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I Advice - ITIL and the CMDB: Think Small?
"The point is ladies and gentlemen, that greed… for lack of a better word is good." Gordon GekkoSaving money, generating cash flow (creating an atmosphere where the employer can do those two things) are all the employer is interested in. They will not hire you because their bank accounts are swollen and about to burst and they need a way to get rid of the money. Before you try to market yourself to the employer, you need to get focused on their Greed Gland. Business is about profit, pure and simple. Even non-profit organizations have to keep costs down and funds flowing in, to stay alive. So how are you going to do that for them?Will what you have to offer make their life easier, richer or more productive? If you weren’t a solution to some of their concerns, then why would they want to talk to you? When I’m coaching a client on how to approach a company or business, I will ask them to consider what the concerns may be for the manager or owner for that position. Is it generating sales? Is it expanding the client base? Is it keeping costs down by eliminating waste? Or is it creating a strong team that can do all three? Communicate to them how you’re going to do any or all of those things a
Less Reactive, More Proactive Management. A CMDB, coupled with an effective Change Management process, can provide the ability to more effectively manage changes within the IT environment. Since the number of IT changes in an environment will increase as the infrastructure becomes more complex, having a central repository of all configuration information and relationships can help avoid downtime through better planning and understanding of the impact of those changes on the rest of the computing environment.
Improved Security Deployment and Assessment of Risk. When assessing a known vulnerability on a server, CMDB information can be used to assess risk based on both the severity of a patch, as well as the business context of the vulnerability. This capability allows IT organizations to prioritize patches that support the business and ensure that critical systems are secured
Inventors, Predators, And Land minesWebster describes invention as a new, useful process, machine, improvement, etc., that did not exist previously and that is recognized as the product of some unique intuition or genius, as distinguished from ordinary mechanical skill or craftsmanship.But it describes inventor as a person who invents, esp. one who devises some new process, appliance, machine, or article; one who makes inventions.The reason I mention both terms and meanings is that the inventor often mistakes him or herself from the actual invention. The ego gets caught up in the idea and process. That can not only be a dangerous thing, but one in which the person (and notice “person” is a key word in the definition that does not appear in the definition of invention) loses interest in the excitement of the process of bringing an idea into manifestation and into the marketplace. This invention may help improve mankind, leave the planet a better place than where the inventor found it, and, consequently, make the inventor wealthy beyond his or her wildest imagination.For those of you who are old veterans of inventing, please disregard or ignore most of my ramblings. You already
But as a standard and trusted data source, even the simplest of CMDB’s can provide a means for improving internal communications and dialogue with IT customers. Even small-scale CMDB deployments could potentially help IT yield measurable benefits in operational effectiveness, cost efficiencies and improve the overall quality of service. But perhaps most importantly, the CMDB provides an early foundation for changing a reactive IT culture into a proactive service provider.
Establishing an initial IT framework and baseline of data through the deployment of a simple, tactical CMDB tool can help promote a more cohesive IT Service Management culture.
CMDB: Simply Defined
In the real world, a banking customer would not write a check without first ensuring there is enough money in their account. Additionally, these same customers need to rely on their banks to accurately record their deposits and withdrawals. Each time money is withdrawn or deposited, the customer assumes the transaction was successful and any changes to the account balance were precisely updated. This level of accuracy is required to determine how much money needs to reside in the account at any given time to cover the customer’s daily expenses.
Unfortunately, IT decisions are not always based on a similar level of data integrity, and its common place to see one IT group interfere with another internal group, redundantly performing operational tasks or even making assumptions about who is handling a specific IT support activity. The IT Security Team, for example, may pick a specific time to apply patches to a cluster of servers, inadvertently disrupting automated database backups taking place on those same servers at the same time.
From a proactive standpoint, the same IT Security Team can establish an improved process for internal communications, identify the owners of the target server group and notify them prior to deployment-- alleviating issues with subsequent service support and delivery activities.
