Intro: netTerrain’s API for DCIM, Network Documentation, and Outside Plant
By Jan Durnhofer - January 26, 2018Despite all the recent hoopla, API’s have been around for a long time. Without realizing it, we use API’s all the time: we use them when we make an airline reservation…we use them when we check the weather on our phones. API’s bridge together several moving parts to serve up a desired result to the…
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Connect & Automate Your Data Imports in Under 2 Minutes
By Jan Durnhofer - January 24, 2018Most DCIM or Network Mapping software gives users some discovery features — which we also do. That’s all nice and dandy…but it’s very limited: every time you want to ensure your data is up-to-date, you have to manually schedule a discovery. When you have data that’s frequently changing, this becomes a hassle. What if you…
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Dear Prospect: If You Want Everything, You Need Nothing
By Jan Durnhofer - January 17, 2018“The demo with Jan was incredibly unprofessional. It seemed like he refused to go into any detail about the product. He wanted me to narrow down the focus of what he demo’ed to only what I immediately was interested in.” — Feedback from a Recent Prospect Ouch…that was a first. Apparently, I am unprofessional. Ok,…
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The 12 Days of DCIM
By Jason Sherman - December 20, 2017‘Tis the season….in the spirit of the holidays, we’re bringing you the “12 Days of DCIM”: a look at 12 days in the life of an engineer who goes from zero documentation to using DCIM software. Day 1: ♫ On the 1st day, my boss gave to me: a network without documentation and a whole…
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DCIM Hierarchies & Layers: Just Double-Click & Drag-and-Drop
By Jan Durnhofer - December 18, 2017In this blog (and video), we’ll explore how you can easily create hierarchies and navigate in and out of them using netTerrain (our network documentation network mapping tool and data center infrastructure management tool). Many DCIM solutions offer users just two or three predefined layers; with netTerrain, you can create an unlimited number of your…
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3D Views in DCIM – Still Just Pretty Pictures
By Jan Durnhofer - December 5, 2017DCIM: hype or substance? There’s been a healthy amount of debate in recent years about whether DCIM is more hype than substance and reports of failed DCIM installations have only sparked the debate further. The resounding consensus on the question of hype — from both analysts and the users themselves — is that DCIM can…
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Does Data Center Automation Pay Off? Federal Agencies Release ROI Reports
By Jason Sherman - December 3, 2017Recently, I stumbled upon the current DCOI optimization dashboard — which is an overall look at how data centers in federal agencies are performing across different categories. If you’re not familiar with the DCOI yet, here’s some background: DCOI is short for the Data Center Optimization Initiative. It’s a federal initiative that falls under the…
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How to Trace an IT Outage (Even When Your Cabling is Spaghetti)
By Jason Sherman - October 30, 2017Knowing what’s connected to what: it’s one of the primary reasons we document the network. But this knowledge can’t just exist in a vacuum…so what’s the point of knowing what and where your connections are? Let’s not beat around the bush: cabling has a tendency to become ‘spaghetti’ fast, especially as your infrastructure grows. Even…
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DCIM Vendor Taking Too Long to Model a Device? Read This.
By Jan Durnhofer - October 12, 2017Rod Stewart once famously penned, “time is a thief”; Tom Petty (RIP) proclaimed, “the waiting is the hardest part.” If you’re a DCIM user who’s been kept on hold by your DCIM vendor when you just need a new device type modeled (a new make/model that isn’t already in your catalog), you can probably relate…
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If Your Cabling is a Hot Mess, You Need to Read This
By Jason Sherman - July 26, 2017Is your cabling a hot mess? Or maybe, your cabling is in better shape…as in, it’s barely passable? Is your cabling creating unnecessary work for you and your team? We get it: managing your connections without DCIM is like Mario trying to fight Bowser without any power-ups. When you don’t have the tools you need,…
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Automation for Data Center Managers
By Fred Koh - July 1, 2017The myriad promises of automation loom large over today’s technological landscape. Whether the discussion is around reducing costs or upping efficiency, one thing is crystal clear: automation is here to stay. For data center managers and network engineers, automation is far more than hype: when done right, it delivers on its promises of big ROI….
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Security & DCIM: Your Questions Answered by DCIM Experts
By Jan Durnhofer - May 23, 2017Reports of cyber attacks are widespread today: data shows that both the size and frequency of these attacks are on the rise. For those who use or are considering using DCIM software, these attacks beg the question, “Is DCIM susceptible? What kind of attacks can be waged against a DCIM solution?” All software, online or…
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