Next Network Monitoring Tool: Your Smartphone

Monitoring servers and network health are features that have been on smartphones for a while, but it often comes in the form of remote desktop access or mobile Web access, and support for multiple systems has been sketchy. That is changing though. Smartphones are becoming first-class citizens among devices that keep IT staff updated on what is going on with enterprise IT systems.

Derdack is readying a new app for Windows Phone 7 that will connect directly to Microsoft System Center Operations Manager; Windows Server 2008 Server Manager; HP Operations Center; and IBM Tivoli Monitoring. It should be available from the Windows Marketplace in late July.

The Mobile Alert App takes advantage of Windows Phone 7 features like live tiles and push notifications. You can also elect to get some alerts old school via SMS or voice.

The app doesn't just alert you to an issue, but gives you full details on the incident so you can determine whether or not you need to get up from dinner and deal with it immediately or wait until you show up for work the next morning. Derdack also claims the app integrates with existing help desk systems so incidents should be able to be assigned right from the phone.

Making effective use of the Metro UI in Windows Phone 7, you can quickly see new alerts and which are resolved and unresolved. Once in an alert, you can view detailed information about it.

It requires Derdack's Enterprise Alert 2011 service be installed on the network. You can see a quick video at Derdack's site that shows how the notifications and reporting mechanisms work. A BlackBerry version should be ready in a few weeks as well, said the firm. According to ECNMag, an iPhone app is on the roadmap.

If you currently have smartphones as supported components of your alert system, what software and devices are you using?

IT is caught in a squeeze between requests for new applications, services, and device support and demands from upper management to keep budgets lean, staffing light, and operations tight. These are irreconcilable objectives as long as we spend the vast majority of our resources on legacy services. Read our report now. (Free registration required.)