Introduction
IT Service Management (ITSM) is evolving from the discipline of managing the infrastructure based purely on perceived technical requirements (for example, simply ensuring bandwidth is available) to managing the same infrastructure based upon organisational requirements (for example, ensuring bandwidth is available for those applications that are mission critical), and where necessary throttling bandwidth for non-essential applications or usage).
Stated in those bald terms this may not appear to be too onerous a task, but the reality is different. Organisational requirements change in a highly dynamic fashion, and infrastructure usage requirements change based on any number of factors, such as:
Application requirement based on time of day or month.
Process based bandwidth requirements.
The requesting client for an infrastructure element.
Organisational hierarchical structures.
In order to create the management structure required involves a plethora of tools and disciplines. A total view into the infrastructure has to be provided as a central element. In order to provide 'smart' management, all the available resources have to be mapped and made available to those tasked with ensuring continuity of service. Once this view has been created then it becomes possible to map the interdependencies of the objects within the infrastructure and manage them while maintaining an overall business requirement viewpoint.
This holistic view and control of the organisational environment is provided by configuration management. The complexities now present within IT infrastructures emphasise the need for automated configuration management to assist in the creation and maintenance of the map of the infrastructure. In many organisations, it is impossible to even consider carrying out this task manually, and those that do attempt it will find that it is labour-intensive, expensive, and the resulting output persistently out of date. Of course, out of date information can be more dangerous and damaging than no information, and it can cause severe problems when decisions are made on false, incorrect configuration data.
Configuration management involves the identification and definition of the assets within the IT infrastructure such as switches, software, and servers, and the relationship between the various components. When stored in a central database such as an ITIL CMDB, and it is updated to reflect changes then up-to-date information is available so that impact and risks of proposed changes to the infrastructure can be accurately assessed Increasingly, proactive tools are coming to market that provide solutions in this space incorporating auto discovery. Organisations implementing best practice frameworks, such as ITIL or COBIT, need a quick way to establish configuration management databases and these management products can provide the solution.
The reasoning behind ITIL is that certain functions are imperative in managing high-quality IT services. It provides guidelines on change management, problem resolution, service levels, capacity and contingency planning, and configuration management. Some enterprises try to do configuration management manually when they believe that it is needed.
However, this highlights the problems associated with the lack of service management information. Change planning to assess the risks and impact of proposed changes can involve large teams of people and many meetings. Costs of services cannot be determined, and getting to the root causes of problems is complex and time consuming.
Although configuration management and the use of ITIL and/or COBIT, and the implementation of a CMDB can be seen as central structures for ITSM, the story does not stop there. It is the associated tools that provide the working environment in which the correct decisions can be implemented.
Report Highlights*Interruption of an IT service is expensive and can have disastrous consequences for an enterprise.
*IT must be run in the same manner as any department within a business with the appropriate financial management and controls in place.
*The squeeze on IT spend and the continuing emergence of new technology applications has led to a delay in the adoption of proactive, intelligent tools to manage IT services.
*The speed of introduction of new technologies and continual change mean that the complexities now present in the IT environment cannot be successfully managed without dedicated toolsets.
*Service Configuration Management enables quick establishment of Configuration Management Database (CMDB) through auto discovery.
*CoBIT and particularly ITIL frameworks are becoming increasingly influential in the implementation of ITSM.
*Recommended processes and templates are being developed by major vendors of ITSM products to speed up the adoption of ITIL.
*Running IT as a business means that financial management of IT is essential including asset management and charging applications.
*IT departments and business lines need to reduce the costs of operations and maintenance (keeping the lights on) so that an increasing share of the IT budget is available for IT and business improvements.
*Business Service Management (BSM) is increasing rapidly in its deployment by enterprises that are seeking to more closely align IT services with the business. IT service delivery is reported in a business context, therefore IT is able to align itself with the lines of business that it supports. This can generate significant benefits in the understanding between IT and its customers.
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