Sadık ŞENOL
Sales Manager
ASP Otomasyon A.Ş.
In recent years, great technological advances have been made in the world. Industry 4.0 was the
industrial revolution. Now we have left the earth, turning our eyes to the clouds. This development has been so fast that some of us have caught up with new ones and continue to come out.
Transformation in the industry is happening fast. Many factories are developing new generation operation techniques to make the best use of their existing resources. The ranking amongs the units of factories has also changed. While the duties and responsibilities of IT departments were in a limited area in the past, they are now associated with all units in companies. So why did this happen?
• Because almost all of the internal business processes have somehow been associated with computer-based systems. Many equipment in the factory can now be operated by remote access. Different data from these devices are used together with detailed production data to make production more efficient.
With the increase of data processed in the industrial facilities, existing computer systems are now becoming inadequate. Hardware failures cause unexpected downtimes. Replacing defective hardware with one-on-one becomes increasingly difficult, and when replacing with a new one, problems such as version incompatibility are encountered. Information Technologies started to move data to the cloud and to virtualize physical computers to overcome this bottleneck.
Although virtualization is not a very new concept for many of us, it has gained importance with the rapid development of computer hardware technology.
What is the Virtualization?
Virtualization, which is the main subject of this article, is the name of the technology that divides a physical resource according to the demands of users in the system and makes it available to users. To put it simply, virtualization means carrying out the operation by creating virtual copies of the physical devices.
Virtualization can be done in four different ways:
• Network virtualization,
• Operating system virtualization,
• Virtualization of storage areas,
• Server virtualization
These virtualization methods can be used separately or all of them can be used in a single structure.
Network virtualization can be explained as operating the communication infrastructure used in the facility on the virtual system.
Operating system virtualization; it helps to move applications between machines, to maintain the operating system while running, to build strong system security.
Storage virtualization; it is used to combine different storage units so as to create common memory.
Virtualization of servers; it is the most used virtualization method. The main purpose here is to adjust the server resources to ensure the efficient operation of the system.
What Are the Benefits of Virtualization?
1. Cost
Virtual systems provide lower operating costs i.e.
• Maintenance and repair costs are minimized because there will be less computer hardware.
• Fewer physical machines consume less energy, resulting in less cooling requirements.
• In addition, the scarcity of physical devices provides more physical use in their environments.
2. Management and Implementation
Since the machines are controlled from a single center in virtualization,
• Making changes on the machines,
• Installing updates,
• Intervening in error situations are fast and easy.Without virtualization in large companies, work load, energy and time consuming of the IT teams will be much more. For this reason, by doing so especially large firms can
• shorten working hours,
• increase the efficiency of the IT team.
3. Security
Since users are connected to the virtual platform from a point in virtualized systems, they are more protected against intrusions and virus threats to the system. In addition, since data distribution and data transfer are managed from a center, the system continues to operate more isolated against external threats .
4. Efficiency
Since virtual systems have strong redundant structures, they continue to operate without data loss, in case of failure. In case of any malfunction, since the system continues to run itself through its backup, the waiting time for the repair of malfunction on the system is eliminated. This means that the system works uninterruptedly and with high efficiency.
As mentioned above, it is possible to virtualize different layers. Here, the virtualization process should be applied by choosing according to the user’s needs. In fact, our first question to the user is what you need to virtualize. Because each virtualization has different features and returns.
The hardware structure required for virtualization is examined and the necessary configuration is made according to the virtualization type you request. Then, the system is commissioned by performing the function test of the operation.
How to virtualise an automation system?
Here, the automation system is based on large automation systems such as DCS. Virtualization of PLC – SCADA based systems is a relatively simple issue. In fact, several different systems can be combined.
If we take a closer look at the automation system topologies; It consists of the servers where system data is kept, of the controllers that transmit the data received from the servers to the devices in the field, of the operator stations that control the operation of the process and intervene when necessary.Today, many automation brands work in the architecture called server / client to manage access security centrally. This structure is the way that clients receive data from the servers and send data to the controllers through the server.
Ideal structure in automation system virtualization; consists of two redundant servers, a common storage and a NAS backup device. While the virtual machines in the system are kept in the common storage, both servers are configured to meet the hardware needs of these virtual machines. NAS device provides backup emergency system backup by regularly and at desired intervals.
Here, the entire virtual system is managed by Vmware vCenter application. You can create new virtual machines, change existing ones through this application. In addition, by virtualizing the network structure seen in the DCS system above, you can communicate these machines over the virtual network.
Why should you do the virtualization?
First of all, virtualization is not specific to certain systems or brands. Small or large businesses or facilities can virtualize their systems. Because the system virtualization process is a useful and a low cost structure for anyone working in the industry or office.
Virtualization is also a solution that extends the life of systems. If we express this more clearly; let’s assume that you are using the old version of Windows, and as the server or computer running this Windows starts to malfunctions, it results in the malfunctions in the system. Since the computer or server hardware is out of date, the repair process can take a long time, be costly, and even not be repaired. Naturally, you don’t want to face such problems. Hardware-related failures are difficult to predict. Physical systems highly dependent on hardware have many weak points for such and the other reasons.
The ideal solution to eliminate this addiction; is to utilise virtual running systems.
Although virtual systems work on a specific hardware, actually they are hardware independent structures. In case of any malfunction, you can run any virtual machine in the system on another hardware and never you can keep it running without stopping.
Shortly, by doing virtualization, you can have following benefits,
• Continuous operation of the system,
• Control of the whole system from a single center,
• Minimum exposure to hardware failures,
• Fast configuration and easy system expansion,
• Installation of large systems with lower costs, etc.