually works behind the scenes, and ensures the smooth operation of diverse platforms. They handle tasks like configuring, securing, maintaining and troubleshooting systems issues. The group supports major platforms such as MyLA311 (DMZ), PAYSR, LATAX, Remote Access, Active Directory, City websites, Managed File Transfer (MFT), Control-M, Vehicle Management System (VMS), Netbackup, Web Load Balancer (Netscaler), Patch Management, Github, Terraform, Mainframe, Public Safety systems and more. Additionally, they manage the procurement, deployment, and life cycle of hardware and software assets. 
 
Though their presence may go unnoticed, the impact of their absence, especially during system failures, would be significant. In instances where the Citywide Helpdesk can't identify the correct support group for an incident ticket, the ticket is typically routed to the ESOSD group for resolution. 
 
A key challenge we face is supporting both the on-premise and cloud infrastructure with reduced staffing due to budget cuts caused by ERIP and hiring freezes, effectively increasing the workload and responsibilities. Despite the added tasks, the team is willing to take on these challenges.
 

Following are some of the recent achievements of the team:

  1. Assisted in migrating the Financial Management System File Attachments from legacy Documentum system to AWS.
  2. Completed the upgrade of 250+ end-of-life Windows Servers from v2012 to 2016/2019, including CDSAD and EOCAD Active Directory Systems.
  3. Assisted in upgrading the ITA-Citywide Helpdesk Amazon Connect Cloud Call Center platform, enhancing security and voicemail features.
  4. Migrated and upgraded the end-of-life PaySR Oracle database hardware with new IBM P10 machines on-premise with the latest version of AIX OS. This initiative is in alignment with the City's strategic goals as it anticipates the completion and full deployment of the HRP Workday project.
  5. Deployed the Spanish hardware encoders on-premise for the PrimeGov Legislative Management System used by the City Clerk for the Council and Committee public meetings.
  6. Migrated the on-premise DMZ and intranet websites from the old Citrix Netscaler load balancer to the new Cisco ACI/Netscaler environment. The new environment provides better cybersecurity and network performance.
  7. Launched the City's Microsoft GitHub Enterprise, streamlining software code releases for IT developers and enhancing the DevSecOps process.
  8. Manage lifecycle of over 500 Citywide SSL Certificates.

As the City fully embraces and continues to transition to cloud platforms, the team has been actively collaborating with the ITA Information Security team in reviewing, and applying security best practices to the City’s public Cloud environments spanning various departments. Simultaneously, the team works diligently to keep the on-premise Data Center up-to-date, ensuring a comprehensive and efficient IT infrastructure.


The ESOSD team members (in alphabetical order) are as follows:
1. Arthur Sales, Division Manager
2. Benjamin Hua
3. Brent Blain
4. Brent Hamada
5. Brian Lu
6. Dina Najeeb
7. Emily Wu
8. Herbert Khare
9. Howard Wolf
10. James Huynh
11. Jaylen Wimbish
12. Jonathan Kim
13. Ken Chow
14. Kevin Cheng
15. Kien Trieu
16. Mike Madayag
17. Rick Tang
18. Robert Lin
19. Robert Villareal
20. Sudhir Dashpute
21. Syed Towhid
22. Timothy Lopez
23. Tony Le
24. Tony Tai