A few years ago, some large organizations decided they needed some type of framework to be able to cost effectively manage their enterprises. Independent Software Vendors (ISVs) complied. Now, with frameworks widely deployed and supported, systems management is not only easier but the software market is expected to grow from $13 billion this year to $25 billion by 2005. Framework management, in essence, is systems management on steroids.
If youre a large enterprise-class corporation, an ISP for instance, youve already got a management framework in place. For most customers, however, whatever systems and network management suite theyre using is based on some framework. Whether they know it or not, they have a starting point or framework they can use to build a flexible system management environment that can blend old and new technologies and mixed IT environments and scale to large enterprise environments.
However, framework management suffers from a lack of definitions. Vendors call it Enterprise Systems Management, infrastructure management and/or eBusiness infrastructure management. Each apporach implements framework management to provide seamless control of IT resources.
A management framework that is fairly well known is Computer Associates’ Unicenter TNG Framework. TNG provides out-of-the-box support for a broad range of hardware platforms and framework technologies like object repository and auto discovery. It forms the foundation for Unicenter TNG (now Unicenter 3.0 Network & Systems Management), which is CAs modular and integrated management solution. This covers many enterprise functions, including networks, performance, events and status, security, software distribution, inventory storage, workload control, helpdesk and change management.
For more on framework management and/or systems management, read these CrossNodes articles:
- Crossnodes Technology Briefing: Framework Management
- CrossNodes Technology Briefing: Network Management
- CrossNodes Product Briefing: Network Management
- Using A Framework To Ease Network Management
Or try these keywords:
- Element management
- Resource management
- Enterprise management
- Infrastructure management
- Service level management
- Performance management
- Multi-platform management
Framework Management Vendors
Vendor: Computer Associates Product: Unicenter Description: Unicenters framework provides automatic discovery, scheduling, virus detection, monitoring from the even management console and management object repository. Unicenter is CA's family of integrated Infrastructure Management solutions for systems, networks, databases, web resources, applications, and end-user devices. www3.ca.com/Solutions/Brand.asp?id=3053 Vendor: Hewlett-Packard Prodct: OpenView Express Description: OpenView Express manages Microsoft Windows NT, Windows 2000, Terminal Server, or NetWare environment. Features integrated event correlation, thresholding, alarming, and reporting. OpenView Express bundles three integrated HP OpenView products (Network Node Manager, ManageX, and OmniBack II). Provides real-time monitoring and full data protection of the Active Directory Service (ADS) database. manages more than 30 applications and utilities, including Exchange 5.5/2000, IIS, SQL Server, and others from vendors such as Microsoft, Lotus, Oracle, Sybase, Compaq, Dell, VERITAS, McAffee, Norton, and Cisco. www.managementsoftware.hp.com/products/express/index.asp Vendor: Microsoft Corp. Product: Microsoft Operations Manager (MOM) OS(s): Win NT; Win 2000 Description: Enterprise-class solutions for operations management of Windows 2000, the Active Directory service and other component services in Windows 2000, as well as .NET Enterprise Server applications such as Microsoft Exchange Server and SQL Server. Mixed IT environments extensions are available from third-party software vendors like NetIQ. www.microsoft.com/mom/evaluation/overview/default.asp Vendor: Tivoli Software Product: Management Framework OS(s): Win NT; Win 2000; HP-UX; IBM-AIX; OS/2/400 Description: The Tivoli Management Framework is the foundation for other Tivoli Enterprise and third-party management products. It provides the graphical desktop, object-oriented databases, and base services used by other products. www.tivoli.com/products/index/mgt_framework/
