In the IT world, we systems managers are always looking for a tool, utility, or gadget that improves performance. A drug, if you will, that gives us that extra bit of speed, automates a task, or removes a worry such that we get a bit of extra sleep at night. Are the backups running properly? Is the email infrastructure working? Did I remember to shut off the oven?
In the athletic world this is called doping. I’m a cyclist and follow the world of cycling closely. Most recently a top cyclist from Belgium, Tom Boonen, tested positive for cocaine use a second time! Now, correct me if I’m wrong, but isn’t the definition of insanity ‘doing the same thing multiple times, but expecting a different result each time’? The professional cycling world is awash with drug testers who, at any given time, will find a pro and test them on the spot. Lance Armstrong writes about this on his Twitter page frequently. Seriously, he’d be in the middle of dinner and a tester will walk up to him and ask for a sample! How Boonen thought he’d get away with his coke habit a second time is beyond me. But I digress…
We’re lucky in IT. We get to try different tools and toys (the drugs) without fear of the ‘testers’. We try to find that magic bullet that will solve our problems and help us stay ahead of the curve. But you know as well as I, there is no magic bullet. Big framework tooling claims to be the be-all, end-all to your systems management concerns, but who has the budget for that? High-end application monitoring frameworks run from several hundred to several thousand dollars per server. Add consulting, and endless hours of implementation, with no guarantee that it will ever work properly, and you’ll be well over budget in no time.
So what do you do when budget is tight? Freeware, right?
I am a supporter of open source software. Freeware has solved a lot of problems for me, big and small. However in the 15+ years I have been doing this there is one thing you simply cannot hand over to a free, unsupported tool. You know where I’m going with this, don’t you?
Yep, monitoring. I must have been insane! Time and time again I had implemented free monitoring tools only to rip them out a year or two down the road when the infrastructure has outpaced or outgrown the solution. Technology evolves quickly and it can be hard for open-source monitoring applications to keep up. Of course for a small, 2-3 server shop, freeware will work just fine, especially if the operation isn’t growing. The IT ‘guy’ recommended a free tool, loaded it up and walked away and it’ll probably tick away happily for a long time. The big monitoring solutions can help but how much more do you want to spend? How much time do you really have?
If you manage a dynamic environment you need a flexible, affordable monitoring tool that is well supported, that will grow and work with you. One that can be implemented quickly, that stays ahead of IT evolution. An IT performance enhancing drug.
So, what is your drug of choice? I bet you can guess what mine is.
Tags: free monitoring, monitoring, Monitoring tool, server monitoring
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