Are your architects working remotely because of the COVID-19 outbreak but unable to access your company’s on-premise EA repository? This is a common situation facing enterprise and business architects at a time when companies need their skills, knowledge, and experience to plan and execute business contingency plans and optimize resources. Sparx Services North America has a solution to help! We are announcing a new “EA in the Cloud” subscription offering that will give your architects a secure collaborative workspace for your remote team members to collaborate – without the need to access the corporate network.
What is included?
The EA in the Cloud offering includes a shared Enterprise Architect Repository and Keystore License Server hosted on the AWS cloud in a region close to your users. Your data will be in a private repository accessible only to those users you authorize. The Sparx team will take care of configuration, maintenance, monitoring, and all administration tasks on your repository. All your users will need to do is configure their client software with a few setup tasks, enter their credentials, and start modeling!
Can we just work out of a local EAP file?
Absolutely! Whether you are using a trial version of Sparx Systems Enterprise Architect or have paid licenses, working out of a local repository on your laptop or desktop client is an option. For individuals working on their own, this is the option we often recommend. The challenging situation is team collaboration. If you want to share your models and have multiple people working on them at the same time, you will need a shared repository.
Can we use our current Enterprise Architect desktop clients?
Sure! If you have existing Sparx Systems Enterprise Architect licenses, you can easily connect your current client software to the cloud repository. If you have local data in EAP files, you can continue to work with those too. If you have floating licenses and your Keystore server is on-premise, you may have difficulty accessing it. We can work with you to migrate your existing floating licenses to a Keystore server in the hosted cloud environment. Our sales staff can help you select the best option for your situation.
Is there a SaaS version of Sparx EA or something we can access via a browser?
Yes, we can provision Sparx System Enterprise Architect either as desktop software to install on your laptop/desktop, or we can alternatively provision the software via Amazon AppStream where it can be centrally managed and accessed via a browser. AppStream is a new deployment model for EA and can help avoid some of the common database driver compatibility issues encountered with desktop implementations. Sparx EA running through AppStream has also been shown to perform up to 3x faster than running on the desktop when accessing a cloud repository.
If we start modeling in a shared environment, can Sparx help us migrate/merge data from our current on-premise repository
We can certainly help you migrate and merge data from on-premise EA repositories, local EAP files, or even other architecture modeling tools such as Troux, System Architect, Magic Draw, or even SharePoint. The best thing to do is to contact us, and we can talk about your specific needs.
How long will it take to setup?
If you already have desktop client licenses (under current maintenance), we can provision a cloud repository and get you up and running in 1-2 business days. If you don’t have active maintenance on your licenses, we can help you renew them. If you want to use Sparx EA via Amazon AppStream in a browser, the setup time is typically 3-4 business days (less than a week).
Our procurement team is also disrupted, can we pay for this with a credit card so we can start using it right away?
The EA in the Cloud solution is offered as a subscription service with an annual renewal of the subscription. We are happy to accept credit card payments. We also have payment terms available for those organizations that need to be invoiced.
If you are interested in learning more about how Sparx can help your architects work effectively in a remote environment, click here. Sparx Services North America can have your team set up on a shared EA repository in the cloud in just a few days. Don’t wait, get started today.
