Netezza arguably was the company that made data warehousing an indispensable part of any large company’s toolset for data driven business. The technology innovation (of its time) and commercial success together made that happen. As such, it provided the means for many organizations to drive huge value out of their data assets. Yet all things must pass, and IBM has decided that its legacy Netezza technology has had its day.
If your business depends on the insights it gains from a legacy Netezza data warehouse, then you will no doubt be aware of the end of life issue and be considering your options now that IBM started the withdrawal of support for legacy Netezza systems. End of support dates for some Netezza Striper, Skimmer and Twinfin models listed were reached in June of 2019, while IBM have also announced that end of support dates for more models in the Netezza Striper and Mako ranges will be reached in 2020 and 2023. To see the full list of End-of-Support dates click here.
Clearly, whatever model of Netezza you use, ultimately there is only a finite length of time before you need to move to an alternative. In the short term, ensuring you can rely on expert support is the first priority, while you consider the options for your data warehouse platform strategy beyond that. (And there are real options. Following the “obvious” path with IBM might well be right for your company, or it may be that some of the newer choices are better suited. It really does depend on the specific needs and direction of your business).
Here’s how we can help with both your immediate and longer term needs:
1. Netezza After-Life Support
You can continue to use your existing Netezza system, and we will provide an ongoing Netezza hardware and product support service comparable to IBM’s (we used to be part of the global Netezza support team) until you have decided on a more permanent solution.
2. Replacing Netezza
If you have already selected a Netezza replacement, we can reduce the time, cost, and risk of migrating your existing data warehouse to the Netezza replacement platform (whatever it is) by automating large parts of the process, including the reconciliation, with our Smart Data Frameworks.
3. Migrating from Netezza
If you have decided to migrate away from Netezza but are yet to decide on a new analytics platform, we can help you evaluate and select an appropriate alternative - whether that be from one of our preferred partners including Yellowbrick, Snowflake and IBM, or an alternative vendor of your choosing.
Any Netezza End of Life Questions?
We like talking about data warehousing! So feel free to contact us here.