A CMDB provides a common repository for IT configuration items (CI), their attributes and relationships, offering a single source of record and a logical model of the IT infrastructure as it related to IT services. As a proactive management tool, the CMDB can provide accountability and ownership of CIs, improving the identification, verification and management of the IT infrastructure.
Why Use a CMDB?
This concept of a CMDB serving as single source of data is one of its greatest strengths-- without a central repository for configuration information, IT organizations continue to work in silos, and fail to align activities with business objectives. A basic Configuration Management (CM) process and toolset (i.e. CMDB) can enable teams to better communicate and coordinate processes by establishing a common data repository.
The CMDB breaks down barriers between IT and the business, removing IT silos and creating a higher level of synergy between people, processes and supporting technologies.
Put another way, how can you manage and improve IT services if you don't know what equipment you have, where it is, how it’s connected and the impact of changing it? It is suggested that 80% of critical system outages are the result of people or process failure, with the main proponent being that of changes to the IT environment. This is exacerbated by the fact that planning activities derived from inadequate sources of information drive a path to failure. Additionally, subsequent recovery processes are further hampered by those same inadequate data stores.
Since the CMDB provides the logical model for the IT infrastructure and related services, organizations can more easily manage configuration items and their relationships with other entities and services. Some of the primary benefits a CMDB can provide from the start are related to the areas of proactive change management, security and IT compliance.
Less Reactive, More Proactive Management. A CMDB, coupled with an effective Change Management process, can provide the ability to more effectively manage changes within the IT environment. Since the number of IT changes in an environment will increase as the infrastructure becomes more complex, having a central repository of all configuration information and relationships can help avoid downtime through better planning and understanding of the impact of those changes on the rest of the computing environment.
Improved Security Deployment and Assessment of Risk. When assessing a known vulnerability on a server, CMDB information can be used to assess risk based on both the severity of a patch, as well as the business context of the vulnerability. This capability allows IT organizations to prioritize patches that support the business and ensure that critical systems are secured
One invites opportunity when one is ready to receive to give and to grow. When we think clearly we accept and we acknowledge a simple fact of life. We spend at least 1/3 of our waking hours at work reaching as high as we can building our business, the career we feel so deeply for or the job once attracted us sincerely. So why is it so important to color the working/business world with passion, enthusiasm and the desire to excel? The answer is transparent--- we MUST!!!!!!!! It is common sense providing the results we aim for.Work and our finances impact tremendously our lifestyle, our families and the relationships we build throughout the process as we believe in “how we are?’ the choices we make to deal with the perception of stress and the challenges we meet along the way effecting our health and our appearance.One area we need to address; the purpose to seek the necessary tools how to improve our business work, the process leading to the destinations we dream about........and the so called "success" the word rocking our entire world. So what does that mean?Individuals like Michael Burdette represent true and sincere "SUCCESS". A man who stepped out of the box and carried his entire
In the real world, a banking customer would not write a check without first ensuring there is enough money in their account. Additionally, these same customers need to rely on their banks to accurately record their deposits and withdrawals. Each time money is withdrawn or deposited, the customer assumes the transaction was successful and any changes to the account balance were precisely updated. This level of accuracy is required to determine how much money needs to reside in the account at any given time to cover the customer’s daily expenses.
Unfortunately, IT decisions are not always based on a similar level of data integrity, and its common place to see one IT group interfere with another internal group, redundantly performing operational tasks or even making assumptions about who is handling a specific IT support activity. The IT Security Team, for example, may pick a specific time to apply patches to a cluster of servers, inadvertently disrupting automated database backups taking place on those same servers at the same time.
From a proactive standpoint, the same IT Security Team can establish an improved process for internal communications, identify the owners of the target server group and notify them prior to deployment-- alleviating issues with subsequent service support and delivery activities.
A CMDB provides a common repository for IT configuration items (CI), their attributes and relationships, offering a single source of record and a logical model of the IT infrastructure as it related to IT services. As a proactive management tool, the CMDB can provide accountability and ownership of CIs, improving the identification, verification and management of the IT infrastructure.
