NETWORK WORLD NEWSLETTER: CAROLYN DUFFY MARSAN'S ISP NEWS REPORT 10/13/04 Today's focus: SLAs: Infonet targets application performance
Dear [EMAIL PROTECTED], In this issue: * Infonet SLAs take into account end-to-end performance of key ��network apps * Links related to ISP News Report * Featured reader resource _______________________________________________________________ This newsletter is sponsored by Veritas Meta Group Whitepaper Database Infrastructure Performance Challenges: Approaches to Better Manage Application Database and Storage Subsystem Performance Corporate relational databases now manage the majority of business-critical data within the enterprise. IT organizations face continuing challenges in managing increasingly complex, data-driven application environments. Read this white paper to discover several factors which will converge to challenge the IT organization's ability to manage its database software infrastructure. http://www.fattail.com/redir/redirect.asp?CID=84663 _______________________________________________________________ SECURITY CONCERNS STOPPING YOUR WLAN PLANS? Is it possible to deploy a secure wireless LAN with technology available today? That question preys on the minds of IT executives who are tempted to deploy enterprise WLANs, but are hesitant because of security concerns. Find out what we uncovered when we assembled 23 wireless products trying to get to the answer. Click here: http://www.fattail.com/redir/redirect.asp?CID=84752 _______________________________________________________________ Today's focus: SLAs: Infonet targets application performance By Carolyn Duffy Marsan Six months ago, Infonet announced a suite of service-level agreements for its data services - including IP VPN Secure, Global Frame Relay, Global ATM and Dedicated Internet Service - that featured end-to-end performance guarantees. Now Infonet is looking beyond individual data services to create SLAs that take into account the end-to-end performance of key network applications. Infonet is developing application monitoring and optimization services that are focused on application performance. As a companion to these services, Infonet will offer an SLA that includes all the pieces of the corporate IT infrastructure that the ISP can monitor. "Ultimately, where we're going is to offer an SLA on those aspects of the service that we have visibility into or can touch directly," says Bob DaGiau, vice president of enterprise management services for Infonet. "That's the Holy Grail, in our opinion. That's going to be disruptive in the business." DaGiau says Infonet has two customers testing its new application monitoring and optimization services, which will be announced in limited availability later this fall. These services will be available across any of Infonet's data services. "We're not going to be operating the application on behalf of the customer," DaGiau explains. "But we're going to be able to understand the applications in the client environment. We're going to be able to prioritize applications across the WAN in conjunction with the customer. And we're also going to be able to set very strict policy controls over the performance that individual end users can experience." Infonet's approach - which it has dubbed "application-defined networking" - is part of a trend towards ISPs rethinking how they deliver IP services and the performance they guarantee customers. We're looking at Infonet's SLA strategy in the latest installment of an ongoing series about the SLAs offered by top-tier ISPs. In previous issues, we've discussed SLAs from AT&T, MCI and Equant. To view the previous articles, please go to the ISP News Report online archives ( <http://www.nwfusion.com/newsletters/isp/index.html> ). Infonet already offers a monitoring service it calls FirstWatch, which provides performance reporting for customer-owned network components including routers, hubs, switches, servers and security devices. Due out next are FirstAlert and FirstAlert Premise, which offer real-time visibility into the performance of Infonet-provided network services such as IP VPN or frame relay. In addition, Infonet has said it will offer monitoring and performance reporting for more than 2,000 leading e-business applications. "Now we have SLAs for FirstWatch, and we'll have SLAs tied to our application monitoring and application optimization services," DaGiau says. "Next, we'll develop aggregated SLAs for customers that subscribe to all three services. We want to offer an overall SLA." DaGiau says the overall SLA will be available by December 2005. "We don't want to craft the overall SLA until we have [experience with] customers for all three services," he adds. Infonet will continue to offer individual SLAs for all of its VPN and voice services. DaGaiu vows that Infonet will be competitive on the performance metrics - such as latency, packet loss and availability - that are the focus of competitors such as AT&T and MCI. However, Infonet's focus will be on application-level performance guarantees. "The only reason for buying a network service is to deliver applications to end users," DaGaiu explains. "From the customer's perspective...it's about the performance of the application or the end user experience in total, including the performance of the applications and the servers and everything else. It's not just the network plumbing. It's all the systems and the infrastructure." Next week: Check out the SLAs offered by Sprint and Internap. Key to the success of this series on SLAs is feedback from you. What do you care about most when evaluating SLAs? Which ISP is the easiest or most difficult to negotiate with on SLAs? Whose SLAs are the simplest or most difficult to understand? Please share your SLA stories with other network executives. Send us an e-mail today at <mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]> RELATED EDITORIAL LINKS More about Infonet's SLAs � http://www.infonet.com/support/management/management.asp More about Infonet's application monitoring and optimization services http://www.infonet.com/about/newsroom/press_release.asp?month=1202&year=2003 Carriers speak out on consolidation Network World, 10/11/04 http://www.nwfusion.com/news/2004/101104rbocs.html MCI getting a better handle on its VPN services Network World, 10/11/04 http://www.nwfusion.com/news/2004/101104mcivpn.html _______________________________________________________________ To contact: Carolyn Duffy Marsan Carolyn Duffy Marsan is a senior editor with Network World and covers emerging Internet technologies and standards. Reach her at <mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]> _______________________________________________________________ This newsletter is sponsored by Veritas Meta Group Whitepaper Database Infrastructure Performance Challenges: Approaches to Better Manage Application Database and Storage Subsystem Performance Corporate relational databases now manage the majority of business-critical data within the enterprise. IT organizations face continuing challenges in managing increasingly complex, data-driven application environments. Read this white paper to discover several factors which will converge to challenge the IT organization's ability to manage its database software infrastructure. http://www.fattail.com/redir/redirect.asp?CID=84662 _______________________________________________________________ ARCHIVE LINKS Archive of the ISP News Report newsletter (formerly Internet Services): http://www.nwfusion.com/newsletters/isp/index.html _______________________________________________________________ FEATURED READER RESOURCE THE NEW DATA CENTER Today's top companies are accelerating toward Web-based computing. That means building the new data center -- where grids, virtualization, autonomic computing and other big changes shatter the traditional boundaries on applications and information, and bring the extended enterprise to life. Learn about The New Data Center on NW Fusion's Research Center at: <http://www.nwfusion.com/topics/datacenter.html> _______________________________________________________________ May We Send You a Free Print Subscription? You've got the technology snapshot of your choice delivered at your fingertips each day. Now, extend your knowledge by receiving 51 FREE issues to our print publication. Apply today at http://www.subscribenw.com/nl2 International subscribers click here: http://nww1.com/go/circ_promo.html _______________________________________________________________ SUBSCRIPTION SERVICES To subscribe or unsubscribe to any Network World e-mail newsletters, go to: <http://www.nwwsubscribe.com/Changes.aspx> To unsubscribe from promotional e-mail go to: <http://www.nwwsubscribe.com/Preferences.aspx> To change your e-mail address, go to: <http://www.nwwsubscribe.com/ChangeMail.aspx> Subscription questions? Contact Customer Service by replying to this message. 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