Rove's Mobile Admin 4.0 Delivers Greater Server Visibility

Networks are no longer managed from just inside the data center, and to that end, Rove Mobile introduced Tuesday new software that allows unified management of IT systems from any computer or handheld device.

Rove said its Mobile Admin 4.0 has a redesigned Web interface and now supports Microsoft Exchange 2007, Windows 2008, and Windows Vista. The vendor has also changed the licensing structure to a per-user fee so that each IT manager can access and manage any number of servers.

Rove's Mobile Admin 4.0 costs $495 per administrator and will support clients equipped with Internet Explorer or Firefox browsers, and mobile devices that use BlackBerry and Windows Mobile operating systems, Rove said.

"This new licensing system helps increase an IT organization's efficiency and effectiveness while decreasing the cost of server ownership," the vendor said in a statement. "It also takes into account growing needs, as companies that want to expand their networks don't have to purchase additional software licenses."

Mobile Admin 4.0 new Web-based interface is more intuitive for users and competes closely with remote access tools from other vendors, Rove added.

Mobile Admin supports multiple server environments, including Windows, Active Directory, Exchange, Lotus Domino, BlackBerry Enterprise Server, Citrix, Oracle, BackupExec, VMWare, and others.

"We have been using Mobile Admin for more than a year to manage 30 Windows servers with 12 IT administrators," said Jason Clark, messaging support analyst for Cengage Learning, in a statement. But Mobile Admin 4.0 will enable the academic content specialist to manage its entire IT infrastructure of more than 1,000 servers. "The software has given us the flexibility to solve network problems from anywhere, without even having to carry around a laptop."