IT systems management and monitoring
Learn about the tools and technologies that enable more visibility into IT infrastructure, integration between IT management tools, tailored alerts for IT professionals and new areas of performance monitoring and management.
Top Stories
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Feature
18 Dec 2024
Top data center infrastructure management software in 2025
DCIM tools can improve data center management and operation. Learn how six prominent products can help organizations control costs, manage energy and track assets. Continue Reading
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News
18 Dec 2024
AWS, Red Hat hybrid cloud wares court VMware converts
Broadcom has softened some of its stances on VMware licensing and public cloud, but competitors stay poised to pounce on customers looking to defect. Continue Reading
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Opinion
16 Dec 2021
ITIL vs. DevOps: What path should an enterprise choose?
Frameworks and methodologies must keep pace with technology stacks. ITIL fell too far behind between the release of ITIL 3 and ITIL 4, but there might be a middle ground. Continue Reading
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Definition
06 Dec 2021
live migration
Live migration refers to the process of moving a virtual machine running on one physical host to another host without disrupting normal operations or causing any downtime or other adverse effects for the end user. Continue Reading
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Tip
11 Nov 2021
6 common IT problems in business and how to navigate them
Remote work has created an array of new problems to address for business operation and support. Tackling them might be a little tricky. Continue Reading
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Tip
10 Nov 2021
Update incident response runbooks to meet new requirements
Incident response runbooks provide IT teams with the information needed to resolve common and serious incidents. Break a runbook down into flows to construct documentation. Continue Reading
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Tip
08 Nov 2021
Spreading the DevOps observability responsibility across IT
In a DevOps environment, who oversees observability? Learn how to divide IT observability tasks and management, starting with a solid communication and collaboration strategy. Continue Reading
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Tip
01 Nov 2021
Dark data discovery: How and where to find it
Before an organization can use dark data, it must find it. Here's how an enterprise can build a plan to locate, use and manage dark data and overcome its challenges. Continue Reading
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News
21 Oct 2021
Splunk pricing, observability updates push cloud shift
Some Splunk customers are newly receptive to the vendor's cloud push in a pandemic-stricken economy, and it's piled on further pricing incentives to sweeten the deal. Continue Reading
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Tip
18 Oct 2021
Consider Grafana vs. Prometheus for your time-series tools
Grafana and Prometheus both monitor logs, manage reports and store time-series data -- but differ significantly. Discover their pros and cons with these examples and use cases. Continue Reading
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Tip
12 Oct 2021
How machine learning strengthens incident management
As systems failures pile up, machine learning stands as an alternative to improve response quality and save money. Learn the benefits and drawbacks to the approach. Continue Reading
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Definition
08 Oct 2021
COBOL (Common Business Oriented Language)
COBOL (Common Business-Oriented Language) is a high-level programming language for business applications. It was the first popular language designed to be operating system-agnostic and is still in use in many financial and business applications today. Continue Reading
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Definition
07 Oct 2021
What is a virtual hard drive?
A virtual hard drive file is a container file that acts similar to a physical hard drive. Continue Reading
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Definition
07 Oct 2021
Xen
Xen is the open source hypervisor included in the Linux kernel and, as such, it is available in all Linux distributions. Continue Reading
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Definition
04 Oct 2021
distributed tracing
Distributed tracing, also called distributed request tracing, is a method for IT and DevOps teams to monitor applications, especially those composed of microservices. Continue Reading
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Definition
04 Oct 2021
What is Datadog?
Datadog is a monitoring and analytics tool for information technology (IT) and DevOps teams that can be used to determine performance metrics as well as event monitoring for infrastructure and cloud services. Continue Reading
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Definition
01 Oct 2021
What is Application Performance Index (Apdex)?
