Application PerformanceManagementA Holistic View

This paper is part of an Application Performance Management series written incooperation with IDC.

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The New Role of Application InfrastructureEnterprises face increasingly challenging and complex businessenvironments. As a result, they need a comprehensive, but systematicapproach to application infrastructure design, implementation,management and on-going optimization. Application performancemanagement (APM) provides the stable, reliable infrastructureframework needed for the execution and on-going rationalization ofmission-critical business applications and processes.

The infrastructure that powers companies’ Web-based operations nolonger exists in isolation from the rest of the business process. Goneare the days when hosting began and ended with a simple static Web site on a single dedicated or shared server. Today, as enterprises seekto lower operational costs and improve efficiency, many aspects ofinternal and external-facing business processes are being centralized,IP-enabled and inter-networked.

At the same time, processes as varied and focused as supply chain,sales, marketing, customer relationship management (CRM) andenterprise resource management (ERM) are undergoing extensivetransformation. This development opens new channels for customerservice, product delivery, distribution and procurement by leveragingthe Internet as a transactional and connectivity vehicle for core business processes.

It also requires the IT manager to keep the application infrastructureup and running, and performing optimally, which is becomingincreasingly difficult. When asked what “pain points” were driving theirtelecom/networking plans and spending decisions, almost half therespondents in a recent IDC survey identified improving theperformance of applications running over a network as a key concern(see Figure 1 below).

Solutions that solve part of the problem are available. However,managing, monitoring and upgrading the various network, computingand application components as technology silos no longer gets thejob done. IT managers need intelligence and visibility about the totalenvironment, including servers, storage, applications, operatingsystems, desktops and networks.

APM is a process-based approach to application infrastructure designand management that ultimately delivers stable, predictable businessprocess performance. This includes end-to-end monitoring, control andvisibility. With this approach, the network no longer stops at theparameters of the corporate data center. Instead, APM combinescomputing and networking to optimize application performance inincreasingly network-centric business environments.

In this article, we describe the toolkit of software and systems neededfor APM, as well as the processes and best practices. We also discussthe business benefits of APM, and the merits of partnering with aservice provider to design, build, deploy and manage the applicationinfrastructure needed for success in an increasingly connected world.

The APM ToolkitThe foundation element of APM is a comprehensive toolkit of softwareand systems. The software facilitates granular monitoring, troubleshootingand analysis of the individual application infrastructure resourcecomponents. The systems correlate this component-level informationto provide a macro-level view of the entire application environment.

This tool set spans the continuum of the APM process, includingplanning, design, deployment and management and reporting. Theplanning phase of APM involves capturing the business-level andapplications requirements and mapping out the IT and networkresources needed to support them. This requires tools that benchmarkand correlate IT component-level performance parameters.

Telecom/Networking Pain Points

Reducing the cost of network operations

Improving network application performance

Integrating multiple enterprise-wide applications

Ensuring business continuity

Expanding bandwidth to support new applications

Integrating geographically disparate locations

Facilitating increased inter-enterprise networking

Integrating wireless/mobility functionality

Other

Percentage responses to “What are the three primary factors or ‘pain points’ currently driving yourorganization’s telecom/networking plans and spending decisions?”

0% 10% 20% 30% 40% 50% 60%Source: IDC, 2005N = 1,750

53.1%

44.5%

39.8%

38.6%

33.5%

33.5%

29.1%

27.0%

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The design and deployment phases utilize the planning phasecapabilities and also incorporate engineering and implementation toolsfor hardware and software asset management, configuration management,capacity management and component-level, real-time monitoring.

During the management and reporting stage, a key tool is the top-downmanagement system that aggregates and correlates the monitoreddata from each layer of the application stack to detect, isolate andresolve problems that impact the performance of the compositeapplication or business process.

Hosting is a key component of APM, but there's more to it than justcollocation and management of the technology components, such asservers, databases, load balancing and firewalls. Applications “live” andinteract on infrastructure housed and managed in Internet datacenters. However, business processes extend beyond the glass walls of the data center, and the resulting functionality is delivered overwide-area networks.

Finally, an application-oriented focus is a key attribute of the APMapproach – one that ultimately requires more than just tools. Enterprisescan no longer depend on just additional bandwidth or hardware toimprove performance. This is both inefficient and time consuming. Akeen knowledge of the optimum underpinning infrastructure requiredfor each application is a critical requirement. This comes fromexperience and expertise in the IT and networking environment.

Elements of the APM Approach: Processes and Best Practices While tools are an important aspect of APM, they are only one piece ofthe puzzle. Skills and processes put the tools to work, and play a majorrole in the evolution from infrastructure and network management toperformance management.

APM, in effect, turns traditional hosting and networking inside out –starting with the business processes and the required performance,and then building the operational and management architectureneeded to get there. The development of applications-focusedinfrastructure management is an iterative process that requires threeelements: a systematic approach, a disciplined mindset and multipleskill sets.

Pre-production processes play a key role in achieving successful APMimplementation. The most important of these is applications due diligence,which is essentially a discovery mission to capture and define theoperational attributes of the application or business process. The post-deployment processes of operation and management rely heavilyon the procedures put in place during the pre-production phase.

Design and engineering skills and processes are key requirements for APM implementations, but enterprises also need experiencedoperations-oriented technical personnel with certifications for themajor networking, hardware, security and middleware/applicationsproducts and standards.

