The ongoing push to increase server virtualization rates is driven by its many benefits for the data center and business. A reduction in data center footprint and maintenance, along with capital and operating cost reductions are key to many organizations’ operational strategy. The ability to dynamically adjust server workloads and service delivery to achieve optimal user experience is a huge plus for IT teams working in the virtualized data center – unless something goes wrong. With network infr...

Implementing network monitoring for organization is not something new for large enterprise networks; but for small to medium sized businesses a comprehensive monitoring solution is often not inside their limited budgets. Network monitoring involves a system that keeps track of the status of the various elements within a network; this can be something as simple as using ICMP (ping) traffic to verify that a device is responsive. However, the more comprehensive options offer a much deeper perspecti...

As networking becomes more complex, network management and monitoring has continued to evolve. In a world where technology is continually on the rise people must start becoming more aware of what capabilities are out there for the networks. There are vast amount of network management solutions out there to help aid your business. The elusive goal of network monitoring tools is not only to alert administrators when there is trouble on the network but to develop trends in the health of the network...

  PLAY BETTER WITH THE OTHER IT TEAMS. SHARE YOUR PACKETS Raise your IT profile by promoting the packet. Find other teams that might benefit from packet intelligence too. That application developer in the break room might be interested to know the network impact and chattiness of an internal app they’re coding. Performance monitoring solutions like the Observer Platform can provide access to packets and simplify the sharing of analysis with easy-to-read graphical reports and dashboards.&nbs...

Network device backup is vital for any business no matter what the size of the organization.  Network downtime due to device failure can be accounted for by hardware malfunction or inaccurate changes in the configuration of the device. Regardless of the cause, you need to find the easiest and fastest way to get your network back up and running. This means having an up-to-date network backup plan in place that enables you to quickly swap out the faulty device and restore the configuration fr...

For small and medium sized organization deciding to use a SaaS based Network Management application they will have the ability to use better solutions that would have been too expensive for them to in the past.  Even the smallest business now has access to very advanced CRM, ERP, manufacturing and other software that would never have been available to them at their small scale. In the world that NMSaaS plays in, this means mid-sized companies can now monitor and manage their IT systems with...

Visibility Into the Business With virtualization, "Big Data," and the sheer complexity of enterprise networks on the rise, dynamic network monitoring of performance and security provides a critical business advantage. Ixia's network visibility solutions deliver ongoing insight into production networks to help maximize your company's productivity and profitability, as well as its return on new and existing IT investments. Leveraging state-of-the-art technology and techniques, Ixia's powerful, hig...

What is SNMP? Why should we use it? These are all common questions people ask when deciding if its the right feature for them, the answers to these questions are simple.SNMP Management Simple Network Management Protocol is an "internet-standard protocol for managing devices on IP netowrks". Devices that typically support this solution include routers, switches, servers, workstations, printers, modem racks and more. Key functions Collects data about its local environment. Stores and retrieves adm...

Network configuration management is the process of organizing and maintaining information about all the components of a computer network. When a network needs repair, alteration, development or advancements, the administrator refers to the network configuration management database to determine the best course of action. This database contains the locations and network addresses of all hardware devices, as well as information about the programs, versions and updates installed in network computers...

As we say goodbye to 2014 and review our network equipment plans for the new year, looking at replacement options is not enough. We have to consider the currents that network technology flows in and where they are taking us. Ignoring buying decisions and looking at the bigger picture provides an opportunity to assess what emerging companies are doing to redefine and redirect our network thinking, from the higher levels of standardisation, convergence and virtualisation down to how startups are m...

Most security experts agree that the rapidly changing nature of malware, hack attacks and government espionage practically guarantees your IT infrastructure will be compromised. According to the 2014 Cost of Data Breach Study conducted by the Ponemon Institute, the average detection, escalation and notification costs for a breach is approximately $1 million. Post-incident costs averaged $1.6 million. Once an attacker is within the network, it can be very difficult to identify and elimi...

In the past few years, the enterprise computing technology has changed dramatically. Virtualization, SaaS, and cloud computing are creating fundamental changes, and leading to an time in which enterprises distribute critical IT applications across multiple service providers and infrastructure. These changes are rendering legacy monitoring tools, which have their roots in the computing environments of a decade or more ago, virtually useless. This paper explores today’s computing trends and their ...

There’s no doubt that big data offers big benefits to the enterprise. Improved productivity, better insight into customer experience, and process optimization are just a few ways that teams can get ahead with the technology. In fact, the number of companies implementing big data projects has grown exponentially. According to a study by IDG, nearly half of 751 respondents said they are in the process of implementing, or likely to implement a big data project in the near future. The top ten percen...

Is your performance management solution a target for attackers? With increasingly creative exploits, it is important to stay ahead of the curve when it comes to data protection. Performance monitoring tools that do not keep pace can leave your information vulnerable. TOTAL PERFORMANCE MANAGEMENT The Observer® Performance Management Platform is a fully integrated solution, purpose-built to support the highest level of network security. Its features include: TLS-based 256-bit encryption for data i...

Although many people may perceive Network Management as an extremely complicated and diverse area of specialty, there really are only 5 questions that every Network Manager needs to think about. The main components behind every problem in Network Management, are as follows: What do I have? If you don’t know what you have how can you manage or monitor it. Most of the time in Network Management you’re trying to track down potential issues and how you’re going to resolve these issues. This is a ver...

Security breaches are common today – from computer viruses, such as Bash Bug or Heartbleed, undermining the security of millions of websites, to credit card cyber theft experienced by big retailers. One effort to protect cardholder information is Payment Card Industry (PCI) Data Security Standard (DSS), which was created in October 2008 to protect personal cardholder information whenever used in a financial transaction. PCI DSS, which is applied wherever cardholder data is stored, processed or t...

With data breaches making headlines almost daily, it is important to ensure adequate security for the data traversing your network, but what about data at rest? Packet capture appliances installed as part of an integrated performance management platform can speed troubleshooting and protect the integrity of the network. They can also be a tempting target for hackers. Raw packet content on these devices can be anything from credit card information to financial records and unregulated access to th...

How often have you been told the network is at fault, when your gut tells you it’s an application issue? The primary challenge is determining where to look. If this sounds all too familiar, you’re in good company. In the recently released Seventh Annual State of the Network Global Study, 74% of network pros indicated their largest challenge was determining whether the problem was caused by the Network, System, or Application. And, according to IT analyst firm TRAC Research, teams spent on averag...

Dr. David Hock, Senior Consultant R&D, Infosim®, discusses how Infosim® StableNet® is integrating SDN and Network Management to increase the benefits for their customers. Recently, Software Defined Networking (SDN) has become a very popular term in the area of communication networks. The paradigm shift introduced by SDN is a promising enabler for many use cases. However, it also opens up a lot of new challenges for Network Management Software Providers. Infosim® is working together with cust...

Much of the discussion around the Observer Platform 17 release has focused on how the designs of the new user interface (UI) and other enhancements will assist network and operations teams to more easily manage service and application performance. This performance data and analysis isn’t just of value to IT but to the overall business. The challenge for performance management solutions has been providing this intelligence in a way that can be easily accessed and understood by other IT and busine...