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IT Systems Management, 2nd Edition

By Rich Schiesser
Published Jan 15, 2010 by Pearson.

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Description

Copyright 2010
Dimensions: 7" x 9-1/8"
Pages: 608
Edition: 2nd

eBook
ISBN-10: 0-13-705922-1
ISBN-13: 978-0-13-705922-5

The best-practice guide to managing IT infrastructures–now fully updated!

IT Systems Management is an up-to-the-minute guide to maintaining stable, responsive IT production environments. Top IT systems management expert Rich Schiesser illuminates
both the theoretical and practical aspects of systems management, using methods and examples drawn from decades of experience leading and consulting with the world’s most complex enterprise IT organizations.

This thoroughly updated edition covers every systems management discipline and all elements of success: people, process, and technology. Schiesser shows how to apply best-practice system management throughout all IT infrastructure environments, from mainframe data centers to web-enabled systems, client/server and mid-range platforms to wireless and VoIP networks.

Schiesser systematically addresses today’s most crucial issues, as well as emerging trends that will transform IT systems management. You’ll find an entirely new chapter on using IT Infrastructure Library (ITIL) effectively, plus new coverage ranging from managing outsourced functions to efficiently delivering “ultra-speed” Internet connections. This edition includes more real-life examples throughout, and new interactive problems designed to give IT professionals even deeper insight. Coverage includes:

• Implementing bullet-proof processes in areas ranging from change management to production acceptance, capacity planning to storage

• Optimizing the “people” components of IT service delivery, from customer service to executive support

• Using technology to manage systems more efficiently and effectively

• Systematically managing performance, availability, and business continuity

• Reducing the cost and complexity of IT facilities management

• Taking a more strategic approach to security

Rich Schiesser founded and owns RWS Enterprises, Inc., a consultancy that specializes in designing and implementing world-class IT infrastructures. His client list has included The Weather Channel, Amazon.com, and DIRECTV. He has led major IT infrastructure organizations at Hughes Aircraft, the City of Los Angeles, and Twentieth Century Fox. For nearly ten years, he managed the primary data center at Northrop Grumman, one of the world’s most advanced computer facilities. A former University of Phoenix faculty member, he has taught IT management at UCLA and California State University, Los Angeles (CSULA).

informit.com/ph

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Sample Content

Preface. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . xxix

Acknowledgments . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . xxxviii

About the Author. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . xli

Chapter 1 Acquiring Executive Support . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1

Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1

Systems Management: A Proposed Definition . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2

Why Executive Support Is Especially Critical Today . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3

Building a Business Case for Systems Management . . . . . . . . . . . 4

Educating Executives on the Value of Systems Management . . . . . 7

Three Universal Principles Involving Executive Support . . . . . . . .9

Developing a Powerful Weapon for Executive

Support–Business Metrics . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .9

Ensuring Ongoing Executive Support . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .12

Summary. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13

Test Your Understanding . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14

Suggested Further Readings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14

Chapter 2 Organizing for Systems Management . . . . . . . . . . 15

Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15

Factors to Consider in Designing IT Organizations . . . . . . . . . . . . 16

Factors to Consider in Designing IT Infrastructures . . . . . . . . . . . 19

Locating Departments in the Infrastructure . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .19

Recommended Attributes of Process Owners . . . . . . . . . . . . .25

Summary. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28

Test Your Understanding . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29

Suggested Further Readings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29

Chapter 3 Staffing for Systems Management . . . . . . . . . . . . 31

Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31

Determining Required Skill Sets and Skill Levels . . . . . . . . . . . . . 32

Assessing the Skill Levels of Current Onboard Staff. . . . . . . . . . . 35

Alternative Sources of Staffing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .39

Recruiting Infrastructure Staff from the Outside . . . . . . . . . . . .40

Selecting the Most Qualified Candidate . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 41

Retaining Key Personnel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 43

Using Consultants and Contractors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 46

Benefits of Using Consultants and Contractors . . . . . . . . . . . .47

Drawbacks of Using Consultants and Contractors . . . . . . . . . .48

Steps for Developing Career Paths for Staff Members . . . . . . .50

Summary. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 52

Test Your Understanding . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 53

Suggested Further Readings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 53

Chapter 4 Customer Service . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 55

Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 55

How IT Evolved into a Service Organization . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 55

The Four Key Elements of Good Customer Service. . . . . . . . . . . . 57

Identifying Your Key Customers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .57

Identifying Key Services of Key Customers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .59

Identifying Key Processes that Support Key Services . . . . . . . .64

Identifying Key Suppliers that Support Key Processes . . . . . . .64

Integrating the Four Key Elements of Good Customer Service . . . . 64

The Four Cardinal Sins that Undermine Good Customer Service . . 68

Summary. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 70

Test Your Understanding . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 71

