<<Project Name>>

Operations Plan
Customer Name
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2002 Microsoft Corporation. All rights reserved.
The information contained in this document represents the current view of Microsoft Corporation on the issues
discussed as of the date of publication. Because Microsoft must respond to changing market conditions, it should not
be interpreted to be a commitment on the part of Microsoft, and Microsoft cannot guarantee the accurac of an
information presented after the date of publication.
This document is for informational purposes onl. MICROSOFT MAKES NO WARRANTIES E!PRESS OR
IMP"IE# IN T$IS #OC%MENT&
Microsoft and !isual Basic are either registered trademarks or trademarks of Microsoft in the "nited #tates and$or
other countries.
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Revision & Sign-off Sheet
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,tem 1etails
1ocument Title 8perations 0lan
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Table of Contents
$ummar"..........................................................................................................................
8b;ecti%es........................................................................................................................
8perations ,nfrastructure.................................................................................................
Reporting <odel..............................................................................................................
$"stem 9e%el Reporting.............................................................................................-
Application 9e%el Reporting......................................................................................-
$kill Re=uirements.........................................................................................................-
6hange <anagement 0rocess.........................................................................................-
Receipt of Re=uest for 6hange...................................................................................-
6hange Anal"sis and Re%iew.....................................................................................-
6hange 7otification and Release...............................................................................>
6hange Building# Testing# and ,mplementation <onitoring......................................>
6hange 8utcome 7otification....................................................................................>
0ost?,mplementation @%aluation................................................................................>
:rgent 6hange 0rocess...............................................................................................>
8perational Acti%ities <Product/Feature Solution 1>...................................................>
8ngoing 8perations....................................................................................................>
$"stems <anagement.................................................................................................*
Backup and Reco%er".................................................................................................*
<aintenance...............................................................................................................*
<onitoring the $"stem...............................................................................................*
$ecuring the $"stem...................................................................................................*
0erformance 0lanning................................................................................................*
6apacit" 0lanning.......................................................................................................4
0roblem <anagement.................................................................................................4
6onfiguration <anagement........................................................................................4
6onfiguration <anagement 0lanning.....................................................................4
6onfiguration ,dentification...................................................................................4
6onfiguration 6ontrol............................................................................................4
6onfiguration $tatus Accounting# 2erification# and Auditing................................A
$er%ice 9e%el <anagement........................................................................................A
Appendi ) <onitoring Guidance..................................................................................B
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%Intro'uction to t(e Template
#escription) The &perations 'lan describes how da(to(da operations will occur
when the solution is in place. )t provides guidance for the organi*ation to maintain the
solution successfull over an e+tended period of time. )t contains details on both
ongoing and contingenc operations and how to proactivel handle problems that
ma arise. ,e components of this plan include backup recover steps, managing
configuration changes, and the skills necessar to support the operations.
*usti+ication) B planning for operations earl in the pro-ect, the organi*ation can
take the time necessar to put operational success factors into place. These factors
ma include changes or additions to people resources, processes, and infrastructure.
.Team Role Primar,) Release Mana-ement is responsible for planning and
implementing the operations necessar to support the solution. /elease
Management derives the &perations 'lan from re0uirements documents and
functional specifications.
Team Role Secon'ar,) Pro-ram Mana-ement approves this plan and verifies that
it satisfies the pro-ect1s re0uirements. #e.elopment reviews the plan to understand
how their work will be deploed and modifies their development plan if necessar.
Test reviews the plan to ensure their test environments are set up to reflect the
operational environment in which the solution will be placed.23
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Summar,
%#escription) 'rovide an overall summar of the contents of this document.
*usti+ication) #ome pro-ect participants ma need to know onl the highlights of the
plan, and summari*ing creates that user view. )t also enables the full reader to know
the essence of the document before the e+amine the details.3
<<Begin tet here!!
O/jecti.es
%#escription) The &b-ectives section identifies the primar drivers that were used to
define the operations approach and the ke ob-ectives of that approach. )nput to this
section could be from the e+isting operational environment and the functional
specifications.
