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    Riverbed Integrates App and Network Performance Management

    After promising to integrate application and network performance management when it acquired OPNET Technologies last year, Riverbed Technology has unveiled an appliance that runs both OPNET application performance management software and the company’s existing Cascade network performance management software.

    According to Michael Cucchi, senior director of product marketing for Riverbed Technology, the Shark module for AppResponse Xpert adds network intelligence to a platform that originally only provided visibility into application performance issues. Since network and application performance issues are closely intertwined, Cucchi says it now makes sense to unify the management of application and network performance. In addition to the module, Riverbed also added a high-end appliance for environments where application performance requires increased scale.

    Cucchi says it’s apparent that many IT organizations are starting to reorganize around multi-faceted teams tasked with optimizing the performance of a particular business service instead of the silos of IT staff dedicated to managing a specific function that has dominated IT management until recently.

    A major driver of that reorganization, Cucchi says, has been greater awareness of DevOps issues that organizations are trying to address to create more agile IT organizations.

    IT organizations are finding that the rate of change in the enterprise is approaching levels where they can no longer manage functions in isolation. The challenge this creates is two-fold. The first is acquiring management tools that provide a more holistic view of the entire environment that provides specific actionable intelligence. The second is revamping reporting structures in a way that encourages more collaboration across the IT organization.

    The benefits of that approach should be faster problem resolution times and a more agile IT organization that is capable of preempting problems before they become apparent to the rest of the business.

    However, creating a truly agile IT organization probably has a lot more to do with the way people are organized and compensated than it does the actual tools that are available.

    Mike Vizard
    Mike Vizard
    Michael Vizard is a seasoned IT journalist, with nearly 30 years of experience writing and editing about enterprise IT issues. He is a contributor to publications including Programmableweb, IT Business Edge, CIOinsight and UBM Tech. He formerly was editorial director for Ziff-Davis Enterprise, where he launched the company’s custom content division, and has also served as editor in chief for CRN and InfoWorld. He also has held editorial positions at PC Week, Computerworld and Digital Review.

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