Application Performance Index, also known as Apdex, is an open standard intended to simplify reports of application performance. Continue Reading
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Answer
27 Sep 2021
Best practices and tools for public cloud monitoring
Public cloud adoption has ramped up in recent years. In these busy environments, certain cloud network monitoring tools can provide IT groups with crucial visibility. Continue Reading
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Tip
21 Sep 2021
How to mine dark data with machine learning and AI
Machine learning and AI can transform unstructured dark data into valuable business insights. Learn how to process dark data and use the information to your advantage. Continue Reading
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Definition
20 Sep 2021
runbook
Runbooks are a set of standardized written procedures for completing repetitive IT processes within a company. Continue Reading
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Answer
16 Sep 2021
Why and how to use eBPF for Kubernetes scaling
Scaling Kubernetes clusters has always been a challenge -- but eBPF makes the process smoother with service-specific monitors and a lack of special instrumentation. Continue Reading
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Tip
09 Sep 2021
Blockchain: An immutable ledger to replace the database
Blockchains create a secure encryption beneficial to many businesses. This article offers use cases, benefits and limitations of the electronic database. Continue Reading
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Tip
25 Aug 2021
Take advantage of eBPF's monitoring capabilities on Linux
The benefits of an eBPF program extend wide, including into monitoring and observability. See how the Linux kernel utility increases how much of a system an admin can monitor. Continue Reading
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Tip
09 Aug 2021
3 FAQs to improve your Hyper-V basic knowledge
It is critical to develop a foundation of Hyper-V knowledge for successful management. These three FAQs can broaden your Hyper-V expertise prior to installation and deployment. Continue Reading
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Tutorial
03 Aug 2021
Working with PowerShell Secret Management and Secret Vault
The two new PowerShell modules put API keys, credentials and other secrets under lock and key to protect sensitive information in automation and remoting scenarios. Continue Reading
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Tutorial
27 Jul 2021
Try PSScriptAnalyzer to check PowerShell code best practices
Meeting best practices can be a tough feat. Thankfully, PowerShell Script Analyzer checks the code for you. Follow these examples to learn how it works and get started. Continue Reading
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Feature
23 Jul 2021
AIOps network management requires vendor-buyer teamwork
Before buying AIOps tools, network managers should work closely with vendors to ensure they collect the correct network data and use relevant algorithms. Continue Reading
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Tip
21 Jul 2021
Get familiar with the basics of vMotion live migration
VMware's vMotion simplifies the process of VM live migration. To use it properly, familiarize yourself with requirements for network bandwidth, host sizes and how it works. Continue Reading
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Tip
15 Jul 2021
Navigate hybrid cloud observability with 3 techniques
Observability isn't just monitoring, and hybrid cloud environments have unique management demands. Use these techniques to get the best out of your organization's ecosystem. Continue Reading
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Tip
13 Jul 2021
Hyper-V vs. KVM: Select the right hypervisor for your IT needs
Hyper-V and KVM are common hypervisor options. Before you commit to one, evaluate which OS type, available features and memory requirements work for your infrastructure. Continue Reading
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Tip
22 Jun 2021
Tips to launch VirtualBox nested virtualization
Nested VMs make it easy to expand VM capacity without additional hardware. Take a look at the process to avoid any major issues and get these VMs up and running. Continue Reading
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Tip
15 Jun 2021
Evaluate 3 application performance monitoring strategies
There is more than one approach to performance monitoring, and each comes with its own advantages. Compare these three strategies to find the right fit for your organization. Continue Reading
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Opinion
10 Jun 2021
Don't limit observability to 3 pillars
Logs, metrics and tracing are the pillars of observability but fall short in system health comprehension. Learn why data source tracking gives better insight into your environment. Continue Reading
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Tip
09 Jun 2021
Easily transfer VMs to the cloud with Microsoft Azure Migrate
It takes time to plan, assess and set up a VM migration. Microsoft's Azure Migrate gives you a central dashboard to efficiently get your VMware and Hyper-V VMs into the cloud. Continue Reading
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Tip
04 Jun 2021
Run servers from anywhere with Hyper-V remote management
Microsoft's Hyper-V Manager makes it easy to set up remote options and standardizes hypervisor resource allocation and deployments. Continue Reading
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Tip
03 Jun 2021
Should IT organizations use a SaaS management platform?
