By
using Symantec’s integrated endpoint management solutions across a
broad range of client and server systems – physical or virtual –
customers can ensure that their valuable information resources are
protected completely, managed easily and controlled automatically.
Client Management Suite 7.0 and Server Management Suite 7.0 automate
manual management tasks, ensure business productivity tools and data
are functioning properly, and help ensure license compliance. Both
suites are built on the Symantec Management Platform, driving best
practice process automation and providing modular and extensible
integration across Symantec’s product portfolio and third-party
solutions.
“As
the current economic slowdown has placed a greater emphasis on cost
reductions, our customers are looking for better ways to cut expenses
and reduce the growing complexity of managing endpoints while improving
security,” said Francis deSouza, senior vice president, Enterprise
Security Group, Symantec. “Client Management Suite 7.0 and Server
Management Suite 7.0 provide the necessary automation and integration
from a central location to help our customers reduce the time it takes
to manage their assets, improve security and reduce operational costs.”
Client Management Suite 7.0
Client
Management Suite 7.0 gives customers a comprehensive solution for
better control of their IT environment by streamlining efforts
associated with deploying, managing, securing and troubleshooting
client systems. New features in Client Management Suite 7.0 include:
- Intelligent software management helps
organizations tackle the complexity of managing hundreds of enterprise
and home grown software packages by auditing and categorizing known
applications into a software catalog, automatically distributing
software with all of the required components and performing periodic
enforcement checks to ensure configuration remains intact.
- Increased platform coverage
enables IT client administrators to extend their PC lifecycle
management control across Windows, Linux and Mac and includes a new
native OS X agent with an integrated software request portal.
- Integrated power management promotesenergy
conservation by establishing centralized policies that control desktop
and laptop power modes. Integrated support for Intel vPro technology
allows administrators to power on systems just long enough for routine
off-hour tasks, such as installing software updates and patches.
- Advanced systems management technologies – such
as imaging, remote control, and application virtualization and
packaging – leveraged from industry-leading Symantec products including
Symantec Ghost, Symantec pcAnywhere, Symantec Workspace Virtualization,
and Wise packaging technology help customers with increased
functionality and advanced capabilities.
“Symantec’s
comprehensive endpoint management solutions help us to do more with
less by taking the guesswork out of managing more than 10,000 desktops
and 1,000 servers,” said Dave Durkee, systems engineer, Meijer, a
grocery retailer that operates 185 supercenters throughout the eastern
United States. “For example, the automation capabilities of Client
Management Suite and Server Management Suite have improved our patch
management process, putting our endpoints at near 100 percent
compliance. With Symantec’s integrated approach, we have all the tools
we need from one vendor to help us keep our endpoints updated, allowing
us to focus on other important IT issues.”
Server Management Suite 7.0
Server
Management Suite 7.0 provides the essential capabilities to discover,
provision, manage and monitor server infrastructures across a range of
platforms – regardless of whether the server is physical or virtual.
This allows IT administrators to increase the availability of servers
and critical business systems. New features in Server Management Suite
7.0 include:
- Integrated performance monitoring allows
IT administrators to quickly identify and resolve issues impacting the
availability of distributed IT servers. This new feature provides an
easy to use set of tools to intelligently monitor key performance
attributes and rapidly diagnose issues with a historical data workbench.
- Consolidated event management
enables organizations to collect, store and analyze performance and
operational events as well as respond to critical issues. The event
console normalizes a broad scope of event data and correlates the
impact of incidents based on the criticality to business. There are
dozens of remediation tasks available for immediate problem resolution.
- New scheduling and change management features
help IT administrators to improve day-to-day management by giving them
a view of all change activities and allowing them to easily implement
maintenance windows when allowed changes can occur.
Customers
can also leverage Design and Pilot Services for both suites offered
through Symantec Consulting Services. These services will help to
rapidly configure and deploy the Symantec Management Platform in a
production environment delivering a best-in-class implementation from
trained Symantec experts. Symantec’s experienced consultants will
review the environment, assess applicable IT and business requirements,
design and configure the solution, and pilot in production. Symantec
also offers customers a full range of technical support and education
offerings.
Client
Management Suite 7.0 and Server Management Suite 7.0 share the Symantec
Management Console allowing administrators to manage operations from a
single point. Customers can take advantage of the Symantec Management
Console to integrate the management of additional functions that
Symantec provides, including security, data loss prevention, and backup
and recovery of data and systems. In addition, both suites can be
installed and configured in less time while providing better support
for Windows, UNIX, VMware, Linux and Mac.
As
part of its endpoint control integration strategy, Symantec has
integrated the security and management of endpoints to help customers
ensure that all information – in motion and at rest – is protected
across endpoints, networks and on storage devices. To deliver on this
vision, Symantec has already leveraged the modularity and extensibility
of the platform to integrate technologies from some of its key
products, including Symantec Endpoint Protection, Backup Exec, Backup
Exec System Recovery and Symantec Data Loss Prevention for Endpoint. By
implementing a unified solution, organizations can simplify the
implementation and operations of their IT strategy while reducing costs
with a single vendor.
Recently,
Symantec was positioned in the Leaders quadrant in Gartner's Magic
Quadrant for PC Lifecycle Configuration Management (1). According to
the report: "Positioning in the Leaders Quadrant is the result of
successful completeness of vision and ability to execute." The report
also states that the vendors in the Leaders Quadrant have "unique
characteristics that position them favorably for future market success."
For
inclusion in the Magic Quadrant for PC Life Cycle Configuration
Management, 2008, vendor solutions were required to include the
following functions in their management suites: inventory, software
distribution, patch management, and OS deployment. Vendors also needed
to have at least four of these capabilities in their suites: remote
control, software usage monitoring, application virtualization,
application streaming, security configuration management, application
packaging, data and settings migration and policy management (for
example, configuration control).
Licensing and Availability