What Is MS Operations Manager?
Microsoft System Center Operations Manager 2007 is a next-generation network management software platform that keeps track of the availability, throughput, and safety of your information system by automatically detecting trouble and trends occurring on critical computers across your entire environment.

Operations Manager operates by continually examining event history from critical servers, then selecting, organizing, and evaluating these network events according to a comprehensive expert database. When MS Operations Manager identifies problems or a possibly dangerous trend, it can execute special repair routines or generate alarms to warn appropriate service personnel. For instance, Operations Manager can proactively take off line a compromised server to stop the propagation of a discovered virus. MS Operations Manager also generates trend reports so you can monitor the robustness of your information system and make sure that trouble alerts have been satisfactorily addressed.

Microsoft Operations Manager 2007 features powerful enhancements over Microsoft Operations Manager 2005 such as informative new reports and a simple to modify reporting environment, plus minimization of false alarms thanks to advanced expert monitoring parameters that learn and adapt alerting behavior to the ordinary business operation of applications and hardware. System Center Operations Manager 2007 also features new model-based management. By defining the IT setup as models, Operations Manager 2007 can better learn the relationships between the various applications and hardware that make up your information technology environment. These models, defined in the System Definition Model that represents the foundation for the standard Services Modeling Language, permit more fine-grained detection of service components and the power to track not only the servers but the entire end-to-end service as a unique object.

MS Operations Manager Management Packs
Management Packs are the modular extensions which bring Microsoft Operations Manager management features to operating systems, programs and utilities, and other network components. A Management Pack contains field-tested knowledge to find, track, troubleshoot, report on, and resolve problems for a specific network component. Management Packs include health models based on the Systems Definition Model to analyze the performance, reliability, configuration and protection data, plus the status of associated components, to decide the overall status of components. Operations Manager Management Packs are available for Microsoft and third party operating systems, software products, and network appliances.

Microsoft has created Operations Manager Management Packs for more then 60 Microsoft products and software components. Microsoft's MPs are written by the same developers who created the associated products so the experience and information included comes from the industry's most expert authority. All of the Management Packs are offered for authorized users of System Center Operations Manager 2007. MP modules available from Microsoft include:

  • Microsoft Windows 2008 Application Server
  • Microsoft Windows 2003 Server and Windows 2000 Server
  • Microsoft Active Directory (AD)
  • MS Exchange Server 2007, Exchange Server 2003, Exchange 2000 and Exchange 5.5
  • SQL Server 2005
  • MS SharePoint Server
  • Microsoft Dynamics CRM 3.0 Server
  • MS Server Virtualization
  • Microsoft Network Load Balancing
  • Windows Computer Cluster Server 2003
  • Microsoft Internet Information Services (IIS) 2003 and 2000
  • Host Integration Server 2006
  • Microsoft ISA Server 2006 and ISA Server 2004
  • MS Live Communications Server
  • MS Systems Management Server (SMS)
  • MS .NET Framework
  • Windows XP OS for PCs
  • Microsoft Commerce Server
  • MS DHCP Service
  • MS Message Queuing
  • Microsoft Windows DNS Service 2003
  • File Replication Services (FRS) 2003
  • WINS 2003 and 2000
  • Microsoft Routing and Remote Access
  • SNA Server 4.0
  • Microsoft Distributed Transaction Coordinator
  • Microsoft Terminal Services
  • MS Transaction Server
  • Site Server
  • MS Application Center 2000
  • MS Proxy Server

    Third-party and Customized Operations Manager 2007 Management Packs
    Operations Manager 2007 MPs for many independently published products such as Linux, Oracle, and SAP, and for a variety of network appliances, are produced and available from Microsoft Partners. There are over one hundred Microsoft Partner MPs covering most networking technologies utilized by most businesses.

    Microsoft has published several tools creating or customizing MPs for System Center Operations Manager 2007. Microsoft's Distributed Application Designer is a GUI-based tool for assisting IT administrators to create performance profiles and Management Packs for their information technology Services. The Management Pack Authoring Console is a graphical utility designed to help IT administrators and programmers to create Management Packs for their specialized applications and other technology components. The Operations Manager 2007 Software Development Kit provides programming APIs so programmers can more thoroughly integrate with and regulate System Center Operations Manager 2007.

