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…
Learn MoreSecurity & 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…
Learn MorenetTerrain 7.0: Network Documentation & DCIM with a Usability-centric Approach
By Jan Durnhofer - May 8, 2017It’s been another busy yet productive year for the Graphical Networks team; we’re pleased to announce the release of netTerrain 7.0. With netTerrain 7.0 comes enhanced usability, work order management and valuable new time savers for the netTerrain suite (including network documentation, DCIM and outside plant). To help get current netTerrain users up to speed,…
Learn MoreBuying DCIM? If You Overlook This, You’ll End Up Stuck
By Jan Durnhofer - March 15, 2016In this 3rd part of our 8 part blog series, we’ll explore the process of creating an entire Data Center hierarchy – everything from a world level map down to sites, Data Center buildings, floors, racks, devices and ports. Though you may not pay much attention to hierarchies when you’re first on the market for…
Learn MoreDefine a DCIM Custom Object…in 60 Seconds
By Jan Durnhofer - November 19, 2015Almost every DCIM solution comes with standard objects such as model floors, racks, devices or power & cooling elements; many solutions will probably offer some virtual equipment, circuits and cables. There are even some vendors who may model less common things – such as panels or doors – but inevitably, you will need something modeled…
Learn MoreThe #1 Reason Your DCIM Tool May Not Deliver
By Jan Durnhofer - October 26, 2015Extra, extra! DCIM vendors recently discovered something earth-shattering: customers just need a tool that is easy to use and flexible so that it can adjust to a set of specific problems in their Data Center… Further, it seems that customers have been mostly unfazed by all the psychobabble, acronym changes and other gimmicks that DCIM vendors have been…
Learn MoreKill Those Zombie Cables Haunting Your Data Center
By Jan Durnhofer - September 24, 2015It’s been a few weeks since we posted our last DCIM blog (a 4-part series on choosing a DCIM software). What have we been up to? We were rolling out the newest version of our DCIM and network documentation software netTerrain. As part of this release, we added some outstanding features, including a few that…
Learn MoreHow to Choose the Right DCIM Solution (pt. 5): Pulling the Trigger
By Jan Durnhofer - July 22, 2015In parts 1 and 2 of this series, we discussed the importance of discovering your organization’s unique needs and the features you would need from a DCIM tool. We talked about identifying the core tenets of a system such as openness, security, flexibility, network visualization and so on. In part 3, we outlined the importance…
Learn MoreHow to Choose the Right DCIM Solution (pt. 4): Basic Vendor Research
By Jan Durnhofer - July 21, 2015In the previous article, we discussed how to determine if you’re really at the research and demo stage. If you have determined that yes, you do have pain points that DCIM can solve, and you do have buy-in from your organization, the next step is to narrow down a DCIM vendor from all the options…
Learn MoreHow to Choose the Right DCIM Solution (pt. 3): Are You Ready?
By Jan Durnhofer - July 14, 2015In the two previous posts of this series, we discussed the importance of discovering your organization’s unique needs and the features you may need from a DCIM tool. We went on to cover identifying the core tenets of a system such as: openness, security, flexibility, visualization and so on. Now that you have a solid…
Learn MoreHow to Choose the Right DCIM Solution (pt. 2): Architecture and Usability
By Jan Durnhofer - July 9, 2015In our previous blog, we started with an intro to How to Choose the Right DCIM Solution. We gave you a definition of DCIM and then enumerated different functions that usually fall under the large category of “DCIM”. Alright: so you’ve identified some of the features you need from that list, and you start looking for…
Learn MoreHow to Choose the Right DCIM software: Introduction
By Jan Durnhofer - May 18, 2015So: you’ve been tasked with finding the right Data Center Infrastructure Management (DCIM) tool for your organization. In baseball, before you step up to the plate, you first take a look at the whole field. The same is true for DCIM. This blog series will explore the ins and outs of choosing the right software…
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