Client situation

ClickView, often referred to as the “Netflix of education,” provides an e-learning platform featuring thousands of educational videos for primary, secondary, and tertiary institutions in Australia and the UK. Their innovative approach to creating curriculum-aligned video content has made them a leader in their industry. However, rapid growth in users, content, and demand presented challenges in managing operational costs, system scalability, and maintaining high-quality user experiences. Prior to engaging PolarSeven, ClickView had migrated from Microsoft Azure to AWS but was still using Windows-based servers across multiple AWS clusters. The infrastructure lacked the elasticity to handle varying demands efficiently, leading to operational inefficiencies and higher costs.

Their challenge

ClickView faced several critical issues:

  • High operational costs: Running Windows-based servers and maintaining multiple clusters increased overhead.
  • Inefficient scalability: The system struggled to adapt to fluctuating user demand, impacting reliability and user experience.
  • Limited automation: Manual processes hindered the ability to scale resources dynamically in response to real-time traffic.
  • Complex infrastructure: The existing setup required optimisation to simplify management and align with their growth objectives.

These challenges threatened ClickView’s ability to scale efficiently while maintaining service-level agreements (SLAs) critical to their partnerships with educational institutions.

What they needed

To address these challenges, ClickView needed:

  • Cost optimisation: A solution to reduce their operational expenses without compromising performance.
  • Scalable infrastructure: Dynamic resource scaling to ensure responsiveness to demand spikes and efficient cost management.
  • Automation: Systems that could automate scaling and deployment processes to improve agility and reduce manual intervention.
  • Modernisation: Transitioning applications to a containerised environment to simplify infrastructure and enhance performance.

What we did

PolarSeven’s approach focused on transforming ClickView’s infrastructure through containerisation and automation, leveraging AWS’s robust cloud capabilities:

  • Containerisation of applications: Migrated key .NET core applications into Docker containers, reducing the number of EC2 clusters required. Streamlined deployment processes through Elastic Container Service (ECS) and Elastic Container Registry (ECR).
  • Infrastructure automation: Deployed CloudFormation templates to automate provisioning and configuration of ECS clusters with auto-scaling capabilities. Integrated tools like TeamCity and Octopus Deploy for seamless CI/CD pipeline automation.
  • Scalability enhancements: Implemented auto-scaling based on CPU and target tracking metrics to ensure the environment adapts dynamically to demand. Configured advanced load balancing (ALB) for optimised traffic distribution.
  • Cost reduction: Migrated from Windows to Linux, significantly lowering licensing and operational costs. Optimised resource utilisation through auto-scaling, reducing unnecessary expenses during off-peak hours.
  • Security and compliance: Enhanced security with role-based access (IAM) and integrated monitoring solutions for operational transparency.

Outcomes achieved

ClickView realised transformative benefits from PolarSeven’s solution:

  • 50% cost reduction: Transitioning to Linux and containerising applications halved platform costs, enabling more resources to be allocated towards content and innovation.
  • Improved reliability: Auto-scaling and enhanced load balancing ensured seamless user experiences, even during traffic spikes, helping ClickView meet stringent SLAs.
  • Operational efficiency: Automation significantly reduced manual effort, accelerating deployment times and improving agility.
  • Scalability: The containerised infrastructure provided the flexibility to scale resources dynamically, supporting future growth and regional expansion.

Why ClickView chose PolarSeven

ClickView chose PolarSeven due to their deep expertise in AWS solutions, proven success in previous collaborations, and alignment in tech and work culture. PolarSeven’s ability to deliver customised, outcome-driven solutions made them the ideal partner for this project.

About PolarSeven

PolarSeven is an AWS Advanced Consulting Partner specialising in accelerating cloud adoption, reducing time-to-market, and optimising costs for their clients. With a focus on customer success, PolarSeven’s innovative solutions and commitment to excellence empower businesses like ClickView to thrive in the digital era.