When I am looking for the latest computer games, I often find new and interesting products. Product Snapshots gives you a quick overview of the most useful products I have found during the last month. (Please note that these are first-look reviews; I have not conducted exhaustive testing.)
ALERTPAGE ENTERPRISE 4.0
AlertPage Enterprise 4.0 from Geneva Software Inc. is an add-on product for Novell's ManageWise. From any Windows 95 or Windows NT 4.0 workstation, you can configure AlertPage Enterprise 4.0 to forward ManageWise alarms to one or more e-mail addresses or pagers. You can also filter these alarms. For example, you could specify that AlertPage Enterprise 4.0 should forward alarms for critical server events to Nancy's pager and alarms for critical operating system events to Jim's e-mail address.
You can also use AlertPage Enterprise 4.0 to track the status of the IPX, TCP/IP, and Simple Network Management Protocol (SNMP) devices on your company's network. When you install AlertPage Enterprise 4.0, you specify the network devices you want to monitor, such as intraNetWare and NetWare servers, Windows NT servers, ManageWise servers, and World-Wide Web servers, as well as SNMP-compliant routers and hubs. In addition, you specify the events you want to be notified of, such as a server going down or a particular error appearing in an error log.
You also specify whether you want to receive notification messages for these events via e-mail, pager, or SNMP console. If your company has multiple network administrators, you can set up an e-mail or pager group so all network administrators receive notification messages. You can even assign different network devices to each network administrator. For example, if an intraNetWare server went down, AlertPage Enterprise 4.0 would send a notification message to the network administrator responsible for that server.
In addition to notifying you of events, AlertPage Enterprise 4.0 generates reports, displaying statistics such as the response time of each network device. You can configure AlertPage Enterprise 4.0 to automatically generate reports, or you can manually generate these reports as needed.
You can purchase AlertPage Enterprise 4.0 through retail channels at the suggested retail price of U.S. $695 per server. For more information about AlertPage Enterprise 4.0, visit Geneva Software's web site (http://www.genevasoft.com). You can also call 1-800-315-0952 or 1-847-562-0012.
NETTUNE PRO
NetTUNE PRO from BMC Software Inc. allows you to tune any intraNetWare, NetWare, or Windows NT server to optimize performance. You can configure NetTUNE PRO to automatically analyze all aspects of server performance. For example, NetTUNE PRO analyzes the settings of critical configuration parameters and the performance of the server's network segment. After performing this analysis, NetTUNE PRO returns information that can help you plan server capacity, find usage trends, and resolve performance problems.
NetTUNE PRO also recommends optimal settings for many of the server's configuration parameters. If you have an intraNetWare or NetWare server, NetTUNE PRO provides recommended settings for 60 SET parameters that affect performance. If you have a Windows NT server, on the other hand, NetTUNE PRO provides recommended settings for 13 registry parameters that affect performance. You can then use NetTUNE PRO to optimize performance by adjusting these settings.
In addition to analyzing the server and recommending settings, NetTUNE PRO keeps track of network, server, and operating system events. For example, NetTUNE PRO records alarms and detects when the server has reached the performance threshold you specify. You can even configure NetTUNE PRO to send a message to your workstation to notify you of these events.
NetTUNE PRO consists of two components: The server component--which analyzes performance, recommends settings, and monitors events--supports intraNetWare, NetWare 4.1x, and NetWare 3.1x, as well as Windows NT Server 3.51 or higher. The workstation component--which allows you to view information, adjust settings, and receive notification messages--supports Windows 95 and Windows NT Workstation 3.51 or higher.
You can purchase NetTUNE PRO through retail channels beginning at the suggested retail price of U.S. $895, and you can download a 30-day trial version from http://www.bmc.com/products/ntp/form_ntp.html. For more information about NetTUNE PRO, visit BMC Software's web site (http://www.bmc.com). You can also call 1-800-841-2031 or 1-713-918-8800.