Tuesday, May 08, 2007

Incorporating business smarts into network operations

Network World

Network Optimization




Network World's Network Optimization Newsletter, 05/08/07

Incorporating business smarts into network operations

By Ann Bednarz

The effort to more closely align IT operations with business objectives is a campaign being played out on many fronts - including the network arena.

Over the years IT executives and vendors have worked to make the network more application-aware so business-critical transactions receive priority over recreational traffic, for example. Now some players are looking to take things a step further by digging into the significance of those critical transactions and using that information to make the network and associated IT infrastructure more responsive to changing business requirements.

One example is Radware, which last week announced plans to acquire the assets of event-monitoring vendor Covelight Systems in an all-cash transaction worth $16 million.

Network Pros' Favorite Freeware Tools

Get your copy of Network World's latest Executive Guide "Management's Many Faces" and see which free management tools are rated tops by your peers. Also, find case studies and expert information on the technology and techniques network IT executives are using to address today's management challenges.

Click Here to download!

Covelight Systems’ flagship Inflight product captures transactional data related to business events in real time, including user identity and session information. It combs through the event data, transforms and analyzes it, and feeds it to systems that can digest the business intelligence and trigger immediate responses to threats and opportunities.

Radware, meanwhile, offers its APSolute application delivery suite, which includes front-end gear such as the AppDirector application delivery controller and AppXcel application accelerator with Web compression, SSL offloading and HTTP multiplexing capabilities. (The APSolute suite also includes security devices and access gear.)

Radware says it will marry its APSolute platform with Inflight’s real-time transaction capture, transform and feed functionality to provide “business-smart networking solutions.” The goal is to provide real-time visibility into business events embedded in user session traffic. By making this information immediately actionable - without waiting for batch processing, for example - data centers will be able to better tie their infrastructures to business needs, Radware says.

For example, a company could use Web transaction information to spot an immediate opportunity to make a targeted up-sell pitch to a customer, or halt a transaction that mirrors fraudulent online behavior.

Having the application delivery controller evolve to integrate business event monitoring and understand elements of specific transactions, is a logical progression, according to Mark Fabbi, a vice president and distinguished analyst at Gartner. "Businesses will benefit by enabling new capabilities such as transaction assurance, real time business intelligence and fraud detection,” Fabbi said in a statement.

***

From Microsoft Subnet: Enter for a chance to win Essential SharePoint 2007 book:
Essential SharePoint 2007: Delivering High-Impact Collaboration is published by Addison-Wesley and comes out May 22 and we have 15 copies to give away. Also, check out the co-authors' blog on Microsoft Subnet.


  What do you think?
Post a comment on this newsletter

TODAY'S MOST-READ STORIES:

1. Homeless man disrupts Internet2 service
2. Top 15 all-time 'network-iest' TV characters
3. Top 15 controversial Microsoft quotes
4. The 50 best consumer tech products ever
5. Is MPLS alternative DOA?
6. Google home page bug strikes again
7. Court rejects Vonage request for retrial
8. Slideshow: Cisco's New Catalyst 6500 blade
9. What's a Microsoft-Yahoo merger mean for Google?
10. Provider exec: SLAs are just 'marketing fodder'

MOST DOWNLOADED PODCAST:
Don't take DNS for granted


Contact the author:

Ann Bednarz is an associate news editor at Network World responsible for editing daily news content. She previously covered enterprise applications, e-commerce and telework trends for Network World. E-mail Ann.



ARCHIVE

Archive of the Network Optimization Newsletter.


BONUS FEATURE

IT PRODUCT RESEARCH AT YOUR FINGERTIPS

Get detailed information on thousands of products, conduct side-by-side comparisons and read product test and review results with Network World’s IT Buyer’s Guides. Find the best solution faster than ever with over 100 distinct categories across the security, storage, management, wireless, infrastructure and convergence markets. Click here for details.


PRINT SUBSCRIPTIONS AVAILABLE
You've got the technology snapshot of your choice delivered to your inbox each day. Extend your knowledge with a print subscription to the Network World newsweekly, Apply here today.

International subscribers, click here.


SUBSCRIPTION SERVICES

To subscribe or unsubscribe to any Network World newsletter, change your e-mail address or contact us, click here.

This message was sent to: networking.world@gmail.com. Please use this address when modifying your subscription.


Advertising information: Write to Associate Publisher Online Susan Cardoza

Network World, Inc., 118 Turnpike Road, Southborough, MA 01772

Copyright Network World, Inc., 2007

No comments: