Computer networks have always been one of the most complicated components of an enterprise’s IT environment. They are comprised of numerous interconnected parts that all depend on each other to provide the network’s required functionality. Failure of any single piece of equipment can result in degraded performance throughout the network. In extreme cases, the complete network can be brought down by an isolated problem. This can cripple a business’s ability to serve its external and internal users.
The introduction of cloud solutions has made it exponentially more difficult to maintain the average computer network. Now instead of one network to deal with, administrators need to have their eyes on multiple implementations. Each cloud provider engaged by a company comes with its own network that needs to be incorporated into an organization’s overall strategy. These extra networks can be stand-alone entities that support a particular cloud application or used to provide additional capabilities for the entire environment.
A Company’s Network is its Lifeline to Success
The importance of a company’s customer-facing network has never been greater than with the current increased focus on eCommerce. Businesses are flocking to the eCommerce paradigm for a variety of reasons that include:
- Remaining competitive in their market. The growth of eCommerce threatens to leave businesses that ignore its possibilities operating at a substantial disadvantage over their more agile competitors.
- Taking advantage of eCommerce enables a company to expand its local customer base by providing a platform to serve consumers globally. Whether a business sells a service or a physical object, the addition of a global audience can only be good for the bottom line.
- Cost savings can be enjoyed through several avenues by adopting an eCommerce strategy. Financial savings related to lower staff requirements and decreased rent for brick-and-mortar locations are two examples. Advertising costs can be lowered and more focused audience targeting can make the efforts more effective.
Network outages affecting organizations that depend on eCommerce can have immediate and devastating results for a business. Slow performance can drive consumers to search for other options to fulfill their needs. It can be extremely difficult to get these customers back once they have opted for another solution. It’s a far more effective strategy to keep the customer satisfied in the first place. For that, you need to know what’s going on with your network.
Understanding a Modern Complex Network
One of the major challenges facing modern businesses is obtaining end-to-end visibility into their network operations. The problem afflicting many enterprises is a product of the evolution of their cloud presence. As systems are moved to the cloud over time, network complexity is incrementally increased. What was once a manageable workload for a network operations team can slowly get more complicated until it threatens to overwhelm the tools and resources at their disposal. Using multiple tools adds additional complexity and can result in inefficient use of the team’s time.
Even if each of the new networks introduced into the infrastructure is delivering business results, in combination they can threaten the entire organization. If your team cannot handle the complexity of the network, it will not provide its intended benefits. An inability to quickly pinpoint communication issues and dynamically identify solutions in a diverse infrastructure will lead to decreased customer satisfaction and internal productivity. A firm understanding of its network is critically important to keeping your business running smoothly.
A Tool to Minimize Monitoring Complexity
IDERA’s Uptime Infrastructure Monitor helps alleviate the complexity of monitoring the multiple networks that are employed by modern organizations. Uptime offers a comprehensive monitoring platform that can be used for networks, applications, and servers throughout your environment. The tool provides capacity planning and SLA monitoring features that make it even more valuable for keeping your business on track.
Its network monitoring capabilities are very beneficial for network teams struggling with the complexity of a diversified infrastructure. The unified monitoring dashboards provide complete visibility across the entire network. The tool enables proactive alerts to be set and provides root cause analysis details to help prevent repeat occurrences of similar problems. Bandwidth monitoring allows you to find out what is adversely impacting your network and act quickly to shut it down.
If you are challenged with keeping tabs on all the moving parts of diversified network infrastructure, Uptime could be just the right solution. You might be surprised at what you see with a complete view of your network.