The proliferation of SaaS has created a real challenge for IT teams trying to get a handle on all their apps. See why a SaaS management platform might be the right fix. Continue Reading
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Definition
01 Jun 2021
chaos engineering
Chaos engineering is the process of testing a distributed computing system to ensure that it can withstand unexpected disruptions. Continue Reading
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Tip
27 May 2021
AI augments capacity planning with machine learning smarts
With lower costs and better task optimization, AIOps can revolutionize IT infrastructures. Learn why this approach is a must-have for enterprises. Continue Reading
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News
19 Apr 2021
Log management tools add finesse to Elasticsearch
Vendors that bring log management expertise to open source Elasticsearch helped unlock collaboration and incident response for companies that had struggled with ELK on their own. Continue Reading
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Tip
13 Apr 2021
Use these metrics to manage availability
Learn about uptime availability metrics that are critical to meeting business goals for your organization's systems and applications. Then, see how to put them into action. Continue Reading
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Tip
08 Apr 2021
Master containerized microservices monitoring
Before IT teams can enjoy the benefits that containers and microservices bring, they must tackle several monitoring hurdles first. Continue Reading
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Tip
29 Mar 2021
Understand IT change management vs. configuration management
When examining change management vs. configuration management, it's easy to confuse them. These examples illustrate how they intertwine, but still address different areas. Continue Reading
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News
22 Mar 2021
Nordic bank fights money launderers with log analytics
The IT team at Lunar created an interface into its log analytics system for the bank's fraud investigators, which helped uncover specific data about questionable accounts. Continue Reading
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Tip
17 Mar 2021
Tackle Kubernetes observability with the right metrics
Observability is a natural extension of IT monitoring -- and container environments only get more complicated. Use the right metrics for the greatest return. Continue Reading
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News
11 Mar 2021
Mendix dumps cluttered DevOps monitoring tools for Datadog
The IT teams that run Mendix PaaS sped up incident response by tossing out a confusing mix of DevOps monitoring tools and settling on one vendor. Continue Reading
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Tip
09 Mar 2021
6 virtual server management best practices
When overseeing virtual servers, take advantage of self-service VM management, VM templates, monitoring tools and permissions groups to ease the management burden. Continue Reading
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Tip
08 Mar 2021
The keys to an efficient help desk staffing model
Hiring skilled staff alone to fill help desk roles is not enough to improve workflows. Learn how to unlock a help desk's full potential with these tips. Continue Reading
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Tip
03 Mar 2021
CPRA compliance creates complications for IT ops
Data compliance only gets tougher as new privacy protection laws are passed. California's privacy regulations mean IT ops teams must reconfigure their data collection processes. Continue Reading
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Tip
02 Mar 2021
How to perform a Hyper-V to VMware migration
Before you migrate from Hyper-V to VMware, you should take a comprehensive inventory, set an agreed-upon schedule and communicate the potential effects to all relevant parties. Continue Reading
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Tip
25 Feb 2021
Improve help desk workflows via stronger staff support
Subject experts can be expensive to retain on the help desk, but they're vital to success. Balance training and task delegation to ensure staff engagement and growth. Continue Reading
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News
24 Feb 2021
Observability updates target DevOps pipelines
LogicMonitor's Airbrake acquisition and a new Dynatrace product strengthen correlations between code releases and IT infrastructure performance. Continue Reading
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Tip
23 Feb 2021
Memory management strategies improve VM performance
There are several memory management options, each with their own use cases. Understanding the differences can help admins optimize virtual memory and mitigate resource contention. Continue Reading
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Tip
12 Feb 2021
Evaluate open source vs. proprietary AIOps tools
Cut through the market hype surrounding AIOps to find the tool that suits your needs, comparing the pros and cons of open source vs. proprietary tools. Continue Reading
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News
12 Feb 2021
Dynatrace expands observability tools with an eye toward BI
With new features and roadmap plans, Dynatrace looked past IT observability toward becoming a broader business intelligence platform. Continue Reading
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Feature
28 Jan 2021
IT observability and monitoring illuminate application data
Observability extends beyond traditional IT monitoring tools and processes to arm DevOps teams with the level of insight they need. Continue Reading
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Tip
22 Jan 2021
Logging as a service isn't SIEM -- so what is it?
What is LaaS and how does it work? Storing logs in the cloud can be a voluminous -- and expensive -- challenge, but the cloud offers a variety of enticing benefits. Continue Reading
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Tip
07 Jan 2021
4 monitoring and alerting best practices for IT ops
Monitoring is vital in modern IT environments, but the variety of metrics to track can swiftly overtake admins' capacity -- and sanity. Continue Reading
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Tip
06 Jan 2021
OpenShift Virtualization 2.5 simplifies VM modernization
Red Hat's OpenShift platform enables admins to take a phased approach to retiring legacy applications while moving toward a container-based environment. Continue Reading
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Tip
30 Dec 2020
Get to know Oracle VM VirtualBox 6.1 and learn to install it
Oracle VM VirtualBox offers a host of appealing features, such as multigeneration branched snapshots and guest multiprocessing. Continue Reading
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Tip
22 Dec 2020
How AI in the help desk transforms IT support
For IT help desk staff, it should no longer be a question of whether AI will transform their jobs -- but when. Prepare for changes around ticket workflows, troubleshooting and more. Continue Reading
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News
18 Nov 2020
Observability standards emerge as Kubernetes matures
Enterprise IT pros have tackled how to handle Kubernetes deployments. Now, they're relying on open source observability standards to help keep cloud-native apps healthy. Continue Reading
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News
18 Nov 2020
IBM buys observability vendor Instana
IBM intends to purchase Instana, maker of application monitoring and observability tools, and then couple its technology with the Watson AIOps portfolio. Continue Reading
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Tip
16 Nov 2020
7-step pandemic return-to-work IT infrastructure checklist
As employees return on site, ensure your HCI can handle the changes. Follow these steps for checking system hardware and storage, as well as securing software and firmware. Continue Reading
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Guest Post
16 Nov 2020
How to use Slack and Fluentd to demonstrate social output
Phil Wilkins provides step-by-step instructions on how DevOps teams can enable Slack to capture log events from the open source data collection tool Fluentd. Continue Reading
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Answer
12 Nov 2020
What are the cost considerations when buying AIOps tools?
