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HP and CA also provide network device monitoring and fault consoles built to handle very large networks: CA with its Unicenter Network and Systems Management, and HP with its OpenView Network Node Manager. In fact, these network-monitoring suites are so well-established that the agentless vendors work in tandem with them to overlay and extend your existing network management, by tracking, over longer periods, more about critical interface and network device system performance, such as CPU utilization on a router. This integration has taught them to monitor less intrusively and use what's installed. But the flip side is they need to integrate with and rely on the polling and inventory that network-management frameworks provide.
Important areas to consider when choosing a Web app monitor are administration and implementation; this includes initial installation and ongoing care and feeding. Each product requires planning and setup, much of which can be handled by the vendor's service arm--for a fee, of course. And once you have it in place, the app requires more maintenance than your average supermodel. The many knobs that need to be turned mean that dedicated administration must be part of any TCO calculation.
In our tests, ProactiveNet and Empirix OneSight were easier to get up and running, and NetIQ AppManager had the best administration. At the other end of the care-and-feeding spectrum are HP OpenView and CA's Unicenter, which trailed the pack because of their legacy baggage of multiple products being glued into a whole.
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