Managing an organization’s infrastructure is no easy task, which is why most managers rely on configuration management tools.
Configuration management tools help a manager control any changes to an organizations infrastructure. By using these tools, managers can ensure that the infrastructure is configured to precise specifications that align with the organization’s values.
In this article, we discuss some of the best configuration management tools currently available. Within each section, we give a broad overview of each tool, explaining how to use it and its many benefits. Finally, we offer our thoughts on the future of configuration management tools.
Configuration management tools can refer either specifically to software systems or more generally to any technique employed by a manager to manage change within a network. We will use the more expansive definition in this article, though we will emphasize software solutions in many of our examples.
Pre-Configuration Management Tools to Use
Many network managers concede that active configuration management should be unnecessary in an ideal system.
Ideally, the system has been installed in such an anticipatory and preemptive manner that any changes to the system can be dealt with swiftly by the system. The most effective systems are those that are self-sufficient, allowing administrators to focus on managing other resources.
While you might aim for this ideal, in reality, you will likely have to actively manage most networks that you establish, especially when there are many users on the network.
When it comes to software, the best tool for approaching this ideal is organization. It’s imperative that you document the nature of the system you establish so that you can observe how it inevitably drifts over time. You should treat the project as a scientist would, methodically recording every piece of software or hardware that you install.
This doesn’t have to be that complicated. A basic program like Microsoft Excel would be perfect for tabulating this information and offers many tools for analyzing your data.
It’s important to also be selective when using a program like Excel. If you record too much information, it might be difficult to constructively use it in the future. On the other hand, if you record too little, you might regret not having some critical piece of information in the future.
The best approach to this obstacle is to stay intuitive and consistent throughout your process. If you have to install new operating systems on every classroom computer, for example, then try to install the same version and same applications on each computer.
This will empower you when problem-solving in the future, as you will know that each machine started from a common point. Ultimately, this will reduce incident resolution time and make your network more efficient.
Installation Configuration Management Tools to Use
If you are installing software packages on many machines, then you should consider using installation configuration management tools offered by Kickstart, Preseed, or JumpStart.
These basically make it easier for you to install certain configurations on your network’s machines, giving you more control through basic logic operators and custom post-install scripts.
Jumpstart is particularly popular on networks that run the Solaris operating system. Managers that want to personalize each machine in their network can maximize their efficiency by using this installation tool.
Just imagine having to tinker with every single machine in a 1000-machine network. With JumpStart, you can tinker with some settings on a central server and then use a single command to install specific configurations on the rest of the network.
Remember to record whatever commands you decide to execute from the central server. Sometimes these ultra-efficient tools can make us lazy, especially when we program some command to be executed automatically over many machines. It might be tempting to sit back and marvel at how easy our work has become.
Instead, you should be as methodical as ever in these moments, using installation tools as a chance to enhance the management of your network, not replace it.
Operating Systems as a Configuration Management Tool
Operating systems are another configuration management tool that will be important throughout the life of your network.
They are important in the beginning when you are setting it up, as choosing the ideal operating system is critical. While you can always update or change operating systems later on, this is still an unnecessary expenditure of energy. As a manager, you want to minimize these kinds of future activities. That’s why it’s paramount that you do your research ahead of time and truly consider the future needs of your network.
Microsoft’s Window’s operating system is perfect for many small business, individuals, and students. Yet, there are many Windows operating systems available for installation, each with a specific set of features.
For example, Windows 10 Education is perfect for school environments and has a number of features designed specifically for students. It might make more sense to install this operating system on your school’s computers instead of Windows 10 Home.
If you choose the right operating system, you should be able to more efficiently manage its usage. Furthermore, the right operating system will often result in fewer incidents overall, as conflict usually stems from some incompatibility between man and machine. If the operating system you install has satisfying and effective applications, your users will likely follow the rules instead of erring from the status-quo. This will make managing your network much easier.
If you choose an inappropriate operating system, even if your users are able to get by, they will inevitably become bored and detached from it, which is a recipe for a compromised network.
Essentially, imagine the users on your network as your audience. You don’t want to lose them. You want to constantly satisfy them and keep them coming back. When you don’t do this, they are prone to act out and disturb the status of the system.
Security as a Configuration Management Tool
Which brings us to our next major theme, namely security.
It’s important that you install security software on every machine in order to protect the network from viruses, malware, data breaches, theft, and hacking.
This is especially important if your users communicate sensitive information across the network. Ultimately, it’s your job to protect the integrity of this information.
It’s important to consider the security of each machine as well as the security of the network as a whole. This is true not only when you are actively managing the system but when you are initially setting up and installing software.
You should try to set up your network such that no part of the system has too much power over the entire system. This will prevent any user from gaining control over the system and potentially compromising it.
Security is an important configuration management tool that should be both automated and manually enforced. This means scheduling scans and updates to run occasionally in addition to running more focused programs manually.
This combination will ensure that all your machines are virus-free and functioning smoothly.
You should almost consider each machine in your network as a child, checking on it every so often to ensure it hasn’t erred too far from your original configurations.
This kind of diligence will be helpful in the future if an incident arises, as you will be able to isolate it quickly and return the network back to homeostasis. A less diligent approach to security might allow a splinter in the system to slowly snowball into a major disruption.
