Using a Common Dataset Across IT Teams Via Integrated Tools

NETSCOUT AVP for Enterprise Product Management Dr. Phil Gray recently joined Steve Sviontek, AVP for Global Services Operations, on our “NO LATENCY” podcast to discuss the benefits of using a common dataset across enterprise teams to manage performance and security. Gray has been with NETSCOUT for 12 years. Previously, he helped run a company focused on the unified communications space, which ultimately led to a marriage with NETSCOUT that enhanced NETSCOUT instrumentation with his company’s software.

The Benefits of Using Common Instrumentation

Utilizing common instrumentation helps reduce overall investment across multiple use cases, Gray points out in the podcast. To that end, NETSCOUT has unveiled Omnis Data Streamer, which helps leverage our Smart Data across various solution sets, including nGenius Enterprise Performance Management, Omnis Network Security, and others. This helps enterprises share packet-based metadata between DevOps, AIOps, security, and other teams to let one set of instrumentation fuel multiple use cases.

NETSCOUT has worked to stay ahead of the curve on ever-changing network environments and monitoring methodologies. Gray points out that as the solution sets have evolved, they have focused on keeping everything “on the wire” to continue to extract vital information from network packets, allowing customers to utilize a reliable, accurate data source to ensure their networks and applications run smoothly and securely.

As work practices change, so must tool sets. In the past, Gray explains, enterprise teams often had one person responsible for a specific tool—for example, the “network monitoring person.” Now there are other, broader tools and systems such as ServiceNow or Splunk that sit above point tools. The functions these tools facilitate include ticketing, problem reporting, and playbooks so that IT teams no longer need to watch their tools all day. Instead, they dip into tools when needed based on problem reports, tickets, or other reporting mechanisms to identify and repair performance degradations.

This automation allows teams to better leverage tools to increase efficiency. Allowing systems such as ServiceNow or Splunk to monitor point tool performance frees team members to dive into the causality of issues and build processes for future prevention. This, in turn, allows enterprises to spend more time troubleshooting, triaging, and repairing and less time hunting for issues—a convenience powered by unparalleled network visibility.

NETSCOUT Powers Whole-Network Visibility

NETSCOUT believes our dataset is the key to whole-network visibility. It provides a unique view of what is happening in an enterprise network. Gray notes that data derived from deep packet inspection at scale, called Smart Data, sees all conversations and all applications and offers a highly descriptive type of data that can be used to take action and remedy performance issues. This dataset is the core for application and network performance management, security, and other NETSCOUT solutions, making it a powerful offering for several areas in an enterprise. Leveraging Smart Data for AIOps and exporting this actionable intelligence into tools such as ServiceNow and Splunk helps provide a more holistic view of the network and user experience across the enterprise.

NO LATENCY Podcast Series: High Productivity Enterprise IT Ops Through an Integrated Tools Ecosystem

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