Why Use a CMDB?
This concept of a CMDB serving as single source of data is one of its greatest strengths-- without a central repository for configuration information, IT organizations continue to work in silos, and fail to align activities with business objectives. A basic Configuration Management (CM) process and toolset (i.e. CMDB) can enable teams to better communicate and coordinate processes by establishing a common data repository.
The CMDB breaks down barriers between IT and the business, removing IT silos and creating a higher level of synergy between people, processes and supporting technologies.
Put another way, how can you manage and improve IT services if you don't know what equipment you have, where it is, how it’s connected and the impact of changing it? It is suggested that 80% of critical system outages are the result of people or process failure, with the main proponent being that of changes to the IT environment. This is exacerbated by the fact that planning activities derived from inadequate sources of information drive a path to failure. Additionally, subsequent recovery processes are further hampered by those same inadequate data stores.
Since the CMDB provides the logical model for the IT infrastructure and related services, organizations can more easily manage configuration items and their relationships with other entities and services. Some of the primary benefits a CMDB can provide from the start are related to the areas of proactive change management, security and IT compliance.
Less Reactive, More Proactive Management. A CMDB, coupled with an effective Change Management process, can provide the ability to more effectively manage changes within the IT environment. Since the number of IT changes in an environment will increase as the infrastructure becomes more complex, having a central repository of all configuration information and relationships can help avoid downtime through better planning and understanding of the impact of those changes on the rest of the computing environment.
Improved Security Deployment and Assessment of Risk. When assessing a known vulnerability on a server, CMDB information can be used to assess risk based on both the severity of a patch, as well as the business context of the vulnerability. This capability allows IT organizations to prioritize patches that support the business and ensure that critical systems are secured
"If only there is this magic formula which will make me rich”. This is likely the thought in the mind of all fellow humans. Truth is there really is one which so many of us fail to see. It is our mind or rather what we call the subconscious mind. The other half of our thinking which cannot differentiate between present and past, good or bad, right or wrong.How many of us out there have already decided that they will not be rich because it’s fated, they are not lucky and that only the rich will get richer while they themselves are not cut out to be rich?Truth is by thinking that way, you have programmed your subconscious mind that you are not to get rich and it is simply making sure your instruction is followed.Back track your lost younger days when you still had dreams. Are you driving that car you dreamt of as a teenager? Is your house your dream house or simply a place you are putting up as you do not have much choice.Forgive me for being blunt but for those of you who have yet to achieve financial freedom, you have no one to blame but yourself. Stop blaming the government, your spouse, your company, your school and whatever else you can come up with. The only
From a proactive standpoint, the same IT Security Team can establish an improved process for internal communications, identify the owners of the target server group and notify them prior to deployment-- alleviating issues with subsequent service support and delivery activities.
A CMDB provides a common repository for IT configuration items (CI), their attributes and relationships, offering a single source of record and a logical model of the IT infrastructure as it related to IT services. As a proactive management tool, the CMDB can provide accountability and ownership of CIs, improving the identification, verification and management of the IT infrastructure.
Why Use a CMDB?
This concept of a CMDB serving as single source of data is one of its greatest strengths-- without a central repository for configuration information, IT organizations continue to work in silos, and fail to align activities with business objectives. A basic Configuration Management (CM) process and toolset (i.e. CMDB) can enable teams to better communicate and coordinate processes by establishing a common data repository.
The CMDB breaks down barriers between IT and the business, removing IT silos and creating a higher level of synergy between people, processes and supporting technologies.
Put another way, how can you manage and improve IT services if you don't know what equipment you have, where it is, how it’s connected and the impact of changing it? It is suggested that 80% of critical system outages are the result of people or process failure, with the main proponent being that of changes to the IT environment. This is exacerbated by the fact that planning activities derived from inadequate sources of information drive a path to failure. Additionally, subsequent recovery processes are further hampered by those same inadequate data stores.