Using Incentives as a Configuration Management Tool
Most articles that discuss configuration management tools place far too much emphasis on software and not enough emphasis on alternative ways of managing a network. While software is obviously crucial, there are many radical techniques that administrators can use in order to maintain configurations over a period of time.
For example, many administrators have determined a connection between the wellbeing of their users and the configuration of their network. In particular, it seems that the more satisfied users are, they less likely they are to abuse the network.
Unhappy employees, on the other hand, are more likely to stay quiet about network problems if they arise. These employees are unconsciously sabotaging the network. You don’t want these kinds of users in your network, as they will only make it more difficult to maintain its integrity.
One way to maximize the user’s well being and avoid conflict is to offer incentives. For example, you could offer a reward to the first 10 users who run a certain system update. Not only would this make your life as an administrator more productive, but it would invite your users to participate in the process of maintaining the network. Additionally, it might actually excite your employees when it comes to the network, as long as the reward is desirable enough.
This is an important issue that most configuration management tools ignore. Most configuration management tools emphasize the network as an impersonal entity that should be manipulated in order to serve the needs of administrators.
While this might be true in one sense, it’s also helpful to think of a network as a living, breathing organism composed of many animated, interconnected parts. When conceptualized in this way, you can rely on the parts themselves in order to maintain the network at times, freeing up your energy to focus on other issues.
Any manager knows that the most effective way to run a network is to enlist the help of those in the actual network. If you attempt to bypass the wisdom of your employees, then they will likely notice this and potentially feel belittled or patronized
Offering incentives to employees for actively cooperating and participating in the health of the network is one way to avoid this kind of conflict.
Sustainability as a Configuration Management Tool
Many managers view sustainability as a tool to be harnessed when managing the configurations of a network over time.
Essentially, sustainability concerns making decisions that prioritize the continuation of the planet over the continuation of your network. This means reducing your carbon footprint as much as possible when establishing and maintaining your network.
This doesn’t mean that you should suddenly neglect unsustainable elements of your network. It only means that you should highly prioritize sustainability when setting your company’s agenda. It doesn’t make sense to funnel most of your management resources towards maintaining the status quo of a network when the environment that houses this network might have its status quote disrupted imminently by greenhouse gas emissions.
Yet, this is the state of the current environment due to many unsustainable business practices. Many guides exist that give tips on how to integrate sustainability into information technology, including this comprehensive one by Paul Mobbs.
As an administrator, you should become familiar with these values and attempt to integrate them into your network. This should garner the trust of your users who can usually sense when an unsustainable system is in place. Unsustainable systems feel precarious, and users often feel tentative to be creative and experimental. This can result in lowered productivity and employee morale, which could lead to conflict within the system. As we discussed above, conflict sets the stage for losing control of the configuration of your network.
On a more practical level, using sustainability as a configuration management tool might allow you to earn some kind of rebate or subsidy in the near future. Many local governments are trying to encourage the use of renewable resources by offering incentives to various businesses. You might qualify your organization for one of these, which could give you extra money to re-invest in the performance and efficiency of your network.
Making the Transition to Sustainability
Thinking in terms of sustainability when managing a network can be a difficult transition to make. Most managers are used to thinking purely in terms of profit or abstract measurements, like data transfer rates or performance speeds. While these can be helpful occasionally, an overemphasis on these things can lead to problems down the road.
For example, imagine a manager who makes sure that every machine in the network runs a security scan each night. This level of diligence might ensure that no machine is every compromised. However, this level of care also uses a lot of energy. In the future, these kinds of unsustainable actions might even result in fines by the government.
A sustainable approach to network configuration, on the other hand, might include only running security updates once a week during the most energy efficient time of day. There are many network tools that administrators can use to analyze their energy efficiency and how this fluctuates over a given period of time.
A sustainable approach might entail something more direct, like investing in solar panels for your building in order to power some of the electronics that your users use. Or, you can make sure that all the hardware in your system is Energy Star Certified as well as the building at large.
You can even combine your approach to sustainability with your approach to incentives, offering rewards for users who power down their machine before they leave the office. This would be ideal for larger networks where these small changes can actually make a difference.
Sure, if your network only consists of 5 users, then powering down the machines at the end of the day won’t make much of a difference. But, in a network of 20,000 employees, this small act could result in significant savings and an increase in energy efficiency.
Perhaps you can even set monthly energy goals that culminate in some office party upon successful achievement. This would also be a great way to improve the morale of your users, which would only lead to a more manageable network.
The Future of Configuration Management Tools
We think the future of configuration management tools entails an emphasis on energy efficiency and sustainability.
Most of the configuration management tools currently discussed emphasize deploying various programs and software. While these are of course critical to establishing and maintaining a network over time, relying solely on these traditional tools is no longer sufficient.
Modern managers need new tools in order to gain the trust and support of their users. Network managers are often seen as detached from the rest of the network. Just think of the stereotypical IT manager who has a haggard beard, an anti-social personality, and wears a hoodie to work.
Emphasizing sustainability can reconnect you with the rest of the network and remind you that you are not separate or above the network but part of it. Similarly, your organization is not separate or above the rest of the planet but indispensably a part of it.
Once you realize these truths, your network configurations will practically manage themselves. You will have tapped into the wisdom inherent in any sustainable system, and that might be the most effective tool of all.