Strengthening the Infrastructure Behind K–12 Devices

Discover how an Illinois school district modernized core infrastructure to reduce cost pressure, support device performance and strengthen the digital learning ecosystem.

CDW Expert

When Infrastructure Costs Strain the Budget

40%

of districts’ classroom technology refreshes and modernization are at risk as federal emergency funding ends¹

76%

of digital infrastructure operators’ management teams are very or somewhat concerned about cost issues²

How can a K–12 school district reduce infrastructure costs while supporting the devices and digital tools students and teachers rely on?

A REAL-WORLD EXAMPLE

An Illinois School District Looks Beyond a Costly Infrastructure Renewal

An Illinois K–12 school district was facing rising costs tied to an upcoming infrastructure renewal and needed a more cost-effective path forward. The district wanted a solution that would be easy to use, align with its goals for efficiency and support the technology environment its students, educators and administrators rely on every day.

Because classroom devices, digital content and learning platforms all depend on the infrastructure behind them, the district’s renewal decision had implications beyond the data center. A more efficient foundation could help support better reliability for the broader technology ecosystem students, teachers and administrators count on.

CDW identified the renewal challenge as an opportunity to help the district reduce cost pressure without sacrificing performance or support. The goal was not simply to replace one platform with another, but to design a practical infrastructure strategy that met the district’s financial and operational priorities.

THE TURNING POINT

A Phased Migration To Support the Full Device Ecosystem

CDW worked with its partners to deliver a comprehensive modernization plan that migrated the district to Microsoft’s Hyper-V hypervisor, supported by Dell servers and Dell PowerStore for storage management. Together, these technologies gave the customer a more cost-effective and manageable infrastructure foundation.

By modernizing virtualization, servers and storage together, CDW helped the district strengthen the back-end environment that supports classroom technology. That foundation can help devices access learning applications, digital content and instructional tools more reliably across the district.

CDW Badged Engineering supported the migration through a phased approach designed to minimize disruption. By bringing together the right hybrid infrastructure resources and partner technologies, CDW helped the district move forward with confidence instead of being boxed into an expensive renewal.

CDW Hybrid Infrastructure Solutions

CDW helps organizations modernize infrastructure across compute, storage, networking, data protection and operations. With deep technical expertise and a broad partner ecosystem, CDW can help customers design infrastructure strategies that support performance, efficiency and long-term growth.

Learn More

Microsoft Solutions From CDW

CDW helps organizations put Microsoft technologies to work across infrastructure, productivity, security and management. With expertise across Microsoft solutions, CDW can help customers modernize environments, simplify operations and support long-term technology goals.

Learn More

THE RESULTS

A More Efficient Foundation for Device-Based Learning

IT professionals walk through a data center corridor while monitoring systems on laptops.

The implementation helped the school district move away from a costly renewal and toward an infrastructure environment built around its needs. CDW positioned the required hardware and provided expert engineering support to help facilitate a smooth migration.

The engagement met and exceeded the customer’s expectations, creating a foundation for potential future collaborations. By listening closely, tailoring the solution and bringing the right resources together, CDW helped the district modernize infrastructure while staying focused on cost savings, operational efficiency and the device-based learning experiences those systems support.

Here’s Why It Worked

CDW listened to the district’s cost concerns and built a strategy around its renewal challenge.
Microsoft Hyper-V, Dell servers and Dell PowerStore created a modernized infrastructure alternative.
CDW Badged Engineering supported migration with a phased approach to help minimize disruption.
Hybrid infrastructure expertise helped align technology decisions to the district’s goals for efficiency and cost control.

What’s Next?

With a modernized infrastructure foundation in place, the district is better positioned to support future device needs, digital learning tools and emerging classroom technologies while continuing to evaluate solutions that deliver performance, simplicity and long-term value.