 |
|
DAILY NEWS AND INFORMATION
FOR THE GLOBAL GRID COMMUNITY / JUNE 23, 2003: VOL. 2 NO. 25
|
Breaking News - Operating Systems
& Middleware:
Upgrade Of OStivity Supports
Physical As Well As IT Assets
Somix Technologies Inc has announced a major upgrade of its OStivity asset
manager that provides for the first time support for physical assets such as
office furniture, copiers, telephones, pictures, etc. The software, which will
be available on August 1, 2003, integrates with a handheld scanner that can
swipe bar code stickers on equipment into the asset manager. The new version
also greatly increases the security capabilities of the product, by providing
the ability to provide access to only the tools and data required by specific
users or groups. OStivity 3.0 also offers powerful information technology
asset management capabilities, such as being able to automatically discover
computers on the network and take a complete hardware and software inventory.
Microsoft, Linux, Solaris and Macintosh operating systems are all supported.
Web-based reporting and metering provides IT professionals with the ability to
generate alerts if software piracy is occurring or if end systems are running
low on hard drive space.
The hand held scanner integrated with HP/Compaq’s IPAQ hardware makes
taking
inventory of the entire building a highly mobile exercise using secure
wireless network technology. Users can put whatever information they want on
the bar code labels such as the department that owns the equipment, office
location, vendor, price, data purchased, warrantee, etc. This information is
automatically entered into the central database over a wlreless network when
the equipment is scanned.
Since OStivity runs in the Somix Operating Environment (SOE),
administrators
can password-protect various tools and require specific log-ins to others. It
also supports SSL and lends SSL support to WhatsUp Gold by acting as a proxy.
Underneath the hood, engineers will find the Apache Web server. By taking
advantage of Apache technology SOE allows users to integrate custom CGI
scripts into their monitoring solution.
OStivity answers questions such as:
- How many Dell machines vs HP/Compaq machines do we have?
- How many Solaris and Macintosh machines do we have?
- How much money have we spent on office furniture (other assets?)?
- Are we violating the 10 copies of Visio we have purchased?
- What machines have less than 5 meg free of hard drive space?
- What machines have CPUs that are slower than 300 Megahertz?
- What purchase order was used to acquire this laptop?
- How many routers of this model number do we have?
- What users are still using this printer?
- What is the serial number and how much did we pay for this computer?
OStivity also provides significant management abilities as well. It
provides
the ability to stop and restart services. Routine searches can be scheduled
and automated. If a match is found (e.g. a machine low on hard drive space),
notifications can be performed. OStivity integrates seamlessly with 3rd party
software packages such as WhatsUp Gold from IPSWITCH. It can also be
integrated with trouble ticketing systems (e.g. WebTTS from Somix). With 100%
Web accessibility, management can be performed almost anywhere.
For example, with OStivity’s metering utility, thresholds can be set on
purchased software. If the meter is set for 10 copies of PowerPoint and 11
copies show up 2 weeks later, the meter report high lights the piracy. If the
administrator needs to find out who purchased the 10 copies of PowerPoint, not
only can the owner be identified but, the Purchase Order used as well as the
invoice and serial numbers can be identified as well.
WhatsUp Gold Integration
Administrators can maximize the functionality of WhatsUp Gold by automating
the process of linking devices in WhatsUp Gold to the OStivity database. If
the device is having trouble and further details are needed about the device,
a hyperlink can be clicked and the maintenance contract on the computer can be
immediately displayed.
"Owners of WhatsUp Gold will appreciate OStivity's ability to deliver
greater
details on the devices they are monitoring. OStivity's integration with
WhatsUp Gold brings greater value by allowing IT Professionals to glean
further details on their assets when you can no longer communicate with them,"
said Jennifer Clark – WhatsUp Gold Account Representative. "Making informed
network decisions based on asset management makes OStivity a handy addition to
WhatsUp Gold."
Price and availability
OStivity is available for a U.S. list price of $4995 inclusive of the IPAQ
and
scanner. The 2nd year maintenance is $995 per year. Free upgrades to version
2.0 are available to current OStivity users. Existing OStivity clients can
purchase maintenance for all of 2003 at $495.00 and will need to pay the
$995.00 fee in 2004. The IPAQ and Scanner can be purchased separately for
$1400.00.
Free 50 Computer Version
A 50 computer inventory license is available to registered users for
free.
Live Demonstration Site
A live demonstration is available at guest:guest@ostivity.somix.com/
.
System Requirements
OStivity will need 200 megabytes of disk space, 256 megabytes of RAM and a
CPU
with a clock speed of at least 700 megahertz.
|