Server management tools grow up

摘要

As corporations move toward utility computing, where system resources grow and shrink according to business demands, server management tools are evolving to do more than simply monitor and manage isolated network nodes. Analysts say users can expect these management packages to become increasingly automated, better handle security and patch management, and become usable across a variety of different server platforms. Analysts say they expect traditional server management packages to become integrated more tightly with storage provisioning tools and to develop more application savvy so users can configure servers to meet specific application demands. "As the move toward automation goes up and the number of servers under management goes up, the management tools have to get more mature," says Jonathan Eunice, principal analyst at Illuminata. "Putting more elbow grease into managing servers just seems less and less productive and less acceptable."