IT Infrastructure

Course Description

An introduction to IT infrastructure issues for students majoring in Information Systems. It covers topics related to both computer and systems architecture and communication networks, with an overall focus on the services and capabilities that IT infrastructure solutions enable in an organizational context. It also prepares the students for organizational roles that require interaction with external vendors of IT infrastructure components and solutions. The course focuses strongly on Internet-based solutions, computer and network security, business continuity, and the role of infrastructure in regulatory compliance.

Learning Outcomes

• Describe the differences and similarities between the core elements of an IT infrastructure solution, such as clients, servers, network devices, wired and wireless network links, systems software, and specialized security devices.
• Explain through practical examples how protocols are used to enable communication between computing devices connected to each other.
• Classify the role and structure of the Internet as an IT infrastructure component and design simple infrastructure solutions based on the use of the Internet.
• Define the role of IT control and service management frameworks in managing a large-scale organizational IT infrastructure solution.
• List the opportunities that virtual computing service provision models, such as cloud computing, create for organizations.

Prerequisites

• CIS421