Dan Nuffer

In today's complex, multiplatform enterprise, unifying systems management under a common infrastructure is a significant force driving many business decisions. With Linux projects providing specialized applications and functionality, Unix resources running mission-critical systems, and the inevitable Windows network serving the needs of the rank-and-file end user, the challenge facing IT departments is to manage all these disparate resources in the most economical, secure, and efficient manner possible. Virtually every organization is faced with management tasks such as finding out if a router is down, monitoring the status of a database, or patch distribution. The systems management duties of an IT department can be as varied as the systems they are managing. Let's take the example of an enterprise's Unix resources. It's rare to find true homogeneity across Unix s... (more)