Suggested Further Readings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 71

Chapter 5 Ethics, Legislation, and Outsourcing. . . . . . . . . . . 73

Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 73

Ethics . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 74

The RadioShack Case . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .76

The Tyco Case . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .76

The WorldCom Case . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .77

The Enron Case . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .79

Legislation. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 81

Sarbanes-Oxley Act . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .82

Graham-Leach-Bliley Act . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .83

California Senate Bill 1386 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .84

Outsourcing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 84

Summary. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 85

Test Your Understanding . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 87

Suggested Further Readings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 87

Chapter 6 Comparison to ITIL Processes. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 89

Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 89

Developments Leading Up To ITIL. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 90

IT Service Management . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 91

The Origins of ITIL. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 92

Quality Approach and Standards . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .97

Criteria to Differentiate Infrastructure Processes. . . . . . . . . . . . . 98

Comparison of Infrastructure Processes. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 100

Ten Common Myths Concerning the Implementation of ITIL . . . . 102

Myth #1: You Must Implement All ITIL or No ITIL at All . . . . . .102

Myth #2: ITIL is Based on Infrastructure Management Principles . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .103

Myth #3: ITIL Applies Mostly to Data Center Operations . . . . .103

Myth #4: Everyone Needs to be Trained on ITIL Fundamentals . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .104

Myth #5: Full Understanding of ITIL Requires Purchase of Library . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .104

Myth #6: ITIL Processes Should be Implemented Only One at a Time . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .105

Myth #7: ITIL Provides Detailed Templates for Implementation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .105

Myth #8: ITIL Framework Applies Only to Large Shops . . . . . .106

Myth #9: ITIL Recommends Tools to Use for Implementation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .106

Myth #10: There Is Little Need to Understand ITIL Origins . . .106

Summary. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 107

Test Your Understanding . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 108

Suggested Further Readings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 108

Chapter 7 Availability . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 109

Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 109

Definition of Availability . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 109

Differentiating Availability from Uptime . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 110

Differentiating Slow Response from Downtime . . . . . . . . . . . . . 112

Differentiating Availability from High Availability . . . . . . . . . . . . . 114

Desired Traits of an Availability Process Owner . . . . . . . . . . . . . 115

Methods for Measuring Availability . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 116

The Seven Rs of High Availability . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 120

Redundancy . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .121

Reputation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .122

Reliability . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .123

Repairability . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .125

Recoverability . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .125

Responsiveness . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .126

Robustness . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .126

Assessing an Infrastructure’s Availability Process . . . . . . . . . . . 127

Measuring and Streamlining the Availability Process . . . . . . . . . 131

Summary. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 132

Test Your Understanding . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 133

Suggested Further Readings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 133

Chapter 8 Performance and Tuning . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 135

Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 135

Differences between the Performance and Tuning Process and Other Infrastructure Processes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 136

Definition of Performance and Tuning . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 138

Preferred Characteristics of a Performance and Tuning Process Owner . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 139

Performance and Tuning Applied to the Five Major Resource Environments. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 141

Server Environment . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .141

Disk Storage Environment . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .143

Database Environment . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .147

Network Environment . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .151

Desktop Computer Environment . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .152

Assessing an Infrastructure’s Performance and Tuning Process . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 155

Measuring and Streamlining the Performance and Tuning

Process . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 158

Summary. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 158

Test Your Understanding . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 159

Suggested Further Readings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 159

Chapter 9 Production Acceptance. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 161

Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 161

Definition of Production Acceptance . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 161

The Benefits of a Production Acceptance Process . . . . . . . . . . . 162

Implementing a Production Acceptance Process . . . . . . . . . . . . 164

Step 1: Identify an Executive Sponsor . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .164

Step 2: Select a Process Owner . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .165

Step 3: Solicit Executive Support . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .166

Step 4: Assemble a Production Acceptance Team . . . . . . . . .166

Step 5: Identify and Prioritize Requirements . . . . . . . . . . . . .167

Step 6: Develop Policy Statements . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .168

Step 7: Nominate a Pilot System . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .169

Step 8: Design Appropriate Forms . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .169

Step 9: Document the Procedures . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .170

Step 10: Execute the Pilot System . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .170

Step 11: Conduct a Lessons-Learned Session . . . . . . . . . . .174

Step 12: Revise Policies, Procedures, and Forms . . . . . . . . .174

Step 13: Formulate Marketing Strategy . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .174

Step 14: Follow-up for Ongoing Enforcement and Improvements . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .174

Full Deployment of a New Application . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 175

