When IT services are delivered via the cloud, compute and storage resources may be off-network or shared across multiple components, but enterprise IT managers still need to control resource allocation and monitor application performance and availability.
That’s why a handful of vendors this week at Interop Las Vegas plan to debut new and upgraded products designed to help monitor application performance and IT service delivery in cloud computing environments. Companies such as eTelemetry, NetIQ, ScienceLogic, and Univa UD realize enterprise IT managers are considering cloud services this year. And industry watchers expect interest in cloud and associated technologies to continue to grow.
Slideshow: Cool new products unveiled at Interop
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"Cloud computing represents a significant shift in the way IT operates today and shows no signs of being a passing fad. The efficiency, scalability, and cost savings it brings make cloud computing something that businesses must consider, especially with 2009 set to be another slow year for the economy," according to a recent Forrester Research report.
Vendors such as eTelemetry have added capabilities to accommodate the trend toward cloud computing. Recently eTelemetry equipped its Metron appliance (see a screen shot of Metron 2.1 here) to be able to monitor and document which cloud services were in use by which departments, groups, and end-users. The Cloud Service Accounting (CSA) feature in Metron adds to the appliance’s capabilities, which include passively monitoring network traffic to associate patterns in the traffic with individuals.
According to eTelemetry, Metron’s CSA reports summarize total Internet bandwidth uses by cloud service and non-cloud service sites, and the bandwidth tiering capabilities can be used to provide cloud services sites with bandwidth priority. The appliance can also provide departmental chargeback reporting to associate dollars with bandwidth, and it allows IT managers to generate reports on bandwidth usage and cost via the device.
