Are you overwhelmed by the growing number of distributed resources that you need to manage? Are you frustrated that no tool show you how IP failures affect other devices? Do you want to bring all of your resources under the control of one powerful manager? You can accomplish all of this and more with the MultiSystem Manager component of Tivoli NetView for z/OS.
With MultiSystem Manager, you can centralize control of network and system resources, including:
TCP/IP resources managed by Tivoli NetView
TCP/IP resources managed by IBM Tivoli Network Manager
Resources in Tivoli Management Regions (TMR's)
Any other resource through the MultiSystem Manager Open topology interface
Dynamic Discovery
MultiSystem Manager automatically communicates with your distributed resources and dynamically discovers the topology and status each resource. This means faster implementation of your centralized manager and greater productivity gains for your operations help-desk staff.
MultiSystem Manager continuously monitors changes and provides you with graphic views using the NetView Management Console (NMC). When problems occur in your network, you can use NMC to find and correct the problems more efficiently than ever.
Object-Oriented Technology
MultiSystem Manager uses NetView's Resource Object Data Manager (RODM), an object-oriented data cache on the mainframe, and NMC to collect and display information dynamically about the entire enterprise.
The object-oriented technology of RODM has even more benefit for you through MultiSystem Manager. You asked for the dynamic status of RODM objects and with MultiSystem Manager, it's a reality.
Each resource managed by MultiSystem Manager is represented as an object. Each object is connected graphically to upstream, downstream, and peer objects, just as it is in your actual network. Each object has properties--attached information like the name, address, status, and more--used to build graphical views and tell MultiSystem Manager where to send commands to communicate with the resource.
You can access RODM data quickly and easily using the MultiSystem Manager Access facility, a high-level REXX interface to RODM. MultiSystem Manager Access allows you to interact easily with RODM through an intuitive programming interface that establishes your RODM connection. The functions provided offer an easy way to create, link, unlink, update, query, and delete objects in RODM.
Graphical Network Management
MultiSystem Manager creates fully customizable, color, graphical views of your resources and displays them on a state-of-the-art NMC workstation. Colors represent the statuses of resources or groups of resources in your network. Links between graphical objects show you how your network is connected. Point-and-click commands reduce the likelihood of operator error. When a problem occurs in your network, you can navigate to it or use exception views for instant access to the failed resource. One graphical interface, one common facility for sending commands, and one centralized data cache add up to faster problem resolution and lower operating costs.
Sample view with point-and-click commands
Click to enlarge
Dynamic Correlation
MultiSystem Manager discovers the correlation between resources of different protocols and links them in RODM, enabling you to root out the source of problems, even when those problems cross protocols. Resource correlation is dynamic and constantly updated.
A new workstation object is created dynamically when MultiSystem Manager discovers multiple protocols on the same workstation. This enables a single NMC view to display the impact of a failure in one managed resource on another managed resource, making problem determination even faster for your operations staff.
Network Resource Correlation
Click to enlarge
Remote Access
Do you sometimes need to use the console of a remote system without physically being there? MultiSystem Manager provides a solution for UNIX and AIX consoles. With MultiSystem Manager you can gain remote access for NetWare servers and UNIX and AIX consoles using MultiSystem Manager's TCP/IP TELNET facility.
An Open Topology Interface
Would you like to have MultiSystem Manager manage resources sold by DEC, Tandem, Newbridge, Ericsson, Bytex, and AT&T? You can.
You can use the MultiSystem Manager Open Topology Interface and Open data model with agent applications to discover and manage virtually any resource. An Open agent toolkit is provided that describes the APIs and helps you or your vendor create a custom agent.
The Open topology interface allows you to take advantage of the power of NMC and RODM by adding the resources specific to your environment--and without writing any host NetView code.
Because RODM is an object-oriented repository, your resources are graphically connected to represent your actual topology--and it's automatic with MultiSystem Manager. This eliminates the need for a long, complex process of object generation.
Tools and documentation that can help you use the Open topology interface can be found on toolkit description on our support page.
Fully Dynamic Environment
MultiSystem Manager provides dynamic discovery of your distributed systems management environment. With the SNA management component of Tivoli NetView for z/OS adding your SNA and APPN information from VTAM, all managed objects are dynamically discovered and stored as objects in RODM, providing you with a consistent interface.
