Hello Alan,
Understood and agree. Too many projects are not sized properly,
have not been tested, or have not been researched well enough for what
is really wanted and the resources needed to make them work.
Thank you for your input.
Ed Martin
Aultman Health Foundation
330-588-4723
[EMAIL PROTECTED]
ext. 40441
> -----Original Message-----
> From: The IBM z/VM Operating System [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]
On
> Behalf Of Alan Altmark
> Sent: Wednesday, January 24, 2007 12:57 PM
> To: IBMVM@LISTSERV.UARK.EDU
> Subject: Re: Question on LINUX
> Importance: Low
>
> On Wednesday, 01/24/2007 at 12:06 EST, "Edward M. Martin"
> <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote:
> > Yes you are very correct. I am running without any real
> > monitoring tools now (for z/VM). I keep pushing. The upper Echelon
are
> > not pushing back as hard as they use to.
> >
> > Thank you for the info and insight.
>
> In general, a z/VM system that is moving from Proof of Concept, or
pilot,
> to production often involves some considerations:
> - Additional hardware
> - Additional software (e.g. system management)
> - Additional process (paperwork)
> - Additional people to deal with the above
>
> The hardware considerations are often only known by going through
sizing
> exercises, and that means understanding your workload. While all
Linux
> kernels may be similar, the applications they support and their usage
> patterns are not. So the performance management suite comes into play
> early.
>
> And the system that previously sat in a dusty corner minding its own
> business is all of a sudden front-and-center on the IT stage. I
hesitate
> to say it, but the paranoid Security Weenies will find you ("and your
> little dog, too!"). Do you have proper resource and user management
> processes? Do you have tools to implement those processes? Can you
> demonstrate that you are using Due Diligence to protect the system and
the
> information it contains? Can you (and do you) monitor the system for
> intrusion attempts? How do you react to those?
>
> Performance. Security. What else?
> - Health checking (monitoring)
> - Disaster recovery (backup, archive)
> - Automation (as a way to control personnel costs)
> - Tooling for change management
>
> (I've probably missed a major activity, but you get the idea.)
>
> Naturally, your choice of software can be shaped by politics, too. If
> your management software needs to integrate into the infrastructure
> already present in the enterprise, you may have to make different
choices.
> "Be sure to look both ways before crossing the street!" mother said.
It
> was good advice then, it's good advice now.
>
> It may seem overwhelming, but it really isn't. Even the capital
outlay
> for the additional software will pale in comparison to the cost
savings
> you hope to realize by using System z. But it is VITAL to have an
> understanding that the decision to deploy Linux on System z in a
> production environment is but the *first* step in a multi-step
process.
> This is why Linux is "free as in speech, NOT as in beer." Nothing we
do
> in IT is free.
>
> Alan Altmark
> z/VM Development
> IBM Endicott