*usti+ication) )dentifing the drivers and operational ob-ectives signals to the
customer that Microsoft has carefull considered both the present operational
situation and what the future environment must be to support the solution
successfull and has created an appropriate operational approach.3
<<Begin tet here!!
Operations In+rastructure
%#escription) The &perations )nfrastructure section provides a comprehensive
description of the overall environment into which the solution will be deploed and
supported once deploment is complete.
*usti+ication) This information provides the conte+t for all operations planning and
establishes the necessar baseline infrastructure.3
<<Begin tet here!!
Reportin- Mo'el
%#escription) The /eporting Model section describes the solution1s overall reporting
model and an supporting tools that will be used. )t describes generall who will
receive reports, what information the will get and on what schedule, and what
source data will be used to generate the reports.
*usti+ication) This information assures &perations that the information necessar to
manage the solution successfull will be available.3
<<Begin tet here!!
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System Level Reporting
%#escription) The #stem 4evel /eporting section should include a description of
who will receive reports, what information the will get and on what schedule, and
what source data will be used to generate the reports.3
<<Begin tet here!!
Application Level Reporting
%#escription) The Application 4evel /eporting section should include a description of
who will receive reports, what information the will get and on what schedule, and
what source data will be used to generate the reports.3
<<Begin tet here!!
S0ill Re1uirements
%#escription) The #kill /e0uirements section identifies the -ob roles and associated
skill re0uirements necessar to operate the solution. This information could be placed
in a matri+ that identifies 56 tpes of operational functions, 26 the -ob roles that work
within each function, and 76 the skill re0uirements for each -ob role.
*usti+ication) 8efining skill re0uirements facilitates the assessment of the current
operational staff and identifies skill gaps that must be filled before the solution
becomes operational.3
<<Begin tet here!!
C(an-e Mana-ement Process
%#escription) The Change Management Model describes the change management
process that will be applied to the operational solution.
*usti+ication) The presence of this model ensures that standardi*ed methods and
techni0ues are used for efficient and prompt handling of all changes so that change(
related problems are prevented.3
Receipt of Request for Change
%#escription) The /eceipt of /e0uest for Change section describes how the change
re0uest will be tracked and recorded.3
<<Begin tet here!!
Change Analysis and Review
%#escription) The Change Analsis and /eview section describes who anal*es and
reviews change re0uests and how the are approved.3
<<Begin tet here!!
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Change otification and Release
%#escription) The Change 9otification and /elease section describes who will be
notified of changes and their release and how that notification occurs.3
<<Begin tet here!!
Change !uilding" Testing" and #mplementation $onitoring
%#escription) The Change Building, Testing, and )mplementation Monitoring section
describes how changes are incorporated into the development, test and
implementation processes.3
<<Begin tet here!!
Change %utcome otification
%#escription) The Change &utcome 9otification section describes how people are
notified of the outcome of changes.3
<<Begin tet here!!
&ost-#mplementation 'valuation
%#escription) The 'ost()mplementation :valuation section describes how change
implementations are reviewed and assessed for success and challenges.3
<<Begin tet here!!
(rgent Change &rocess
%#escription) The "rgent Change 'rocess section describes how urgent changes
are processed.3
<<Begin tet here!!
Operational Acti.ities <&roduct)*eature Solution +,
%#escription) The &perational Activities section describes the operational activities
;listed in the sub(sections below6 for :AC< subsstem within the solution. )nclude
within each sub(section each independent solution or technolog ;i.e. server product6
implemented within overall solution.
*usti+ication) 8escribing the detailed operational activities enables operations to
develop the tactical plans from which resources and procedures will be organi*ed
and implemented.3
%ngoing %perations
%#escription) The &ngoing &perations section describes the various ongoing
operational procedures performed. 4ist all procedures and describe each.3
<<Begin tet here!!
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Systems $anagement
%#escription) The #stems Management section describes the various sstems
management procedures performed. 4ist all procedures and describe each.3
<<Begin tet here!!
!ac-up and Recovery
%#escription) The Backup and /ecover section describes the entities that need to
be backed up. /efer to Backup and /ecover 'lan for detailed procedures.3
<<Begin tet here!!
