NETWORK WORLD NEWSLETTER: AUDREY RASMUSSEN ON NETWORK/SYSTEMS MANAGEMENT 08/25/04 Today's focus: Compliance, compliance and more compliance
Dear [EMAIL PROTECTED], In this issue: * What does 'compliance' really mean, anyway? * Links related to Network/Systems Management * Featured reader resource _______________________________________________________________ This newsletter is sponsored by Alterpoint Read the latest analyst report on Network Change and Configuration Management (NCCM) written by EMA's Dennis Drogseth. This report discusses the latest developments in the NCCM market, including an in-depth look at DeviceAuthority Suite, a comprehensive solution for configuring, changing, and controlling today's complex, multi-vendor IT network infrastructures. Download the report today to learn how you can leverage NCCM to reduce the cost and complexity of managing network change. http://www.fattail.com/redir/redirect.asp?CID=73273 _______________________________________________________________ CONTEMPLATING A CAREER MOVE? For many of us, it is time to contemplate a change. You're great at managing networks, but what about your career? Get information and advice for managing and developing your career and guiding your staff's career choices at NW Fusion's Career Research Center. Click here: http://www.fattail.com/redir/redirect.asp?CID=73211 _______________________________________________________________ Today's focus: Compliance, compliance and more compliance By Audrey Rasmussen Recently the word "compliance" has been used, reused and over-used. The problem is that vendors are using the term to describe totally different things, which makes it very confusing and difficult to know what they're talking about. First, there are the regulatory compliance issues many companies are dealing with, such as Sarbanes-Oxley, HIPAA and so forth. The use of the word "compliance" in this situation is descriptive because companies are required to comply with governmental regulations, such as HIPAA, which deals with the privacy of patient information. Many companies have been struggling to meet the compliance timetables of some of these regulations. Then there is the use of "compliance" to describe the compliance of IT infrastructure and user behavior with corporate policies. In IT management, this can touch a wide range of areas and issues. Some of these policies affect areas such as data retention, e-mail archiving, software (application) use, server configurations, desktop configurations, network device configurations, e-mail use, personal firewall use, virus scanning, security, data access and use, PDA applications and usage, and more. Although each of these areas involves compliance with corporate policies, the areas of compliance are so disparate that this is one of the areas in which using the word presents the potential for a lot of confusion. Just take a look at the security area alone. There are compliance issues with network and system configurations, virus scanning, securing access to data and applications, firewall use, role-based access and so forth. Security-related "compliance" not only spans across all areas of security but also touches all other areas of the infrastructure, including systems, networks, databases, storage, applications and so forth. Compliance has also been used to describe software-licensing compliance, as in making sure that you are only using the number of copies of software that your company has licensed from a vendor. This kind of compliance would involve using management tools that deal with software inventories, software metering and software usage. I'm sure I've missed some other uses of the term "compliance" in management. It's not possible to cover every usage, at least not in the amount of space that Network World allots me. Nevertheless, it's clear that we're certainly already exposed to a lot of different usages of the word. So here are a few tips when looking for tools related to compliance. First, if you're looking for something to help you solve a compliance issue that you're dealing with, be sure to clearly define your requirements and understand exactly what you're looking for. Second, have a clear understanding of what each vendor means by compliance, and how their products address it. Third, be sure you're comparing apples to apples. Some products may tout "compliance" because a subset of what they do can be used in the process of compliance, while other products are specifically designed to help solve compliance problems. I wish you good luck in sifting through all the compliance tools and services out there. It's not an easy task, and it's not for the faint of heart. RELATED EDITORIAL LINKS Survey: Companies burdened by Sarbanes-Oxley compliance Network World Fusion, 07/30/04 http://www.nwfusion.com/news/2004/0730pwc.html Compliance costly Network World Fusion, 07/30/04 http://www.nwfusion.com/news/2004/0607nw500survey.html Review: Sourcefire's RNA provides instant visibility into your network Network World, 08/23/04 http://www.nwfusion.com/reviews/2004/0823revrna.html?nl2 Vendors automate content management Network World, 08/23/04 http://www.nwfusion.com/news/2004/082304content.html?nl2 _______________________________________________________________ To contact: Audrey Rasmussen Audrey Rasmussen is a vice president with Enterprise Management Associates <http://www.enterprisemanagement.com/> in Boulder, Colorado, a leading industry analyst firm focusing exclusively on all aspects of the management of information technology. Audrey has more than 25 years of experience working with distributed systems, applications and networks. Her current focus at EMA is system management, application management and enterprise management technologies. Reach her at <mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]>. _______________________________________________________________ This newsletter is sponsored by Alterpoint Read the latest analyst report on Network Change and Configuration Management (NCCM) written by EMA's Dennis Drogseth. This report discusses the latest developments in the NCCM market, including an in-depth look at DeviceAuthority Suite, a comprehensive solution for configuring, changing, and controlling today's complex, multi-vendor IT network infrastructures. Download the report today to learn how you can leverage NCCM to reduce the cost and complexity of managing network change. http://www.fattail.com/redir/redirect.asp?CID=73272 _______________________________________________________________ ARCHIVE LINKS Archive of the Network/Systems Management newsletter: http://www.nwfusion.com/newsletters/nsm/index.html _______________________________________________________________ FEATURED READER RESOURCE WONDERING IF YOUR PAY IS UP TO SNUFF? Check out Network World's 2004 Salary Calculator to see if you're getting paid what you're worth. Using data collected in the 2004 Network World Salary Survey, we've programmed this calculator with several categories that could affect your pay. Answer the questions and find out what the average salary is for your job category. Click here: <http://www.nwfusion.com/salary/2004/calculator.html> _______________________________________________________________ May We Send You a Free Print Subscription? 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