Tivoli Systems Ships TMC 10 NetView for Windows NT Server; NetView Now Integrates with Distributed Systems Management and Host Management; Cross-Platform Mid-Level Managers and Web Interface Enable Truly Distributed Network Management

Business Wire, Sept 30, 1996

AUSTIN, Texas--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Sept. 30, 1996--Tivoli Systems Inc. today announced a major new version of its TME 10 NetView network management software.

The new version, which is available immediately, includes support of Microsoft Windows NT Server, cross-platform Mid-Level Managers, a Web interface and a host integration service.

Additional new services from Tivoli integrate Microsoft Systems Management Server and network management platforms such as NetView, Hewlett-Packard OpenView, Sun SunNet Manager and Cabletron Spectrum with TME 10 systems management applications. TME 10 is the leading management software suite for networked computing environments.

TME 10 NetView completes Phase 2 of the TME 10 Roadmap commitments, which Tivoli announced in March 1996. The Roadmap includes an aggressive program of NetView initiatives: 1) making NetView a true cross-platform solution; 2) enabling integrated network and systems management, which allows the management of routers and other network components as part of the entire enterprise using TME 10; and 3) providing more flexible and scalable network management.

"This release is a major step forward in delivering on our product roadmap," said Frank Moss, Tivoli's president and chief executive officer. "Look at what we've accomplished since we merged with IBM. We added support for Windows NT, the most popular server platform.

"We integrated network management and systems management. We began concurrent development to support two more platforms. We're answering our customers' desires to integrate the management of the host with their distributed network environments. In short, we're concentrating on the market-driven aspects of the product -- we're doing what customers have told us they want us to do."

Cross-Platform Management

The new version of TME 10 NetView includes important new developments in "cross-platform management," Tivoli's unique approach to network management that allows an administrator to control an entire networked infrastructure from a single point.

The new developments include: Support for Windows NT Server (available now), extends TME 10 NetView's multi-server support by allowing administrators to manage and control distributed network devices from a Windows NT Server. TME 10 NetView also integrates with Microsoft Systems Management Server. For example, information about resources managed by Systems Management Server can be accessed from the NetView console.

Host integration service (available in the fourth quarter of 1996) enables tighter integration between NetView/390 and TME 10 NetView, which will allow customers to manage three-tiered network computing environments from a single console. This prevents users from having to make a binary choice between totally centralized and totally distributed management.

Web interface (available in the first quarter of 1997), which enables password-protected access through a Web browser to the majority of TME 10 NetView's functions. This access allows administrators to control the network from anywhere in the enterprise, or even from home.

TME 10 NetView for Solaris (available in the first quarter of 1997), which enables management from a Solaris server.

Distributed Mid-Level Managers

Additional TME 10 NetView enhancements (available now) feature a truly distributed architecture that includes distributed and heterogeneous Mid-Level Managers (MLMs).

Management Servers automatically discover network resources; build a topology map; manage operators' windows and customer policy; receive, correlate and automate events from MLMs, other SNMP managers, and network resources; distribute policy to MLMs; and optionally forward events to other managers such as host-based NetView and the TME 10 Enterprise Console.

Cross-Platform Mid-Level Managers run on AIX, Digital UNIX, HP-UX, OS/2, Solaris and Windows NT. MLMs enable truly distributed management of enterprise networks. Each MLM subscribes to policy from the management server; receives events from network devices; performs many corrective actions locally and forwards others to the management server; polls network resources; performs threshold monitoring for resources; and monitors and reports changes.

This distributed approach offers many key benefits:

Enterprise scalability -- MLMs can be added indefinitely, as a network grows.

Efficient network use -- local event monitoring and processing by MLMs dramatically reduce the network traffic caused by network management.

Cross-platform support -- because MLMs can run on all major server platforms, a customer can use their platform of choice and gain the unique scalability and network efficiency in TME 10 NetView.

Integrated Network and Systems Management

Tivoli will provide TME Integration Services for all major network management platforms, including NetView, Hewlett-Packard OpenView, Sun SunNet Manager and Cabletron Spectrum. These services, which will be available in the fourth quarter of 1996, provide management objects on the TME desktop for the purposes of application launch, message consolidation and server monitoring.