AIOps tools can reduce overhead for IT staff, but first, enterprises must decide how they will use the tool to know which features to budget for. Continue Reading
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Tip
06 Nov 2020
Bolster remote IT management with these security tips
The remote management of IT systems has become essential -- but admins need to uphold that responsibility in a way that doesn't compromise security. Continue Reading
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News
29 Oct 2020
Observability blitz intensifies with Grafana, AppDynamics
Grafana and AppDynamics are the latest monitoring vendors to try to capitalize on the hype around observability, as users face more complex choices than ever in this market. Continue Reading
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News
22 Oct 2020
Splunk Observability integrates acquisitions, boosts AIOps
Splunk opened the product update floodgates this week with a new Observability Suite that integrates recent acquisitions, enhanced AIOps and the purchase of two more companies. Continue Reading
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News
13 Oct 2020
Optimiz taps Moogsoft AIOps platform
Moogsoft's relationship with Optimiz, a partner based in Toronto, expands the company's IT channel relationships in the growing AIOps market. Continue Reading
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Tip
12 Oct 2020
Compare runbooks vs. playbooks for IT process documentation
Despite some contextual differences, runbooks and playbooks serve a similar purpose in the enterprise: to document critical processes. Continue Reading
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News
08 Oct 2020
Sumo Logic ships tools for AWS, Kubernetes observability
Sumo Logic has rolled out AWS and Kubernetes observability tools with automated root cause analysis. Users say they offer easy setup at an affordable price. Continue Reading
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News
07 Oct 2020
Oracle launches Cloud Observability and Management Platform
Oracle's new Cloud Observability and Management Platform seeks to appeal to customers with complex multi-cloud and on-premises environments. Continue Reading
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Tip
07 Oct 2020
QEMU 5.0 continues a legacy of emulation
Admins looking for an alternative tool for emulating hardware should consider QEMU, which supports x86, PowerPC, ARM and SPARC architectures. Continue Reading
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Tip
28 Sep 2020
An overview of Xen Cloud Platform components, features
Xen's open source product, XCP, enables admins to perform various virtualization operations, such as live migrations and VM lifecycle management. Continue Reading
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Tip
14 Sep 2020
How to approach IT logging in the cloud vs. on premises
IT organizations must monitor cloud infrastructure and apps with a process that's different than they're used to for on-premises environments. Learn how to do cloud logging here. Continue Reading
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Feature
03 Sep 2020
Just what can AI in IT operations accomplish?
How should the 'AI' in 'AIOps' work? The idea is for it to identify and solve problems in ways similar to how the human mind would -- except faster and without prompting. Continue Reading
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News
03 Sep 2020
Kubernetes monitoring eases migration, security at scale
IT pros in high-scale environments have found that moving to Kubernetes-based infrastructure called for a fresh approach to monitoring for performance and security. Continue Reading
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Tip
02 Sep 2020
Threat identification is IT ops' role in SecOps
IT operations teams can take steps to improve security as part of their daily tasks. Learn about the ways to identify threat incidents and reduce false positives. Continue Reading
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Tip
28 Aug 2020
5 open source software applications for virtualization
Open source software comes with many benefits, but admins must first determine whether each tool's use cases align with their workload needs. Continue Reading
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News
21 Aug 2020
OpenTelemetry aids distributed tracing, Kubernetes monitoring
OpenTelemetry combines multiple CNCF observability projects, as well as multiple enterprise data collection mechanisms, simplifying Kubernetes monitoring. Continue Reading
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Tip
21 Aug 2020
How to build a successful IT service desk
The IT service desk has a lot to manage. With a strong foundation and the right steps in place to handle issues, it can take on anything users throw at it. Continue Reading
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Tip
13 Aug 2020
Tools and techniques to master API management in production
APIs are a cornerstone of modern application development. IT ops teams must monitor and manage APIs in production to resolve issues that hinder performance. Continue Reading
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Feature
12 Aug 2020
Memory management techniques improve system performance
Prior to using memory management strategies, admins should familiarize themselves with approaches to ensure they implement techniques suited to their specific circumstances. Continue Reading
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Tutorial
11 Aug 2020
Implement simple server monitoring with PowerShell
Administrators who build a server monitoring framework with PowerShell can develop their own customized checks for deeper insights into their environment. Continue Reading
