The Network Monitor

The plotline for a data center's Big Data story is still being written, and already there is no lack of twists and turns. The Internet of Things (IoT) is just the latest in a multi-episode drama that'll spawn as many shark-jumping forecasts as processes.

Most people in IT, especially security, have worked with some form of code. Whether it's for automating system tasks, performing network monitoring or developing full-fledged applications, understanding certain scripts is necessary to keeping support running every day.

Want to specialize in designing, managing, configuring and troubleshooting both wired and wireless networks? CompTIA Network+ certification is an easy and affordable way to get ahead (sorry for the plug, but it's true). It shows employers tangible proof that you know your stuff, even when they know next to nothing about IT. Once you're certified, you're on the path to positions like network support specialist, network field engineer, helpdesk technician and network administrator.

IT is a pretty thankless job; long hours to deploy technology that's often invisible to the average user isn't exactly an ego boost as you leave work every night. But for every moment of sheer frustration — and they are many — there's a much lighter side to support, affectionately called "information technology humor." Cue canned laughter.

If network infrastructure is the backbone of modern business, the servers it connects would be the brain. Enterprises rely on these machines for data storage, processing and associated business apps. It comes as no surprise, then, that maintaining server health is one of your highest priorities.

The Super Bowl is over and hockey playoffs are still weeks away, but many Americans will still get their interim fix during March Madness. The prelims went underway on March 15th, and a huge cross-section of the American workforce faces a challenge: making sure they don't miss a single foul shot, even during business hours.

As Isocrates once said, “It’s important to know where you’re going than to get there quickly.” If you’d like to integrate WhatsUpGold network reporting software with Google Maps, here’s how you get there. And it hopefully shouldn’t take you long to do it.

Today’s IT teams are under a heck of a lot of pressure to support multiple directives. They need to deliver IT infrastructure performance that can support defined business goals, strategies and operations. And very important to their success is complying with their commitments to a defined SLA (Service Level Agreement) with their business owners.

"The IT Crowd" (Image Credit: Channel 4 Television Corporation)

No one template can ensure system stability.

I haven’t been at Ipswitch long, but reading about OfCom opening up BT’s network to rivals got me thinking. While BT has avoided an AT&T-like break-up (for now) the ramifications of this are going to make a lot of people either happy or angry – or even both. In theory, rural, underserved customers will enjoy great access and third-party providers will be able to compete on a level playing field.

CROUS Paris provides education and housing services to more than 300,000 students over 80 locations in France. Each year, its 750 employees prepare five million meals, find housing for 6,000 students and process 60,000 scholarship applications. In order to support such a high volume of activity on a network with more than 1000 different IT devices, Mr. Yu, Information Systems Director at CROUS Paris, needed an infrastructure monitoring solution.

Automating NAS to perform regular network drive backups can be the difference between staying open and losing everything. "Point your NAS at your online service or a device on your network," he says, "and it will automatically suck everything down."

As it grows, your company will probably have an emergency at some point that warrants crisis management in IT. No matter if it's a data breach, natural disaster or product malfunction, you're usually the first blamed for its occurrence and the last credited with resolution. Even in the case of a weather event, sysadmins take the hot seat if user machines aren't up and running quickly. But as they say, people don't remember the mistake — they remember how you handled it.

Take pride in knowing that your company depends on its help desk. And when it comes to information technology problem solving, few skill sets are more valuable to ensure business continuity. Yep, even marketing execs and similar partners pale in comparison to those whose workload is defined by troubleshooting.

Historically, technology adoption has started in the workplace. Computing, unified communications, mobile devices, etc. all got the start in the corporate world and then made their way into the consumer space. In addition, when looking at age demographics, the early adopters of technology are typically twenty somethings.

U.S. armed forces take mobile network monitoring very seriously

Predicting the future isn't a perfect practice without a DeLorean. For support desks at SMBs, however, determining network bandwidth needs down the line is critical to sustained growth. The farmer's almanac may not cover network environments, but with a few helpful tips, you'll gain much-needed perspective on how to plan for current and eventual system requirements.

"The story of the blind men and an elephant originated in the Indian subcontinent from where it has widely diffused. It is a story of a group of blind men (or men in the dark) who touch an elephant to learn what it is like. Each one feels a different part, but only one part, such as the side or the tusk. They then compare notes and learn that they are in complete disagreement." (Source: Wikipedia)

When transitioning to a new solution, do IT vendors elicit a mix of anticipation and fear? That makes sense. You're eager to see the new service hard at work, but simultaneously concerned it won't live up to promised hype or deliver on promises made by the supplier.