GridApp expands platform support for Clarity Agent
By Devin Heitmueller | April 1, 2008
In the interest of supporting as many platforms as possible, GridApp Systems has expanded support for its Clarity Enterprise Agent to run on the following platforms:
- Microsoft Xenix
- AT&T 3B2 System V, Version 3
- Microsoft MS-DOS 6.22
- Debian Linux
- Tandy Corporation TRS-80
At the same time GridApp will add support for the following database platforms:
- E. F. Codd’s proof of concept
- Ingres version 1.0
- Oracle Parallel Server
- FileMaker Pro
According to Matt Zito, GridApp’s Chief Scientist:
We really did want to be able to say that our agent runs on everything under the sun. How many times do you walk into an organization and they say, “We’ll buy it, but only if you support platform X.” Well, now we can finally say that we do.
Devin Heitmueller, the lead developer for expanding OS architecture support states:
You know, we thought the small thread stacks found under the PA-RISC version of HP-UX 11.11 were a problem. That was nothing compared to getting the code to run on the TRS-80, a system that only has 32 KB of RAM and no network capability. I lost the first version of the port because my sister tripped over the power cord before I had a chance to backup the code using my cassette tape drive.
GridApp will be releasing the agents in the second quarter of 2008.
Topics: Clarity | 1 Comment »
Action Profile: Mass User Updates
By Eric Gross | March 26, 2008
Goal
Make a change whereby a database user is changed in some way across the enterprise. Properties that might be changed include the user’s password, if the user is locked out, or a change to the privileges of the user.
Use Case
A user’s password has been compromised after it was accidentally posted to a public message board. The account’s password must immediately be changed to mitigate the chances that an intruder will be able to capitalize on this information leak.
Manual Steps
- Identify the user and new password
- Identify the database servers to which this user has access
- Create a script that determines the local context and changes the user’s password
- Log into each database server and run the script
- Verify change on each server, creating a report showing the results of the change
Automated Steps
- Create a script that changes the user’s password (one time cost, example available)
- Identify the user and new password
- In the Clarity interface, select all databases to which the user may have access and execute the Action
- Send the provided results from the Action showing the results of the change
Savings
Depending on the number of databases which need to be touched, the amount of user time could be reduced substantially. If you spent 5 minutes per database when doing this manually vs. a total of 30 minutes using the automated method, you would have saved more than 7 hours if running this action on 100 databases.
Topics: User Management, Clarity Actions, Security, Database Automation | No Comments »
Can’t I Just Create a Script To Do That?
By Eric Gross | March 25, 2008
The Clarity Action framework is fundamentally a better way to run your existing scripts than what you are likely doing now. Here is why:
- You are passing in the exact information your scripts need to do their job. If your script acts on a database the script is run on an active instance of that database, with environment variables populated with all the goodies: user who has the required credentials to run the activity, location of the software, the name of the instance you can connect to, etc. Rather than having scripts that are comprised mostly of determining the environment in which they are being executed you can focus on your goal. A one-liner that changes a database parameter can be just a single line - there isn’t 100 lines of warm-up code followed by your one line, followed by a number of lines there to report success or failure.
- Speaking of results, Clarity Actions provide a report of the success or failure of each executed script with regard to each object on which the action has been run. In addition there is a summary report containing the results of each round of execution. These results are stored with the results of all of your provisioning & patching activities for a complete record of events, complete with the user responsible (and their IP address).
- Minimizing credentials on the hosts running databases leads to fewer support incidents - you can enforce your security policy at a high-level in Clarity rather than on each host, reducing execution overhead and simplifying management.
- Centralized content - Actions are stored in a central location that can be version controlled and secured so that only certain users have the ability to determine what is run on the database hosts.
- Inputs - Actions are made up of more than a script - a definition of the optional & required inputs is also there to enforce that users provide sufficient information before any activities start.
- Graphical selection of entities - running an action on every machine in an enterprise group is simplified by a real-time display showing all the relevant entities as execution candidates.
