Cameron Sturdevant

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY DeviceAuthority 1.1 AlterPoints network device configuration management tool efficiently handles an essential IT chore—configuration management. Small and midsize enterprises that use a variety of network gear will likely benefit most from DeviceAuthority because of its centralization capabilities. AlterPoint should add subsidiary management consoles to accommodate large organizations in multiple geographic locations. KEY PERFORMANCE […]

For the first time, Neon Software has released a Windows version of its LANsurveyor network mapping and management tool. LANsurveyor 7 for Windows is appropriate for IT managers at small and midsize enterprises, and my tests showed that the tool will likely help IT managers keep track of network changes. Within minutes of installing the […]

Although it purports to do the opposite, the CAN-SPAM Act of 2003 leaves corporate and private e-mail boxes wide open to receiving unsolicited, bulk, commercial e-mail. The Controlling the Assault of Non-Solicited Pornography and Marketing Act of 2003 may instead erode legitimate free speech and will certainly create a flurry of confusion. But its unlikely […]

I finally figured out what bugs me about how my private information is used and abused by businesses large and small, legit and not-so-legit. Somewhere in the rush to the Internet, some dope decided it would be a good idea to cloak data use policies in a “privacy” statement. It was a great gimmick for […]

Data center system patch management is growing in complexity and requires a concerted effort by IT administrators to control costs. The pressing question of the day is how to maintain secure mission-critical systems while controlling operational costs in the face of a steady onslaught of software vulnerabilities. According to The CERT Coordination Center, more than […]

eWEEK Labs tests of four patch management products—Ecora Corp.s Ecora Patch Manager 2.0, PatchLink Corp.s PatchLink Update 4.0, St. Bernard Software Inc.s UpdateExpert 6.0 and Shavlik Technologies LLCs HFNetChkPro 4—reveal a wide range of capabilities and performance. PatchLink Update—which earned an eWEEK Labs Analysts Choice award—is the only product we tested that uses agents on […]

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY HFNetChk Pro 4.0.7.5 Shavliks tight relationship with Microsoft shows: Its agentless HFNetChkPro effectively patches every major and most minor Microsoft products, and the product is effectively integrated with Microsofts Active Directory. HFNetChkPros user interface neatly shows IT managers what needs to be done. KEY PERFORMANCE INDICATORS USUABILITY GOOD CAPABILITY EXCELLENT PERFORMANCE GOOD INTEROPERABILLITY […]

PatchLink Update 4.0 earned an eWEEK Labs Analysts Choice award because it covers a wide range of systems and does so in a manner that will likely help most IT managers stay on top of the myriad patches released every day. (Check out eWEEK Labs walk-through of PatchLink Update 4.0.) While we were impressed with […]

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY Ecora Patch Manager 2.0 Ecora Patch Manager 2.0 is a relative newcomer and can be integrated with Ecoras host of configuration management tools— probably the products biggest benefit over the other products we tested. Version 3.0 of Patch Manager will incorporate Microsoft SQL Server, likely improving scalability. KEY PERFORMANCE INDICATORS USUABILITY EXCELLENT CAPABILITY […]

During tests of Blue Titan Software Inc.s Network Director (see review), one of the first things we noticed about the products reporting capabilities is that theres no place to account for scheduled downtime. At some level, this works in favor of the Web service “customer” because Blue Titans service reports will show the good, bad […]

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY Blue Titan Network Director 2.0 Blue Titan Network Director helps organizations get a handle on Web services by installing components throughout the network and using centrally managed policies to govern the creation, deployment, use and performance of Web services. Blue Titan has a good idea and a good start with a solid product. […]