Since the CMDB provides the logical model for the IT infrastructure and related services, organizations can more easily manage configuration items and their relationships with other entities and services. Some of the primary benefits a CMDB can provide from the start are related to the areas of proactive change management, security and IT compliance.
Less Reactive, More Proactive Management. A CMDB, coupled with an effective Change Management process, can provide the ability to more effectively manage changes within the IT environment. Since the number of IT changes in an environment will increase as the infrastructure becomes more complex, having a central repository of all configuration information and relationships can help avoid downtime through better planning and understanding of the impact of those changes on the rest of the computing environment.
Improved Security Deployment and Assessment of Risk. When assessing a known vulnerability on a server, CMDB information can be used to assess risk based on both the severity of a patch, as well as the business context of the vulnerability. This capability allows IT organizations to prioritize patches that support the business and ensure that critical systems are secured
While I’m a strong advocate of hiring virtual assistants, there are two things that no entrepreneur should ever fully delegate: marketing and bookkeeping. The marketing and the bookkeeping of your business can easily make or break you (just think “new” Coke and Enron). That said, if bookkeeping is not your forte, hire someone to do it – you will save so much in frustration – just be sure to keep your fingers in the books.If you choose to hire a bookkeeper, keep the following in mind:1. Get QuickBooks.For ease of use, I highly recommend using QuickBooks and hiring a QuickBooks ProAdvisor. QuickBooks ProAdvisors have taken certification exams to insure that they know the system. I have used QuickBooks both for myself and my clients since 1996 and highly recommend it for its ease of use/understanding.The online version is great in that you can see the latest version of your books at any time and eliminate the annoyance of emailing files back and forth and wondering who has the latest version.2. She must see both the forest AND the trees.You want your bookkeeper to be detail-oriented AND to see/understand the big picture. She needs to know w
The CMDB breaks down barriers between IT and the business, removing IT silos and creating a higher level of synergy between people, processes and supporting technologies.
Put another way, how can you manage and improve IT services if you don't know what equipment you have, where it is, how it’s connected and the impact of changing it? It is suggested that 80% of critical system outages are the result of people or process failure, with the main proponent being that of changes to the IT environment. This is exacerbated by the fact that planning activities derived from inadequate sources of information drive a path to failure. Additionally, subsequent recovery processes are further hampered by those same inadequate data stores.
Since the CMDB provides the logical model for the IT infrastructure and related services, organizations can more easily manage configuration items and their relationships with other entities and services. Some of the primary benefits a CMDB can provide from the start are related to the areas of proactive change management, security and IT compliance.
Less Reactive, More Proactive Management. A CMDB, coupled with an effective Change Management process, can provide the ability to more effectively manage changes within the IT environment. Since the number of IT changes in an environment will increase as the infrastructure becomes more complex, having a central repository of all configuration information and relationships can help avoid downtime through better planning and understanding of the impact of those changes on the rest of the computing environment.
Improved Security Deployment and Assessment of Risk. When assessing a known vulnerability on a server, CMDB information can be used to assess risk based on both the severity of a patch, as well as the business context of the vulnerability. This capability allows IT organizations to prioritize patches that support the business and ensure that critical systems are secured
Consultants are often involved in a change in job assignments. Some jobs take more time then others. Some consultant have different assignments at the same time, but a new assignment always brings a introduction period with it.Not only consultants, but everyone involved in a job switch will be faced with such a transition. How should you handle such a period?As any change, reserve time for it. Reserve time for “nothing special.” These days where you are changing to another (work) environment can not always be planned. You do not know what to expect, you should merely adapt to the situation. Although you can not plan this transition, make sure you have enough attention to focus on this new job.Free yourself from other assignments. Loose ends from previous jobs could absorb quite some energy. These will inhibit a swift transition to your new assignment. If you know in advance about the switch, make sure you finish current demands and activities.Take your time to learn about the new place, the people and the organization and do not sow expectations. It is easy to start a new job with extra energy. But do not forget that you have more adrenaline only because of
Less Reactive, More Proactive Management. A CMDB, coupled with an effective Change Management process, can provide the ability to more effectively manage changes within the IT environment. Since the number of IT changes in an environment will increase as the infrastructure becomes more complex, having a central repository of all configuration information and relationships can help avoid downtime through better planning and understanding of the impact of those changes on the rest of the computing environment.