I am sure there are many more reasons that our Action framework can breathe new life into your day-to-day activities - happy actuations!
Topics: Clarity Actions, Repeatability, Database Automation, Efficiency | No Comments »
What is Your Chosen Method of Execution?
By Eric Gross | March 20, 2008
As part of our lives we perform actions to databases all the time. Perhaps the database administrative workload breaks down in the following way in your organization:
- Installation of a new database - 10 times / month
- Upgrade of an existing database - 20 times / month
- Patch installation - 40 times / month
- Administration activities - 20 times /day (this encompasses all activities performed on servers running a database such as DBMS management, OS administration, and any other activities executed on database nodes)
These are just hypothetical numbers, but I would be willing to bet that in terms of execution frequency, Install < Upgrade < Patch < Other Activities. Here at GridApp we have been looking out for the database managers and maintainers by facilitating automation of the three “standardizable” components of workload - we have taken into consideration everything that is required to actuate those items. That is not to say the customer has no flexibility in those tasks - by letting the user (or administrator) specify every single input as well as define scripts that are run at well defined points in the flow of execution we enable the customer to accomplish all of their unique goals along with the common goal of standards-based provisioning.
Actions are simply an arbitrary piece of code that performs a particular task. The gains to be realized from migrating the method of execution of these activities from interactive sessions logged into the database to non-interactive activities available in a drop-down list are substantial. Management of these business-critical scripts is moved from .sql files sitting on everyone’s workstation to the security & manageability of Clarity allowing such essential characteristics such as version-control, our intrinsic security model - controlling both management of the action and execution of the action, and a tightly-coupled interface to collect the required inputs for the activity.
We will be extending Clarity to facilitate the everyday activities that are required in your environment. This is a monumental evolution in our execution of GridApp’s mission, and you will be seeing much more of our glorious content made available for customization in your environment. Content is king in this world, and you’ll continue to see why in the coming days.
Topics: Clarity Actions, Data Management, Database Automation | No Comments »
Clarity 4.5 is here.
By Cindy Hart | March 19, 2008
TechNewsWorld
“‘There are a lot of companies out there focusing on different aspects of data management, but GridApp is really the only one in the last six or 12 months that has realized there’s a lot of work that can be automated at the day-to-day level. It’s not very challenging work, and companies are always looking to figure out another way to do it,’ said Evelyn Hubbert, a senior analyst with Forrester.”
eWEEK
“‘What is game-changing about Clarity Actions is that DBAs can automate other tasks in a far more robust, flexible and maintainable manner than they could by scripting,’ said Jasmine Noel, technology analyst at Ptak, Noel & Associates, in a statement. ‘Not only do DBAs gain more time to focus on strategic efforts through this new automation, there is no need to revamp the automation every time the environment changes.’”
DBTA 5-Minute Briefing
“At the heart of Clarity 4.5 is Clarity Actions, an automation framework which extends automation across the database environment by enabling IT organizations to customize and automate any type of database activity.”
Database Journal
“Clarity 4.0’s out-of-the-box functionality provided automation capabilities for such tasks as patching, provisioning, configuration and auditing-all of those time-consuming, tedious procedures. With the release of Clarity 4.5, GridApp Systems takes automation to the next level.”
Sarbanes-Oxley Compliance Journal
“Clarity Actions can be safely executed by users without vast database skill sets given the new compliance-friendly process repetition, reporting, and tracking functionalities. Clarity Actions is fully integrated with Clarity’s security, logging, and job tracking model, allowing database teams to track user and task execution and streamline oversight.”
IT Knowledge Exchange
“CCM for Databases; when they are core to your business or the functionality offered by BladeLogic or Opsware just isn’t enough to get it done; these guys have something to seriously checkout.”
You can read more about Clarity 4.5 and Clarity Actions.
Topics: Clarity Actions, GridApp, Data Center Automation, Clarity, Database Automation | No Comments »
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