Putting It All Together The final element of APM involves integration of the tools, processes and skill sets into holistic application infrastructure solutions. Whicheverapproach enterprises take to APM – performance engineering, networkoptimization or data center networking – there is also the question ofhow to put it all together.

Some enterprises take the do-it-yourself route and purchase the necessarysystem- and device-level management and monitoring tools, infrastructurecomponents and network services, and then configure, install andoperate all of the piece parts as a unified environment. Others preferto work with partners on some or all of the phases of creating andmaintaining performance-optimized application environments.

There are many advantages to outsourcing APM. The right provider willpossess the experience, certified personnel and vision for implementingand maintaining a reliable APM platform. Enterprises will also be ableto utilize their provider for a wide range of expertise, technical supportand advice in this rapidly evolving environment.

Reaping the Benefits of APMThe primary benefits of APM include higher application availability and consistent application performance, improved total cost ofownership and return on investment and scalable, rapid-rollout of new applications.

Availability and ConsistencyAvailability, reliability and consistent application performance are key benefits of APM, regardless of whether enterprises choose the do-it-yourself approach, utilize service providers for certain elementsof the solution, or take the total outsourcing route.

Processes & Tools

Requirements CaptureResource MappingBenchmarking

Performance AssessmentHardware/Software AssetManagementConfiguration ManagementCapacity ManagementComponent Monitoring

Data Aggregation/MonitoringPerformance Assessment

Planning

Design and Deployment

Managementand Reporting

Tools Needed For:APM Processes

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For more information contact an AT&T Representative or visit www.att.com/hosting.

Application performance encompasses a number of factors, includinguptime, reliability, scalability, interoperability and security. Even if the hardware and software supporting the constituent enablingapplications is performing up to standard, the interfaces among thedifferent transaction elements may have failed, thus knocking out theoverall business process.

With APM, enterprises can avoid this situation by linking theapplication, or “the end,” with the “means” (the enabling infrastructure)to obtain an end-to-end view of the process and correlate the impactof component-level and business-level events. Application end users –customers, partners and employees – just want the application towork, and if it doesn’t, they are not terribly interested in the detailsaround server and network failures. APM provides the up-frontapplication infrastructure instrumentation and top-level managementcapabilities enterprises need to minimize downtime.

Improved Total-Cost-of-OwnershipTotal cost of ownership (TCO) and return on investment are top-of-mindconsiderations with regard to IT purchases and planning. Enterprisesthat optimize their application infrastructure environments forperformance no longer need to over-provision IT infrastructure as aninsurance policy against demand spikes and resource failures.

Scalable, Rapid-Rollout Environments for New ApplicationsEnterprises face changing business environments. Their applicationenvironments must be able to respond quickly to new opportunitiesand challenges presented by the globalization of commerce, growingcompetition for customer attention and dollars, multi-channelmarketing imperatives, geographically dispersed supply chains anddecentralized work forces. Integrated and agile environments enableenterprises to validate new applications and technologies prior todeployment on the production infrastructure. The APM approachexpands enterprises’ ability to ensure that the hardware, software andnetworking resources needed to support new applications areavailable, thus mitigating any disruptive impact on existing applications and processes. Emerging automation and virtualization technologieshelp APM to accelerate the rollout of new applications, shortening thetime-to-market for new initiatives, while improved control mechanismsallow enterprises to adjust network performance according tochanging business circumstances.

Implementing APM: Partnering for SuccessCompanies that view their application infrastructure environments asstrategic components of their business operations must develophomegrown integration, design and operations expertise, alongside themore fundamental industry-specific competencies needed to run their

businesses. But there is another way. Enterprises can utilize externalservice providers to supplement internal resources to provide solutionsto the increasingly complex task of maintaining and scaling robustapplication infrastructures.

Enterprises need to think about the business objectives that theirapplication infrastructures support and ask themselves whether theability to realize these goals is in any way determined or enhanced byinternal management of the supporting environment.

While enterprises may possess the internal resources to design anddeploy performance-oriented application infrastructure environments,other issues come into play after the initial deployment becausebusiness process and application requirements evolve and expand,requiring frequent adjustments to the supporting infrastructure.Ultimately, working with a partner lowers enterprise TCO and improvesperformance by shifting some or all of the responsibility of applicationenvironment management to a specialist, whose value proposition andreputation rest on its ability to implement, operate, maintain and(inevitably) transform the underlying platform technology-basedbusiness operations.

Conclusion and Next StepsThe APM approach to integrated, intelligent infrastructure for applicationand business process delivery is an ideal starting point for enterpriseslooking to migrate toward a dynamic networked applicationsenvironment featuring automated provisioning, capacity and resourceson-demand and end-to-end monitoring and management.

Service provider partners can help enterprises design, build, deployand manage the application execution and distribution environmentsneeded to conduct business operations in an increasingly connectedworld. Furthermore, service providers are a valuable resource forenterprises planning next-generation application architectures thatembed broad ranges of federated services and capabilities into the network.

When is the ideal time to implement APM? Enterprises should beinvestigating APM before the catastrophic disruption or seminal event of the business process. Identifying the right business partner is just as important as choosing the actual APM platform. The ideal partnershould have demonstrable experience and personnel to design, implementand maintain APM processes. Such a partner will understand theenterprise mission, priorities and business process. The partner willalso possess the expertise and vision that will enable the enterprise tosuccessfully design, implement and operate a complex, finely tunedengine that will generate significant returns over the long term.

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