Daily Network Monitor

I recently came across some great insights into the challenge of Application Management in the Network/Systems Management Newsletter by Julie Craig. Although the article is focused on hardware appliances for this task, several of her insights are general in nature.

“Application management appliances are often perceived as pricey alternatives designed to gain control of an infrastructure gone awry. Companies ante up the cash necessary to buy appliances that give them deep perspective to execution environments when their backs are against the wall. Drivers for such purchases range from recurring problems that defy diagnosis to composite transactions experiencing perennial performance issues.”

“Business applications are becoming so complex that even large enterprises are falling short in terms of their ability to manage them. If we use the ITIL definition of problems, which is “the unknown root cause of one or more incidents,” recent EMA research shows that the percentage of IT problems actually solved in many large companies is between zero and 10%. The traditional “war room” team approach to problem determination is becoming far too expensive to be viable. Instead, companies tend to add horsepower, develop workarounds for recurring problems or turn to the reboot as the management product of choice. ”

“Over time, application management appliances will become increasingly common in the data center, especially as autonomic computing gains a firmer footing in the marketplace. …Companies will look to automation to provide robust management capabilities with minimal manual intervention.”

This story appeared on Network World here

Cisco over the next five years plans to radically change how it sells and delivers router and switch software, in part by making that software more virtualized and modular.

Cisco’s intention is to decouple IOS software from the hardware it sells, which could let users add enhancements such as security or VoIP more quickly, without having to reinstall IOS images on routers and switches. The vendor also plans to virtualize many of its network services and applications, which currently are tied to hardware-specific modules or appliances.

This shift would make network gear operate more like a virtualized server, running multiple operating systems and applications on top of a VMware-like layer, as opposed to a router with a closed operating system, in which applications are run on hardware-based blades and modules. Ultimately, these changes will make it less expensive to deploy and manage services that run on top of IP networks, such as security, VoIP and management features, Cisco says.

High-level details of the road map were delivered in a session at Cisco’s C-Scape analyst conference last week in San Jose by Cliff Metzler, senior vice president of the company’s Network Management Technology Group.

Read the whole story here.

WINDSOR, Ontario, Dec. 21 /PRNewswire/ — Network monitoring appliance vendor Netmon Inc. is pleased to announce a distribution partnership with PCMall, Inc., a national provider of technology solutions for business, government and educational institutions.

Under the new arrangement, PCMall will provide Netmon products to its large base of corporate, government and institutional customers through its various web properties, which include www.pcmall.com, www.pcmallgov.com, and www.onsale.com.

“Our appliances provide network administrators with a comprehensive view of their critical infrastructure,” according to Jason Pomerleau, Product Manager for Netmon Inc, “Imagine adding hundreds of pairs of eyes to your network, each working 24 hours a day to monitor key performance and operational metrics.” A built-in email and pager alert system is designed to keep administrators informed of important events which require attention or intervention.

Describing the new partnership as a “win-win proposition for all parties” Netmon President Eric Lamoureux states, “PCMall customers will now be able to purchase our products through a vendor they already know and trust, and we in turn are able to make our products accessible to a larger audience.”