    Benefits of Microsoft Operations Manager
    System Center Operations Manager 2007 increases the availability of mission-critical servers by proactively identifying and helping to resolve problems before they can bring down a network. For an example of how Microsoft Operations Manager has helped a San Francisco Bay Area small business, go to the Microsoft Operations Manager Case Study.

    Microsoft Operations Manager can improve network throughput by checking predefined performance thresholds and usage patterns on critical servers, allowing IT support personnel to be more proactive in deploying performance-boosting products and to address problem areas before they cause severe network bottlenecks.

    Microsoft Operations Manager reduces support staffing expenses by streamlining the procedures of system management. Because Microsoft Operations Manager can efficiently monitor and organize enormous amounts of information gathered from many servers, fewer network managers are required to oversee operations. Also, the capability of MS Operations Manager to perform automatically in response to alerts makes it possible to create expert procedures that can take complex remedial steps which would ordinarily call for the manual intervention of technical staff.

    By automatically creating alerts and distributing them via e-mail or pagers to designated IT personnel, Operations Manager makes it simpler for IT organizations to maintain SLAs. MS Operations Manager's Knowledge Base helps deal with problems more quickly, and Microsoft Operations Manager's reports make sure that job tickets don't fall through the cracks. Automatic round-the-clock monitoring and alarm generation also allows businesses to utilize their support group more effectively so that more tasks can be taken on without compromising network support.

    In a nutshell, Microsoft Operations Manager offers small and midsize businesses the benefits of 24x7 network monitoring plus expertise in troubleshooting without having to manage a big, full-time IT staff.

    How Progent Can Help You Benefit from Microsoft Operations Manager
    Configuring System Center Operations Manager's, sophisticated monitoring platform can be a challenge. With over five years of background with the NetIQ product upon which Microsoft Operations Manager is based, Progent's network consulting experts can assist you to chose appropriate Microsoft Operations Manager features, deploy and set up Microsoft Operations Manager, and write custom rules, procedures, reports, and alerts for your business. Progent can also document Operations Manager's application monitoring policies and procedures.

    For network issues detected by Operations Manager, you can outsource trouble tickets to Progent's Microsoft-qualified consulting team. With years of network management background, these support specialists possess the know-how to react efficiently to the data produced by System Center Operations Manager to keep business-critical systems running steadily. By analyzing trend reports and reacting appropriately to alerts, Progent can eliminate emerging issues before they cause downtime and fix critical problems immediately after they occur. In most cases, Progent can solve problems remotely, saving time and money. For serious trouble that calls for on-premise service, Progent can quickly send a service consultant to the location of any small or medium-size company in the San Francisco Bay Area or in major cities nationally.

    Progent's extensive staff of IT professionals makes it possible, if necessary, to solve tough problems by tapping the talents to some of the industry's most knowledgeable computer consultants.

    To learn additional information about System Center Operations Manager and how Progent can help your small or midsize company achieve enterprise-class network management by deploying this revolutionary technology, pick one of these links:

    In order to get in touch with Progent about technical assistance for System Center Operations Manager 2007, phone 1-800-993-9400 or send email to operations-manager-help@progent.com.

    Progent's Support Services for Microsoft .NET Servers
    For small and mid-sized companies in the San Francisco region, Northern California, or anywhere in the U.S., Progent's Microsoft-certified experts offer network assistance and IT consulting services for the whole family of Microsoft .NET Enterprise Servers, Microsoft Windows 2008 Server, and Windows 2003 Server. Progent's migration, integration, update, and consulting capabilities include network architecture, deployment, and administration outsourcing for project management and documentation, local and off-site technical help and network repair, Help Desk Outsourcing Support, certified security expertise, full-service outsourcing, and network and application server hosting options.

    In case you needs urgent online support from a certified network expert, refer to Progent's Urgent Online Technical Support.

    Find out additional details concerning Progent's Consulting and Support Services for Microsoft Server Products.













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