Network Physics helps to provide best practices for how to respond to an event

NETWORK WORLD NEWSLETTER: DENISE DUBIE ON NETWORK OPTIMIZATION
10/04/05
Today's focus: Network Physics helps to provide best practices
for how to respond to an event

Dear networking.world@gmail.com,

In this issue:

* Network Physics adds Insights to NetSensory
* Links related to Network Optimization
* Featured reader resource
_______________________________________________________________
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_______________________________________________________________

Today's focus: Network Physics helps to provide best practices
for how to respond to an event

By Denise Dubie

Best practices seem to be on the mind of most IT professionals
these days
<http://www.networkworld.com/research/2005/011005cobit.html?rl>.
Ad hoc firefighting and troubleshooting practices are no longer
acceptable as regulatory and security concerns mount within
enterprise IT shops. Now network managers need to be sure to
follow procedures and document processes, while also ensuring
performance across their networks as well as the systems and
applications the network supports.

Network Physics next week is set to announce an upgraded version
of its NetSensory operation system (which I mentioned in this
newsletter a year ago <http://www.networkworld.com/nlnetop7864>
). NetSentry 5.0 will run on the company's NP-500, NP-2000 and
NP-Director appliances and adds what the company is calling
Insights, which are XML templates that encapsulate best
practices for how to respond to an event or problem within
networks, applications and systems.

"Insights provide network managers with a step-by-step workflow
and best practice approach to resolving problems or even
responding to network changes," says Dwight Barker, director of
product management at Network Physics.

Insights could help junior network staff members resolve
higher-level issues as well. NetSentry is typically aimed at
senior network engineers who know what they are looking for when
sorting through performance data from network devices, systems
and applications. The Insights feature could walk
less-experienced staffers through resolution, the company says.

The NetSensory operating system facilitates communication among
multiple NP-Director and NP-2000 boxes. The NP-Director,
launched in September 2004
<http://www.networkworld.com/nlnetop7631>, is a central
appliance that sits in a data center and provides a global view
of a network.

The NP-2000s are 1U devices that plug into a network via a
switch port and passively watch all the traffic at key
aggregation points. The boxes can auto-discover paths for each
application flow in a network, determining performance metrics
such as packet loss, throughput, network latency and server
response times. IT managers can use the information to
troubleshoot problems locally, but because the boxes also
forward information back to NP-Director, central data center
managers can determine whether a problem, such as increased WAN
latency, is widespread.

Because of this architecture, the company says NetSensory 5.0
coupled with the company's appliances can help IT managers using
WAN optimization tools determine the true source of performance
issues. Because 80% of the company's 150 or so customer are
currently using WAN optimization tools
<http://www.networkworld.com/nlnetop7160>, Network Physics'
officials say their products can accurately pinpoint if a server
is causing poor performance or if an application is the source
of concern or if more bandwidth is needed.

"The products can tell if an application is chatty, if there are
latency issues, basically if the other vendors' products are
working appropriately for the customer," says Bob Quillin, vice
president of marketing at Network Physics. "It's an objective
measure of performance."

The top 5: Today's most-read stories

1. How to solve Windows system crashes in minutes
<http://www.networkworld.com/nlnetop7629>
2. Nortel faces uphill battle
<http://www.networkworld.com/nlnetop8116>
3. Cisco pushes new security software
<http://www.networkworld.com/nlnetop8117>
4. Verizon CTO lays out next-gen network plans
<http://www.networkworld.com/nlnetop8118>
5. Next-gen net seen at a crossroads
<http://www.networkworld.com/nlnetop8119>

_______________________________________________________________
To contact: Denise Dubie

Senior Editor Denise Dubie covers network and systems management
for Network World. Reach her at <mailto:ddubie@nww.com>.
_______________________________________________________________
This newsletter is sponsored by Ciena
Free Case Study: Fortune 2000 Enterprise Consolidates Data
Center Traffic to Reduce Costs

Now Fortune 2000 enterprises can combine SAN and LAN traffic
onto a single network connection to save costs and increase
productivity. See how one major company tapped Ciena to maximize
its business continuance strategy and extend high-performance
applications over distance--while reducing equipment and
recurring service costs.
http://www.fattail.com/redir/redirect.asp?CID=116815
_______________________________________________________________
ARCHIVE LINKS

Archive of the Network Optimization newsletter:
http://www.networkworld.com/newsletters/accel/index.html
_______________________________________________________________
How can you effectively provide DNS services in Active
Directory? Join us for the free webcast, Best Practices for
Building Resilient Active Directory Infrastructure

You'll learn: The role of DNS in Active Directory environments,
the security and compliance landscape and best practices for
effective DNS and AD deployments.
http://www.fattail.com/redir/redirect.asp?CID=116052
_______________________________________________________________
FEATURED READER RESOURCE

IT PROS SHARE THEIR TALES OF MAKING ITIL WORK

Running an enterprise network is challenging. IT organizational
change can be even more so if managers don't balance efforts
proportionally across people, process and technology.
Implementing best practices frameworks such as Information
Technology Infrastructure Library (ITIL) can help, but they
introduce their own set of challenges. Click here for more:

<http://www.networkworld.com/news/2005/092205-itil.html>
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