System administrators usually take action after monitoring software indicates the failure of a service or server. In contrast to this reactive approach, a proactive monitoring solution with Riemann allows admins to detect problems in advance.
SCO 2012 R2 lets admins automate workflows and processes using a graphical user interface.
Containers are an essential ingredient for various DevOps concepts, but used incorrectly, they do more harm than good.
In ESXi environments, the powerful Puppet automatic configuration tool can perform its services and roll out VMs automatically. A test environment shows the benefits of Puppet in conjunction with vSphere.
The new version of the Ansible IT automation platform has a revised and faster engine and 200 new modules.
Keeping track of hardware, software, and licenses is next to impossible in these days of BYOD and virtualization. Spiceworks Inventory solves the problem with a single, small executable full of open source software and a web browser.
Automation is part of life in the data center, and Puppet is commonly regarded as the King of the Hill, but some users prefer the lean alternative Ansible.
Canonical's Landscape management environment is an admin's friend when Ubuntu systems need patching, updating, and provisioning.
Etcd, ZooKeeper, Consul, and similar programs are currently the subject of heated debate in the world of configuration management. We investigate the problems they seek to solve and promises they make.
Ansible offers automatic provisioning and configuration capabilities similar to that of Chef and Puppet, but it's aimed more at admins than developers.
