Oracle - Simplifying Server Resource Utilization

Jan 2016 - Mar 2016

In 2016, Oracle's Management Cloud platform was getting built which comprised of applications belonging to different domains. One such application was aimed at enabling users to understand and identify under-utilized and over-utilized server resources in order to effectively manage their IT infrastructure.

My Role

Lead Interaction Designer responsible for designing the Server Resource Analytics project that is part of the Oracle Management Cloud (OMC) Platform.

Context and challenge

Oracle Management Cloud Platform is an integrated cloud solution which has an IT Analytics service as part of one of its offerings. Within the IT Analytics service the Server Resource Analytics application is an important tool to help capacity managers and system administrators better manage their server resources.

Getting Familiar with the Content

CPU, Memory and Storage resources and their utilization were important for the purpose of this application. Out of these CPU and Memory resources were considered to be more critical due to constraints related to the capacity and their usage.

CPU, Memory and Storage resources

Structure and Information Architecture

Ideation

In order to avoid overwhelming the user with too much information, progressive disclosure was used to design this complex application. Therefore the ‘Inverted Pyramid’ approach was used which had 3 main stages as shown in the figure below.

Inverted Pyramid

Design Iterations

Final Designs

This project went through multiple rounds of iterations and below are some of the final wireframes.

Impact

This project was not only well received by our customers but was vital to creating some design patterns that were used as part of the overall Oracle Management Cloud platform.

Reflection

Understand the content: One of the biggest challenges I faced with this project was the various complex usecases and terminologies. And I realized that for me to design a simple experience, it was essential for me to understand the content and the corresponding terms thoroughly.

Collaboration is key: While working on complex problems the best and fastest way to reach the ideal solution is to effectively collaborate with various stakeholders. This is one of the main factors that helped us deliver the best possible experience for our users.