Voyence Monday made available the latest version of its network change and configuration management software that the vendor says can now automate more aspects of device configuration, reducing the chances of manual errors.

VoyenceControl Next Generation, or NG, includes a virtual design feature that allows network managers to configure and set policies on devices before they are deployed in the production network. The software includes modeling technology that allows network managers to virtually configure devices in software before they are actually deployed, apply existing configurations to new devices and compare if changes made to devices would impact the network. Company officials say this upgrade is intended to reduce customers' chances of inputting configuration errors.

"Voyence has made several solid advancements with the design workstation that give network managers a pre-deployment capability that can help them create more standard environments," says Dennis Drogseth, a vice president with Enterprise Management Associates.

The company also added a feature that will reduce the amount of manual labor needed to maintain devices. Dubbed 'zero touch install,' this feature can verify hardware identity, update operating system images, push the defined configuration and run diagnostics on devices automatically.

Voyence includes centralized software installed on a server, as well as software distributed on other servers to support and collect data from network devices.

The base price for VoyenceControl NG, which is available now, is $15,000 to manage 150 devices. The company says an average implementation can cost about $45,000.