Improved Security Deployment and Assessment of Risk. When assessing a known vulnerability on a server, CMDB information can be used to assess risk based on both the severity of a patch, as well as the business context of the vulnerability. This capability allows IT organizations to prioritize patches that support the business and ensure that critical systems are secured first.
More Accurate and Streamlined Compliance. To better facilitate Sarbanes-Oxley and HIPAA initiatives, IT organizations can tap into the CMDB data model to ensure that asset information is accurate and complete. Additionally, the CMDB coupled with the assignment of accountable CI owners and auditors can better enable IT organizations to demonstrate better internal controls. Tracking CIs, relationships and validating their accuracy through continuous monitoring can provide a higher level of assurance that IT systems and related components are controlled and managed in accordance with legislative requirements.
Other advantages of deploying and optimizing a standard CM process and supporting CMDB toolset may include:
* Centralize storage of physical and logical infrastructure information
* Establish clear ownership and accountability for IT components
* Allow more efficient planning and support of the IT infrastructure
* Highlight technical inefficiencies for correction and/or improvement
* Provide a foundation for standard ITIL-based service management (ITSM)
* Compliment regulatory compliance and auditing activities
* Decrease the cost of patching, repairing and troubleshooting
* Minimize downtime and improve customer responsiveness
* Decrease redundancy of IT operational support activities
* Support proactive Problem Management initiatives
* Track intangible attributes of IT assets and their relationships
* Fine-tune Incident Management and operational support
* Allow for more efficient handling of data center and/or IT asset migrations
* Articulate the business context of IT processes and associated activities
* Proactively assess inherent risk from potential IT service failures
* Support Business and IT Service Continuity (ITSCM) initiatives
* Promote IT standards to the broader IT community
* Provide a service-oriented view of the IT infrastructure
* Foster an environment of continuous improvement
Implementing a CMDB
Deployment of a CMDB can only be accomplished in parallel with a Configuration Management process. Therefore, IT organizations need to establish goals, create a baseline and foster an environment of continuous improvement. In turn, related activities will help IT management and supporting personnel to gain momentum and demonstrate the value of standard policies, processes and supporting procedures.
In order to establish an effective Configuration Management process, process stakeholders need to ensure that any data associated with core IT operational processes is appropriately stored and managed. Guaranteeing the integrity, validity, accuracy and completeness of CM data is no small task, and requires certain levels of accountability and ownership in order to properly manage the data.
Therefore, deployment of a CMDB requires careful consideration of who owns and is accountable for the operational components of the repository itself. At a minimum, the following Key Goal Indicators (KGI) should be reviewed, established and/or communicated to all stakeholders prior to commencing any CM strategy or CMDB implementation:
- Establish process ownership and executive sponsorship for the Configuration Management process
- Ensure accountability for the setup, ongoing maintenance and support of CMDB related hardware and components
- Ensure network availability, throughput, capacity and access to CMDB related resources is provided
- Implement regular, scheduled backup of data and related files required for continuous, reliable CMDB operation
- Plan for timely audit and validation of CMDB data to ensure ongoing accuracy of IT environment
- Establish a continuous improvement program specific to CM that focuses on the people driving the process
Bottom Line: For many organizations, simply establishing a starting point for a CMDB can greatly help facilitate effective awareness and maturity of the Configuration Management process. However, incorporating too much detail during an initial CMDB deployment can add significant cost to the process and exceed the actual (
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