Optimisation services
Tuning and optimisation services are sometimes available as add-ons to systems management contracts. For example, Dimension Data’s Insite for Applications Response is basically a monitoring service that compares the current performance of applications and infrastructure with agreed baselines. The focus is on specific applications such as Oracle database, Microsoft Exchange, and Microsoft Internet Information Server.
Karen James, operational services director at Dimension Data Australia, explains that software agents can be installed on all workstations to measure system responsiveness. In practice, only a representative sample is kept live and the remainder activated as necessary to establish the scope of any problems that arise.
The action taken when a measurement reaches a threshold level depends on the client’s requirements. If a user experiences a delay of say five seconds for a particular type of transaction, the client might choose to be alerted to the situation. If it reaches 10 seconds, Dimension Data might be authorised to identify the cause and either take action to correct the problem or manage a third party to fix it. “We have about 36 vendors we directly support” including Microsoft, Novell, Citrix, and Dimension Data’s own software, says James. Dimension Data also has partnerships to support mainframe systems and enterprise software such as Siebel and SAP.
Apart from ensuring rapid rectification, customers are using the information collected to extend the life of infrastructure by delaying technology refreshes until they are really needed and redeploying equipment for greater efficiency. “It’s easy to measure capex,” says James, “but the operating environment and operating expenses . . . are rarely measured.” Indicative ROI for managed application services is 103 percent for three year agreements and 108 percent for five years, based on a $500,000 investment, whereas spending the same amount on hardware only returns 14.1 percent or 40.2 percent over the same periods, she claims.
DIY optimisation
You don’t need to pay someone else to do the work for you. Some organisations prefer to licence the tools and do the work themselves. St George Bank uses MAINVIEW to automatically collect data about the operation of its mainframe hardware and software, and to model those systems in order to predict future requirements, says BMC’s Crawford-Smith. This process is faster and more accurate than manual data collection, he says, and it lets the bank “invest only when they need to”.
By monitoring services such as online banking from end to end, IT administrators can quickly identify and resolve problems that may occur, thanks to the detailed understanding that comes from the modelling process.
This understanding also enables active rather than reactive management, identifying opportunities for tuning particular applications or to relocate systems on the network to reduce traffic and thereby improve performance.
“Capacity planning is one of the key roles in IT,” says Crawford-Smith, and while it is more challenging in a mixed environment than with traditional mainframe systems, automated data collection provides a basis for more accurate choices.
