How to Create an IT Infrastructure Blueprint?

This page introduces the basic steps to create an IT Infrastructure Blueprint on Dragon1.

Here on Dragon1 you can, with one click of a button, create an IT Infrastructure Landscape diagram. Next, adjust the template to your situation. You can create building blocks for your IT Infrastructure and build up your IT Infrastructure diagram with it.

What is an IT Infrastructure Blueprint?

An IT Infrastructure Blueprint is a detailed architecture drawing, mainly at conceptual and logical level, showing the capabilities, concepts, and principles, structure and workings of the IT Infrastructure in an organization.

In contrast we identify the IT Landscape as a high level overview of the IT Infrastructure.

In more detail, an IT Infrastructure blueprint is a visualization of the standards, types, versions and vendors of accepted, implemented and available IT Assets of an organization, i.e. the set of computer software and hardware plus 'connected' things; arranged in a specific configuration that serves as the current or future IT Infrastructure to support the business operation of an organization, preferably in an optimal way.

An IT Infrastructure Blueprint presents a technical view of IT rather than a functional view. Sometimes the key information systems and most important applications of the organization are put on the blueprint. But that is not always the case.

Dragon1 supports you to add management views that provide extra information. Examples are: incidents view, conflicts view, business continuity view, compliance view, migration view, impact of change view and maturity view.

If you print out the Dragon1 reference model at A0 size and put it on the wall of your manager or CxO, they will immediately want the real version, and priority is put on providing you with the data needed.

Supported Frameworks and Iconsets

Dragon1 supports users to create IT Infrastructure Blueprints using classic, IBM, Azure and AWS icons, and other iconsets.

Network, Storage and Computing Components

The IT Infrastructure Blueprint template is a framework for informing and educating stakeholders, developing innovative IT environments, or documenting current and future state IT Infrastructures.

The template adresses the three pillars or primary components of any IT Infrastructure: 1) Network, 2) Storage, and 3) Computing.

This Dragon1 blueprint template for IT Infrastructure is the perfect solution to help you understand and communicate about your computer networks much better. This is an unambiguous and structured way.

On the Dragon1 Platform, the IT Infrastructure Blueprint is available as a template and accessible in the Viewer and the Visual Designer.

This is an example of a classic IT Infrastructure Blueprint in the Dragon1 Viewer.

IT Infrastructure Overview

The term IT infrastructure is defined by the Dragon1 architecture method as a coherent set of hardware, software, networks, storage, and computing facilities (including all of the information technology-related equipment) used to develop, test, deliver, monitor, control, or support IT services. Associated people, processes, and documentation are very relevant but are not considered to be part of IT Infrastructure.

Most IT Infrastructures are constructed with the following eight types of components:

• Network Switch - A device that physically connects devices
• Router - A device that routes packets between devices, from IP to address to IP address
• Firewall - A security device at the end of a network
• Server - A network computer with many resources. There are many standard types of servers: database server, application, server, directory, web server and file server
• Physical Plant - This is all the network cabling of your IT Infrastructure. Note: This is always a fragile link in terms of security
• People - Strictly speaking, people are not part of the IT infrastructure, but they are vital in maintaining it
• Data Center (Server Room) - The location where the servers are placed, secured and protected
• Infrastructure Software - An IT environment cannot run without driver software, computer BIOS software, operating system software, and directory service software
• Domains - An IT infrastructure is normally made less complex by dividing it into functional groups. Common groups are Develop, Test, Production, Archive, Storage, Business, Consumer, and Cloud (these domains are visible on the Dragon1 IT Infrastructure Canvas

A cloud can be seen as a scalable IT infrastructure accessed via the Internet.

IT Infrastructure Shapes

Dragon1 supports IT modeling at a conceptual, logical, and physical level. Below, you see the most commonly used shapes:

Object	Shape	Description
Domain / Architecture Area		An abstract object for grouping other objects.
Site		A physical location.
Organization Unit		A group, department, function, or other collection of people or organization units
Actor		A person, an individual.
Role		A set of responsibilities
Network		Any kind of connected computers.
Software Server		A commercial software environment
Hardware Server		A high availability resource machine
Firewall		A server protecting the network
Workstation		A client machine
Mobile Device		A handheld client
Network Node		Can represent various kinds of network components
Deployment Instance		An instance of an object defined elsewhere
Infrastructure Link		A link between elements in a technology layer diagram

Only 1 out of 100 architects create blueprints that board members and directors use.

It is also interesting to read the page of IT Architecture and Technology Architecture in the resources section.