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TheAdmin’sGuide toServerInfrastructureTools
an Networking eBook
 
S
o you've done your research and purchasedyour servers and possibly signed a serviceagreement. Now what? If you said, "walk awayand let 'em run," think again.Life around servers is rarely that simple. A sys adminin a large server room, or rooms, will most likely needtools to help him or her keep the servers runningeffectively. This is where software to manage, monitor,and configure the server infra-structure comes in. Thus, thequestion is not whether youneed some of the tools, butwhich ones and from whom.
Definition
When it comes to servers, whatdo we mean by infrastructure?Simply put, it's organized serversupport. Do all of your serverswork in isolation as standaloneunits? Probably not. There aregroups of them: different types,different functions, clusters for scalability, and so forth. You organize them to support them and enable themto work better together. Collectively, the way theservers are organized and the tools are provided tosupport them constitutes the infrastructure. To makethe infrastructure work, you must set the servers up inthe right way, monitor their operation, and managetheir services. Not a simple task by any means.Start with a rule of thumb: The greater the number of servers, the greater the need for infrastructure tools.One server does not constitute an infrastructure. Onthe other hand, if you have a thousand servers, youcertainly need infrastructure tools. With that manyservers, you probably need infrastructure tools just tokeep them running. Then, there's the no small matterof getting the most out of theservers, ultimately known asmaximizing ROI. Infrastructuretools are necessary for that aswell.
Tools to Consider
These "tools" are, of course,products. Sometimes theycome in suites, such as IBMTivoli or Computer AssociatesUnicenter. They are also sold invarious combinations or asindividual (even standalone)products. Infrastructure tools cover a very large range,as this by no means inclusive list illustrates:• Application Deployment and Management• (IT) Asset and Inventory Management• Backup and Archiving• Batch Processing
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An Internet.com Networking eBook. © 2009, Jupitermedia Corp.
The Admin’s Guide to Server Infrastructure Tools
[ ]
The Admin’s Guide to ServerInfrastructure Tools
by Nelson King
Jupiterimages
To make the infrastructure work, you must set the servers up in the right way, monitor theiroperation, and manage their services. Not a simple task by any means.
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• Configuration and Change Management• Cluster Management• Data Management• Desktop Management• Disaster Recovery• Enterprise System Management• File Transfer Management• Job Automation and Scheduling• License Management• Network Management• Performance (Load and Stress) Testing• Patch and Update Management• Print Management• Security Management• Storage Management• User Management• Web Systems ManagementThere are many ways to slice and dice the territory of server infrastructure. With hundreds of products thathave considerable overlap, vendors, analysts, and jour-nalists can (and do) see infrastructure tools throughmany perspectives.As numerous and confusing as the server infrastructureproducts can be, one needn't be a computer scientistto reach an understanding about what an organizationmust have to support its servers. Some basic informa-tion is required: Where servers are located, what theyare doing (at least in general), and some details of their configuration (what hardware and software theyare running). From there, consider other areas of serv-er management (such as items on the above list) todetermine strengths and weaknesses. If there are gapsor problems managing the server infrastructure, startlooking at tools to cover them. Fundamentally, theprocess is the same for small and midsize businessesas it is for very large enterprises.
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An Internet.com Networking eBook. © 2009, Jupitermedia Corp.
The Admin’s Guide to Server Infrastructure Tools
[ ]
T
obestdeterminewhethersomeoryour entireserverinfrastructureisagoodcandi-dateforopensourcesolutions,considersev-eralcriteria. Whoisyouraudience?Doesyourserverinfra-structureservehighlyplatform-dependentusers?Forexample,aMicrosoftExchangeserverhan-dlinggroupwaremessagingforashopfullof MicrosoftOutlookclientsisservingahighlyspe-cificaudience.Unlessyourplansincludemigrat-ingclientstoopensourcemessagingsolutions,suchasGnomeEvolution,theMSExchangeserv-erprobablymakesthemostsenseinthisscenario.Ontheotherhand,many"generic"networkservic-es,suchasfileserving,POP3orIMAP4e-mail, Webserving,DNS,CUPS-basedprinting,andevensomedatabasescanbeservedneutrallybyopensourcepackages.Inaneutralnetwork,clientcon-nectionsmaycomeinfromanyplatformwithsup-portfortheseprotocols.POPandIMAPe-mailissupportedbyvirtuallyeverye-mailclientavailable,sorunninganopensourcee-mailserverdoesnotprecludewhichclientsitcanserve. Athirdconsiderationiscostcontrolandcostshift-ing.Traditionally,commercialserversolutionsrequireongoinglicensingfeesbepaidfortherighttousethesoftware.Thesefeesmayincludeacer-tainlevelofsupport,whichcanoftenbeupgraded withadditionalpayment.Thismayalsointroducetheneedforin-houseexpertisetomaintaintheserverinfrastructure,thusraisingcosts.Opensourceserversolutionscanoffermorefinan-cialoptions.Withmoneyinvestedinin-houseexpertise,outsidesupportcostscanbelowtonone.Thissameexpertisecancustomizeopensourcesoftwaretoadegreethatmaybecostlyorunavail-ablewithcommercialserverapplications.Third-partyvendors,likeNovellandRedHat,offersub-scription-basedopensourcesolutionsthatfunctionsimilarlytocommercialofferings,involvingongo-ingcostswithsupportandmaintenancecontracts.Inthisscenario,thecostsmaynotdifferallthatmuchfromthoseofcommercialapplications.Enterprises,however,maycontinuetobenefitfromotherflexibleaspectsofopensourcesoftware.
Open Source Appsfor the Server Room
By Aaron Weiss
As numerous and confusing as theserver infrastructure products can be,one needn't be a computer scientist toreach an understanding about what anorganization must have to supportits servers.
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