IBM Updates Systems Director Software

IBM last week unveiled Systems Director Editions for Power Systems version 6.2, an updated collection of software for monitoring and provisioning physical and virtual Power Systems server infrastructure.

The “Editions” component of the name refers to the three versions of Systems Director 6.2 that IBM is making available for the Power Systems platforms, including Express, Standard, and Enterprise editions. Each has been updated to include the latest components that IBM includes in the Systems Director package components, including core Systems Director functionality, Active Energy Manager, VMControl, Network Control, Tivoli Monitoring Agents for System p, and DB2 Enterprise Server Edition.

New functionality delivered in the core component of the Systems Director version 6.2 product include: a simplified user interface designed to make it easier to discover systems and install updates; better integration with Tivoli and Java; and improved security and auditability, among other enhancements.

The various sub-components delivered through the various editions of Systems Director were also enhanced with version 6.2. The sub-components that are included with Systems Director Express edition include:

• VMControl Express Edition for Power Systems version 2.3. IBM says version 2.3 of this product, which debuted in April and is an integral part of Systems Director for Power Systems, enables users to add, edit, delete, and move virtual machines created with the various supported virtual environments, including PowerVM, VMware, Hyper-V, and z/VM.
• Service and Support Manager version 6.2. This product, which is integrated with Systems Director for Power Systems, includes an Electronic Service Agent that automatically communicates with IBM support services.
• Transition Manager version 6.2 for HP Systems Insight Manager. This product, which is sold as an optional plug-in for Systems Director for Power Systems, allows users to transition from Hewlett-Packard‘s systems management software to IBM’s Systems Director, whether or not it’s IBM hardware.

Systems Director Standard edition includes all of the above sub-components, including the following additions:

• Active Energy Manager version 4.3. This product, which debuted in April, tracks energy consumption across IBM and non-IBM platforms. The software can be used to ration power to servers when electricity supplies are constrained.
• VMControl Standard Edition for Power Systems version 2.3. This version of VMControl builds on the Express version by giving administrators more fine-grained control over virtual machines, including the capability to search VMs, and the capability to deploy VMs as virtual appliances, and support for the Open Virtualization Format (OVF), which is used for creating portable virtual appliances in AIX and Linux environments. Version 2.3 adds new features for Linux.
• Network Control version 1.2. This release, which also shipped as an individual product in April, is used to manage and troubleshoot problems in the network. Version 1.2 added support for IPv6, new types of Ethernet switches, virtual switches, combining of virtual and physical network topologies, and Brocade FCoCEE switches.

Systems Director Enterprise edition adds to this the following sub-components:

• VMControl Enterprise Edition version 2.3. The Enterprise Edition of VMControl gives administrators the tools for managing virtualized servers, storage, and networks as a conjoined entity, or a “system pool.” It also adds workload optimization features not found in the standard or express versions. Version 2.3 adds support for Power 7 servers, introduces a new SDK, delivers a Web-based dashboard management view, a command line interface (imagine that!), and support for the latest OVF specs.
• IBM Tivoli Monitoring (ITM) version 6.2.2 fix pack 2. This release is focused on AIX, and bringing enhancements to the various Tivoli agents for AIX, including the agents for VIOS (Virtual I/O Server), CEC (central electronics complex), and the AIX Premium Agent, which monitors WPAR (workload portioning), which i doesn’t have (to sound like my three-year-old). IBM also launched a new special agent for AIX that supports Active Memory Expansion (AME) on the Power 7 boxes.
• A range of other Tivoli products, including Tivoli Monitoring for Energy Management 6.2.1, Tivoli Application Dependency Discovery Manager (TADDM) 7.2, Tivoli Performance Analyzer 6.2.2, and Tivoli Common Reporting for Asset and Performance Management 1.3.

Systems Director for Power Systems version 6.2 becomes available July 30. For more information, see IBM United States Software Announcement 210-100 (PDF). Or, to see what Systems Director is up to this week or just to “hang” with the prod and all its wacky friends, check out its Facebook site at www.facebook.com/pages/IBM-Systems-Director/193362963483.

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