Server Proactive Management System – SPMS

SPMS is one of the core applications in the Change Record Management System (CRMS) applications suite. It is designed to enable IS analysts to proactively manage and maintain servers to prevent downtime. Certain operations if routinely performed on servers can prevent downtime. Some of such operations include; checking hard drive free space, checking memory and processor usage, checking and clearing application, system and security logs, etc. Most of the applications that run on servers maintain logs. These application specific logs can grow exponentially to overwhelm a server. There are also locations in the hard drive where disused management entries are dumped which grows and takes unnecessary hard drive space. All these logs and entries if not checked and cleared might lead to all sorts of server performance issues such as slowness, nonresponsive, blue screen and other anomalies including “crash” and consequent loss of data. However many organizations do not have policies or procedures to check and clear these logs until the inevitable occurs which is downtime. SPMS enables IT managers and supervisors to schedule routine server maintenance services among the IT personnel. It also enables the managers and supervisors to ensure that scheduled server maintenance services are duly performed.

SPMS has, among other features, the following main features:

Scheduler – this feature is used to schedule proactive server maintenance among IT personnel. The scheduler has the capability to schedule; weekly, biweekly, monthly etc and among several persons for the same period.

Report – the report feature enables the managers and supervisors to ensure that the proactive maintenance schedule is diligently followed. In other words, the report command allows supervisors, managers and analysts to keep track of the performance of scheduled routine server maintenance.

Alerts – the alerts feature allows managers and supervisors to create thresholds for free hard drive space, memory usage, processor usage and performance level. However, while memory usage, processor usage and performance level might fluctuate depending on momentary server and network situations; hard drive free space is most critical because all the logs and entries are made on the hard drive. Therefore hard drive free space threshold is mostly used for alerts. When a predetermined hard drive free space is reached; SPMS sends alerts to designated IT personnel through email or pager. The alert feature is very important. It helps to forestall the inevitability of downtime and possible loss of data if the hard drive is allowed to fill up.

The Comment field – the comment field enable an IT personnel performing proactive server maintenance to input comments about anything regarding the server. This acts as a note to the IT personnel as well as a note for the managers and supervisors.

SPMS like the other core applications in the Change Record Management System (CMS) suite is very important in the fight to reduce and perhaps eradicate downtime and its financial havoc to the organizations.