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Feature
31 Jul 2020
4 FAQs to help master KVM management
When it comes to managing KVM, admins should do their homework and research common questions to better understand the technology and ensure peak performance. Continue Reading
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News
30 Jul 2020
New Relic pricing plummets with product overhaul
New Relic dropped pricing for a newly unified set of IT monitoring tools, as it faces fresh competitive pressures and users adjust to cloud-native complexity. Continue Reading
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Video
17 Jul 2020
Windows Server System Insights steers admins from trouble
The predictive analytics feature in Windows Server 2019 gives administrators a heads-up to potential problems to avoid the scrambling when help desk tickets start to pile up. Continue Reading
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Tutorial
16 Jul 2020
Follow this Grafana Loki tutorial to query IT log data
IT pros evaluating log data should try tools like Grafana Loki. Follow this tutorial to see how it works firsthand, exploring LogCLI and LogQL. Continue Reading
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Feature
06 Jul 2020
Modern IT KPIs emphasize cloud, DevOps and user experience
When it comes to KPIs, IT ops teams have typically prioritized process-centric metrics, but recent technical and cultural shifts have started to change that. Continue Reading
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Tip
02 Jul 2020
Explore common machine learning use cases in IT operations
Machine learning is a hot topic with use cases that span IT and the business. Learn how IT operations teams most commonly apply the technology -- from help desk response to gauging end-user satisfaction. Continue Reading
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News
02 Jul 2020
AIOps tools expand as users warm slowly to autoremediation
AIOps tool vendors keep expanding the environments they can support with automated remediation features, but users are taking their time to move beyond root cause analysis. Continue Reading
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Tip
26 Jun 2020
5 critical help desk KPIs to track and manage
IT operations teams shouldn't view help desk KPIs in isolation, but rather as a set of closely related metrics that work together to track the user experience and costs. Continue Reading
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Tip
25 Jun 2020
Evaluate 3 IT ops use cases for the Aternity monitoring tool
Operations teams can use data from an IT environment to detect, prevent and remediate issues. With Aternity, they can specifically track metrics and manage tasks related to user experience. Continue Reading
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Feature
17 Jun 2020
Lessons learned: Strategies to adjust IT operations in a crisis
Curious how other businesses adjusted their IT operations strategies in light of COVID-19? Look back at these five recent SearchITOperations news stories to find out. Continue Reading
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Tutorial
16 Jun 2020
A Graylog tutorial to centrally manage IT logs
Graylog enables IT admins to manage and analyze log data from multiple sources. Use this tutorial to set up the tool and learn its primary features, such as pipelines and extractors. Continue Reading
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Feature
12 Jun 2020
ServiceNow vs. Jira Service Desk for ITSM workflow management
ServiceNow and Jira Service Desk are both big names in ITSM, but which one is better for your workflow management needs? Compare the two tools in terms of flexibility, integration support and more. Continue Reading
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News
05 Jun 2020
New ServiceNow workflows extend into more markets
ServiceNow continues to direct its workflows toward vertical markets with new offerings for telecommunications, financial services and healthcare markets. Continue Reading
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Tutorial
04 Jun 2020
How to set up Prometheus for Kubernetes monitoring
Prometheus enables IT teams to automate and quickly configure infrastructure monitoring with open source tools natively in Kubernetes. Follow this tutorial to get started. Continue Reading
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Feature
29 May 2020
How to integrate DevOps into an IT monitoring strategy
When it comes to IT monitoring, a DevOps toolchain presents opportunities and challenges. Follow best practices to ensure your teams see and fix problems appropriately. Continue Reading
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Tip
29 May 2020
Why automated user provisioning still demands a human touch
IT teams can automate away many -- but not all -- of the tedious tasks associated with user provisioning. A human operator is still essential to ensure accurate account details. Continue Reading
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Tip
27 May 2020
Proxmox VE 6 and later offers container features, better security
Proxmox VE, an open source virtualization management product, provides admins with several features, such as VM live migration, backup abilities and high availability. Continue Reading
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Tip
27 May 2020
Get started with threshold monitoring
IT monitoring doesn't have to be difficult to set up and use. Learn how to set thresholds and dashboards, know when and how to escalate responses, and keep IT systems humming along. Continue Reading