$aintenance
%#escription) The Maintenance section describes the regular and scheduled
maintenance that will occur and the procedures for that maintenance.3
<<Begin tet here!!
$onitoring the System
%#escription) The Monitoring the #stem section describes what sstem
components will be monitored and how that will occur. =or more details, refer to the
Monitoring 'lan.3
<<Begin tet here!!
Securing the System
2#escription) The #ecuring the #stem section describes what aspects of the
sstem will need securit. /efer to the #ecurit 'lan for additional detail. There are a
number of different aspects to the securit of an installation. The can be categori*ed
as follows>
#ervice accounts
Controlling document submission
"sing certificates
)nternet 'rotocol #ecurit Monitor
Advanced configuration of channel properties
#ecuring document e+change between trading partners
'roviding access to Commerce #erver resources3
<<Begin tet here!!
&erformance &lanning
%#escription) The 'erformance 'lanning section identifies which of the solution1s
aspects re0uire the highest performance and determines the allocation of resources
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within the solution to ensure performance goals can be met. /efer to the
'erformance 'lan for additional detail.3
<<Begin tet here!!
Capacity &lanning
%#escription) The Capacit 'lanning section identifies the solution1s capacit
re0uirements and summari*es the allocation of sstems$resources ;e.g., storage
space, processor speed, network bandwidth6 that will meet those capacit
re0uirements. /efer to the Capacit 'lan for additional detail.3
<<Begin tet here!!
&roblem $anagement
%#escription) The 'roblem Management section provides an overview of the
resources that will be allocated to manage operational problems. /efer to the
#upport 'lan for detailed information on the entire problem management ccle.3
<<Begin tet here!!
Configuration $anagement
%#escription) The Configuration Management section defines the processes of
managing the solution1s configuration, from planning to audit.3
Con+i-uration Mana-ement Plannin-
%#escription) The Configuration Management 'lanning section describes the overall
strateg for configuration management, including who is involved, the planning
process used, and the strateg to address ongoing configuration management
issues.3
<<Begin tet here!!
Con+i-uration I'enti+ication
%#escription) The Configuration )dentification section defines how configuration will
be researched and identified. 8eep dependencies e+ist here upon the /e0uirements
documents from the =unctional #pecification documents.3
<<Begin tet here!!
Con+i-uration Control
%#escription) The Configuration Control section describes the process for controlling
configuration and the adoption path for configuration selections.3
<<Begin tet here!!
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Con+i-uration Status Accountin- 3eri+ication an' Au'itin-
%#escription) The Configuration #tatus Accounting, !erification, and Auditing section
describes how the 0ualit of the configuration process will be assured. This process
includes ongoing maintenance reviews, auditing of successes and challenges, and
validations of configuration deploments against the &perations 'lan, Master 'ro-ect
'lan, and =unctional #pecification documents.3
<<Begin tet here!!
Service Level $anagement
%#escription) The #ervice 4evel Management section defines the service levels
needed to support the solution, including uptime, redundanc, and disaster recover.
)t should reference an e+isting #ervice 4evel Agreements and identif necessar
e+tensions to those agreements or new agreements that must be put into place.3
<<Begin tet here!!
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Appen'i4 5 Monitorin- 6ui'ance
C#ervice monitoring allows the operations staff to observe the health of an )T service
in real time. Accurate monitoring of a sstem is a complicated pu**le within a
distributed process environment, complicated even more b the integration with
sstems operated b trading partners. ?ith this in mind, the following list is an
e+ample of sstem components that are tpicall monitored to ensure the )T service
remains available>
'rocess heartbeat
@ob status
Aueue status
#erver resource loads
/esponse times
Transaction status and availabilit
<owever, knowing the current health of a service or determining that a service outage
ma occur is of little benefit unless the operations staff has the abilit to do something
about it, or at the ver least notif the appropriate group that a specific tpe of
reactive or proactive action needs to occur. This is what is meant b the term
Bcontrol.B ?hen combined and implemented properl, this service management
function provides the critical capabilit to ensure that service levels are alwas in a
state of compliance.3
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