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Mr. Management: Jack of All Trades ...: Page 2 of 2

By zooming in on performance management, Concord Communications, Compuware Corp. and NetScout have proved they can do one thing--gather information from distributed network applications, including data about transactions, flows and packets--very well. And yes, that's just a piece of the management pie, but it's a big piece, and it's not exactly a no-brainer.

Entuity, Singlestep Technologies, Timestock and other newer performance-management vendors will succeed where the more mature vendors have failed because their focus is more finely trained on solving a single problem. Sure, they gather some of the same data, and if you ask them for a road map to world domination they'll scramble to whip one up for you, but they're intent on getting you a quick and obvious return on your investment by actually using the data they collect to help you solve the problem at hand--no professional services necessary. Think filet knife and trout. Corkscrew and wine bottle. Management tool and management problem.

So for now, at least, good network management still means identifying the most critical chores and using the best tool available to accomplish each one--self-contained management applications that don't require professional services is the business model I like best.

Meanwhile, let's hope vendors like CA, HP and Tivoli keep pushing the envelope. Who knows, maybe someday they'll come up with full-scale network management tools that do the trick without breaking the bank.

Bruce Boardman