Configuration Management - Track critical
configurations
The Opsware Server Management System tracks, backs
up and recovers critical software and system configuration
information across Unix and Windows servers. System
administrators can set up Configuration Management policies
that describe which configurations to track. Policies
can be attached to software, individual servers, groups
of servers, and customers, and applied either locally
or globally across data centers.
When the Opsware Server Management System notices a
server configuration change, it can log the change,
notify administrators about the change via email, and/or
backup the configuration, depending on the policy set
by the administrator. When a bad configuration change
forces administrators to rollback to a previous version,
they can use the Opsware System to restore back to the
previous saved version of the configuration with a single
click. By notifying users about configuration changes--and
maintaining a version history of those changes--organizations
can quickly diagnose problems related to configuration
errors and quickly rollback to a previous, reliable
known good state. In addition, this capability helps
teams plug security holes inadvertently created by bad
server configurations.
With Opsware, system administrators can define configuration-tracking
policies on a per-application basis. Once a policy is
defined, they can apply the policy to all the servers,
for example WebLogic servers, running in their environment,
or to specific servers.
Critical configuration tracking is an integrated part
of the Opsware System and administrators enjoy unique
benefits when compared to stand-alone configuration
management tools:
Understands the environment. Because Opsware
configuration tracking leverages the same blueprint
of the environment as the rest of Opsware, it has built-in
knowledge about what applications are running on which
servers. Therefore, Opsware can automatically apply
the right policy based on what software is running on
which server. With traditional enterprise management
tools, IT teams might use three different tools to accomplish
the same task: (1) a software distribution tool to install
and configure the software, (2) a file- and directory-based
backup product to backup and restore critical information,
and (3) an asset tracking system to figure out where
that software application is running. Using Opsware,
all this information is stored, viewed, and managed
in the Opsware Software Tree. The centralization of
this operational knowledge leads to higher quality,
lower costs, and increased consistency across the server
environment.
Easy rollback. Like other Opsware features,
other configuration tracking allows administrators to
easily rollback to any known good configuration state.
This can save hours of searching through backup tapes,
event histories, and ticket details to get the exact
file or set of files needed to get a server back up
and running.
Unified audit trail. Opsware maintains a history
of what backups, notifications, and restorations have
been performed. In addition, Opsware maintains a history
of OS provisioning, software installation, patching,
code and content deployments and rollbacks, and script
execution on that server. Any authorized administrators
can therefore see a comprehensive view of what has happened
on a server rather than looking through the event logs
of three or four different systems.
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Configuration
Management using Opsware Server Management Solutions