Distinguishing New Applications from New Versions of Existing Applications . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 176

Distinguishing Production Acceptance from Change Management . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 176

Case Study: Assessing the Production Acceptance Process at Seven Diverse Companies. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 177

The Seven Companies Selected . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .177

Selected Companies Comparison in Summary . . . . . . . . . . .198

Summary. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 202

Test Your Understanding . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 203

Suggested Further Readings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 203

Chapter 10 Change Management . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 205

Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 205

Definition of Change Management . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 205

Drawbacks of Most Change Management Processes . . . . . . . . . 207

Key Steps Required in Developing a Change Management Process . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 209

Step 1: Identify an Executive Sponsor . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .209

Step 2: Assign a Process Owner . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .210

Step 3: Select a Cross-Functional Process Design Team . . . .211

Step 4: Arrange for Meetings of the Cross-Functional Process Design Team . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .211

Step 5: Establish Roles and Responsibilities for Members Supporting the Process Design Team . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .211

Step 6: Identify the Benefits of a Change Management Process . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .212

Step 7: If Change Metrics Exist, Collect and Analyze them; If Not, Set Up a Process to Do So . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .213

Step 8: Identify and Prioritize Requirements . . . . . . . . . . . . .213

Step 9: Develop Definitions of Key Terms . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .215

Step 10: Design the Initial Change Management Process . . .216

Step 11: Develop Policy Statements . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .221

Step 12: Develop a Charter for a Change Advisory Board (CAB) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .222

Step 13: Use the CAB to Continually Refine and Improve the Change Management Process . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .223

Emergency Changes Metric . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 223

Assessing an Infrastructure’s Change Management Process . . . 224

Measuring and Streamlining the Change Management Process . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 228

Summary. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 228

Test Your Understanding . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 229

Suggested Further Readings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 229

Chapter 11 Problem Management. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 231

Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 231

Definition of Problem Management . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 231

Scope of Problem Management . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 232

Distinguishing Between Problem, Change, and Request Management . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 233

Distinguishing Between Problem Management and Incident Management . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 235

The Role of the Service Desk. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 236

Segregating and Integrating Service Desks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 237

Key Steps to Developing a Problem Management Process . . . . . 239

Step 1: Select an Executive Sponsor . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .239

Step 2: Assign a Process Owner . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .240

Step 3: Assemble a Cross-Functional Team . . . . . . . . . . . . . .241

Step 4: Identify and Prioritize Requirements . . . . . . . . . . . . .241

Step 5: Establish a Priority and Escalation Scheme . . . . . . . .243

Step 6: Identify Alternative Call-Tracking Tools . . . . . . . . . . . .243

Step 7: Negotiate Service Levels . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .243

Step 8: Develop Service and Process Metrics . . . . . . . . . . . .245

Step 9: Design the Call-Handling Process . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .245

Step 10: Evaluate, Select, and Implement the Call-Tracking Tool . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .245

Step 11: Review Metrics to Continually Improve the Process . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .246

Opening and Closing Problems . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 246

Client Issues with Problem Management . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 247

Assessing an Infrastructure’s Problem Management Process . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .249

Measuring and Streamlining the Problem Management Process . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .252

Summary. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 252

Test Your Understanding . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 254

Suggested Further Readings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 254

Chapter 12 Storage Management . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 255

Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 255

Definition of Storage Management. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 256

Desired Traits of a Storage Management Process Owner . . . . . . 256

Storage Management Capacity . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 258

Storage Management Performance . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 261

Storage Management Reliability. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 263

Storage Management Recoverability . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 267

Assessing an Infrastructure’s Storage Management Process . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 271

Measuring and Streamlining the Storage Management Process . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 274

Summary. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 274

Test Your Understanding . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 276

Suggested Further Readings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 276

Chapter 13 Network Management. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 277

Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 277

Definition of Network Management . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 277

Key Decisions about Network Management . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 278

What Will Be Managed by This Process? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .278

Who Will Manage It? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .279

How Much Authority Will This Person Be Given? . . . . . . . . . . .281

What Types of Tools and Support Will Be Provided? . . . . . . . .283

To What Extent Will Other Processes Be Integrated With This Process? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .284

What Levels of Service and Quality Will Be Expected? . . . . . .284

Assessing an Infrastructure’s Network Management Process . . . 285

Measuring and Streamlining the Network Management Process . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 288

Summary. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 288

Test Your Understanding . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 289

Suggested Further Readings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 289

Chapter 14 Configuration Management . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 291

Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 291

Definition of Configuration Management. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 292

Practical Tips for Improving Configuration Management . . . . . . . 293

1. Select a Qualified Process Owner . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .293

2. Acquire the Assistance of a Technical Writer or a Documentation Analyst . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .294

