Red Hat Ansible Services Keeping Millions Connected

About the Client

MTN Nigeria, one of Africa’s largest telecom providers, needed an enterprise Red Hat solution and Red Hat automation framework to manage critical Oracle Database (DB) clusters and AVI Load Balancers (ALBs). Their manual switchover processes were slow, error-prone, and lacked real-time validation, exposing critical services to disruption across millions of subscribers.

Partnering with Ekfrazo allowed MTN to adopt Red Hat Ansible services and enterprise Red Hat solutions aligned with Ekfrazo’s Red Hat consulting and automation capabilities, automating these complex operations and improving IT reliability and execution speed.

Business Challenge

MTN Nigeria operated distributed Oracle DB clusters and ALBs across multiple sites. The legacy manual switchover approach presented 3 key challenges:

• Time-intensive and error-prone database switchovers.
• No real-time validation to confirm active/standby status.
• High risk of service disruptions during transitions.

To address these challenges, Ekfrazo Technologies implemented Red Hat automation services and enterprise infrastructure automation, rationalizing operations and reinforcing system resilience.

The Solutions

With the Red Hat Ansible Automation Platform, Ekfrazo Technologies developed modular automation playbooks that replaced manual intervention, reduced operational risks, and delivered uniform execution across all nodes, showcasing its expertise in Red Hat services consulting and Ansible automation best practices.

1. Automated Database Switchover

• Dynamic role identification for primary and standby Oracle clusters.
• Fully-automated switchovers preserving system integrity.
• Pre- and post-switchover validation for consistent and error-free transitions.

2. AVI Switchover Automation

• Dynamic AVI rule adjustments reflecting new database roles.
• Zero-downtime traffic redirection for uninterrupted services.
• Logging and rollback for rapid recovery when required.

3. Monitoring and Logging

• Integrated real-time status checks for full visibility.
• Error handling and detailed execution reports for auditing.
• Continuous validation ensuring predictable results.

This approach demonstrates Ekfrazo’s Red Hat services consulting and Red Hat Ansible automation consulting expertise, reinforcing its position as a leading Red Hat services company that helps clients enhance performance through tailored automation frameworks.

Architecture Overview

The Red Hat Ansible Automation Platform orchestrates the end-to-end switchover process across two sites:

• Database Layer: Oracle DB clusters with Data Guard replication.
• Traffic Management: AVI ALBs redirecting traffic dynamically.
• Orchestration: Ansible workflows aligning replication, traffic, and database states with minimal disruption.

This architecture highlights Ekfrazo’s Red Hat hybrid cloud consulting and Red Hat OpenShift services, enabling predictable, error-reduced transitions for mission-critical systems across MTN Nigeria’s telecom infrastructure.

(Related automation patterns are discussed in Ekfrazo’s enterprise guide on hybrid cloud computing and AI-driven automation.)

The Impact

Through the adoption of Red Hat Ansible services and enterprise automation solutions, MTN Nigeria achieved a faster and more dependable process for handling Oracle Database and AVI switchovers. Tasks that once required hours of manual effort were completed in minutes, helping teams work with greater confidence and control. The use of enterprise Red Hat solutions allowed the transition between systems to happen steadily and predictably, preventing interruptions for millions of users.

By incorporating Red Hat automation services, MTN Nigeria improved coordination between its database and load balancing activities, cutting execution time by 50 percent while maintaining uninterrupted service. Real-time validation reduced errors at every stage, reflecting Ekfrazo’s strength as a Red Hat services company and enterprise automation partner.

This project showed how a practical and focused approach to Red Hat Ansible automation consulting can bring measurable results, saving time, improving accuracy, and setting a solid foundation for wider automation initiatives. The collaboration also underscores Ekfrazo’s role as a Red Hat service provider, delivering business-aligned outcomes through Red Hat Ansible and hybrid cloud services.

 (For deeper enterprise context, see Ekfrazo’s analysis on outsourcing Red Hat support for enterprises.)