From patch distribution to security management platforms

By Denise Dubie, NetworkWorld.com, 04/20/06

Remember that classic Reese's commercial? You know the one in which two guys just strolling along bump into each other and one says, "Hey you got peanut butter on my chocolate!" Then the other responds, "You got chocolate in my peanut butter."

Well, management vendors are echoing that sentiment, as many strictly systems management vendors add security to their tools and more security vendors dip their toes into the crowded systems management market. And the results can be just as satisfying. In fact, as more IT managers decide to consolidate the set of tools that have to manage network, servers, applications, databases, storage and security domains across their enterprise networks, more vendors are taking their cue from customers and following suit.

Take BigFix, for example. As this reporter was pointedly informed, the company that provides software to distribute patches and application updates, detect spyware and track software usage should not be defined as just simply a patch management vendor. Instead BigFix has coined what its technology does as security configuration management. While marketing labels mean little to IT managers and reporters such as myself, there is something to be said for companies such as BigFix, Altiris, LANDesk and Symantec (to name a few) that have incorporated more security management capabilities into their system management wares or vice versa.

Next week BigFix is set to announce that it updated its Enterprise Suite to Version 6.0. This release, company officials say, adds policy baseline capabilities that can automatically remediate devices not compliant with standards-based polices. Other features include role-based workflows, reporting dashboards, software-usage tracking and asset classification. The company also incorporates the ability to assess and patch systems that may not be connected to the network with Wake-On-LAN features, which enables administrators to tap computers to install applications and prevent security issues.

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