Internosis and Quest Software Enable U.S. Forces Korea's Migration from Microsoft Windows NT

Business Wire, Nov 1, 2004

ARLINGTON, Va. & IRVINE, Calif. -- U.S. Forces Korea is First Warfighting Unit to Migrate to Active Directory and Exchange 2003

Internosis, a privately held IT services firm and Quest Software Inc. (Nasdaq:QSFT), a leading provider of application, database and Windows management solutions, today announced U.S. Forces Korea (USFK) has successfully completed the migration of its Microsoft Windows NT servers to Microsoft Active Directory and its migration from Exchange 5.5 to Exchange 2003. U.S. Army Project Manager, Defense Communications and Army Switched Systems/Enterprise Business Integration Center (PM DCASS/EBIC) selected Internosis as the prime contractor and Internosis selected Quest Software as subcontractor for the project.

In February, PM DCASS/EBIC issued a mandate to phase out all use of Microsoft Windows NT operating systems by Dec. 31, 2004. The purpose of the directive is to transform the Army into a network-centric organization with agile capabilities and adaptive IT processes at every camp, post and station worldwide.

For the Korea effort, PM DCASS/EBIC, with the help of Internosis and Quest, planned and executed the USFK Active Directory forest implementation and user migration to Windows Server 2003 and Exchange 2003, along with associated server consolidation and implementation of a single e-mail service to support all USFK sites. A secondary objective was to establish an interim data recovery capability that provides backup and can restore user data. All objectives were met, and the migration of more than 23,000 user accounts and nearly that many mailboxes was completed in 12 weeks.

The team leveraged Internosis' IT Infrastructure and Application Development services and Quest's Migration Services to integrate mission-critical Microsoft applications and build a reliable, scalable infrastructure for USFK. Internosis also employed its Business Advantage Framework to ensure consistent, predictable outcomes while making the transition.

Quest Reporter and Quest ActiveRoles software products will be used for ongoing operations management at USFK. Quest Reporter was used to assess the existing Microsoft Windows NT domains prior to migration to Active Directory and will be used for ongoing operational reporting on Active Directory. Quest ActiveRoles is being used for security lockdown of Active Directory through role-based delegation, Group Policy management and business rules. The migration team also used Quest MessageStats and Spotlight on Exchange for reporting on the Exchange environment as part of the Exchange migration.

"This project was an outstanding success. We successfully migrated more than 23,000 user accounts, mailboxes and more than 18,000 workstations for less than one million dollars and in less than four months," said Major Earl Robinson of PM DCASS/EBIC. "We were also quickly able to establish best practices that will serve as a go-to model for the rest of the Army as it looks to migrate."

To date, the team has established the USFK Active Directory forest; an Exchange system and performed user migrations (including account, mailbox, and workstation) to the new environment according to the architectural and design specifications. Ongoing work includes post-implementation support and guidance on best practices for sustaining the systems to the Army's Directors of Information Management (DOIMs).

"The PM DCASS/EBIC team delivered expertise on Microsoft technologies and solutions that will impact the Army Enterprise, USFK locations, security implications and emerging technologies," said Col. Ronald M. Bouchard, executive officer to the commander, USFK. "The rapid migration enabled USFK to not only meet the migration directive in advance of the deadline, but become the first war fighter division to comply."

Col. LaWarren V. Patterson, commander, 1st Signal Brigade, USFK added, "As I assume my new post at USFK, it is a pleasure to see the positive results that this team of industry and Army organizations have generated on such a complex task."

About U.S. Army Project Manager, Defense Communications and Army Switched Systems/Enterprise Business Integration Center (PM DCASS/EBIC)

The U.S. Army Project Manager, Defense Communications and Army Switched Systems/Enterprise Business Integration Center (PM DCASS/EBIC) mission is to provide the Army Information Technology (IT) community the point of entry to the system engineering, procurement, planning and implementation of Army Knowledge Management (AKM) Goal 3 and the Army Enterprise Infrastructure (AEI) initiatives in support of the Army's Chief Information Officer (CIO) vision.

About U.S. Forces Korea

U.S. Forces Korea supports the United Nations Command (UNC) and Republic of Korea - United States Combined Forces Command (ROK-U.S. CFC). It coordinates planning among U.S. component commands in Korea and exercises operational control (OPCON) of assigned U.S. forces as directed by United States Commander in Chief, Pacific (USCINCPAC). U.S. Forces Korea coordinates U.S. military assistance to the Republic of Korea (ROK) and functions as U.S. Defense Representative in Korea. It oversees U.S. governmental administrative coordination as provided for in USCINCPAC Instruction 5400.20E.