3. Match the Backgrounds of Writers to Technicians . . . . . . .295

4. Evaluate the Quality and Value of Existing Configuration Documentation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .295

5. Involve Appropriate Hardware Suppliers . . . . . . . . . . . . . .296

6. Involve Appropriate Software Suppliers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .296

7. Coordinate Documentation Efforts in Advance of Major Hardware and Software Upgrades . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .297

8. Involve the Asset-Management Group for Desktop Equipment Inventories . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .297

Assessing an Infrastructure’s Configuration Management Process . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 298

Measuring and Streamlining the Configuration Management Process . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 301

Summary. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 301

Test Your Understanding . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 302

Suggested Further Readings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 302

Chapter 15 Capacity Planning . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 303

Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 303

Definition of Capacity Planning. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 303

Why Capacity Planning Is Seldom Done Well . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 304

1. Analysts Are Too Busy with Day-To-Day Activities . . . . . . . .305

2. Users Are Not Interested in Predicting Future Workloads . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .305

3. Users Who Are Interested Cannot Forecast Accurately . . . .306

4. Capacity Planners May Be Reluctant to Use Effective Measuring Tools . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .306

5. Corporate or IT Directions May Change From Year to Year . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .306

6. Planning Is Typically Not Part of an Infrastructure Culture . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .306

7. Managers Sometimes Confuse Capacity Management with Capacity Planning . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .307

How to Develop an Effective Capacity Planning Process . . . . . . . 307

Step 1: Select an Appropriate Capacity Planning Process Owner . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .308

Step 2: Identify the Key Resources to be Measured . . . . . . . .309

Step 3: Measure the Utilizations or Performance of the Resources . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .309

Step 4: Compare Utilizations to Maximum Capacities . . . . . .310

Step 5: Collect Workload Forecasts from Developers and Users . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .310

Step 6: Transform Workload Forecasts into IT Resource Requirements . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .312

Step 7: Map Requirements onto Existing Utilizations . . . . . . .312

Step 8: Predict When the Shop Will Be Out of Capacity . . . . .312

Step 9: Update Forecasts and Utilizations . . . . . . . . . . . . . .312

Additional Benefits of Capacity Planning . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 312

1. Strengthens Relationships with Developers and End-Users . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .313

2. Improves Communications with Suppliers . . . . . . . . . . . . .313

3. Encourages Collaboration with Other Infrastructure Groups . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .313

4. Promotes a Culture of Strategic Planning as Opposed to Tactical Firefighting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .314

Helpful Hints for Effective Capacity Planning . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 314

1. Start Small . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .314

2. Speak the Language of Your Customers . . . . . . . . . . . . . .315

3. Consider Future Platforms . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .315

4. Share Plans with Suppliers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .315

5. Anticipate Nonlinear Cost Ratios . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .315

6. Plan for Occasional Workload Reductions . . . . . . . . . . . . .316

7. Prepare for the Turnover of Personnel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .316

8. Strive to Continually Improve the Process . . . . . . . . . . . . .316

9. Evaluate the Hidden Costs of Upgrades . . . . . . . . . . . . . .316

Uncovering the Hidden Costs of Upgrades . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 316

1. Hardware Maintenance . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .317

2. Technical Support . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .317

3. Software Maintenance . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .317

4. Memory Upgrades . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .317

5. Channel Upgrades . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .318

6. Cache Upgrades . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .318

7. Data Backup Time . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .318

8. Operations Support . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .318

9. Offsite Storage . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .318

10. Network Hardware . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .318

11. Network Support . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .319

12. Floor Space . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .319

13. Power and Air Conditioning . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .319

Assessing an Infrastructure’s Capacity Planning Process . . . . . . 319

Measuring and Streamlining the Capacity Planning Process . . . . 322

Summary. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 322

Test Your Understanding . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 323

Suggested Further Readings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 323

Chapter 16 Strategic Security. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 325

Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 325

Definition of Strategic Security. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 326

Developing a Strategic Security Process . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 326

Step 1: Identify an Executive Sponsor . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .327

Step 2: Select a Security Process Owner . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .327

Step 3: Define Goals of Strategic Security . . . . . . . . . . . . . .328

Step 4: Establish Review Boards . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .328

Step 5: Identify, Categorize, and Prioritize Requirements . . . .328

Step 6: Inventory Current State of Security . . . . . . . . . . . . . .331

Step 7: Establish Security Organization . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .331

Step 8: Develop Security Policies . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .331

Step 9: Assemble Planning Teams . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .335

Step 10: Review and Approve Plans . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .335

Step 11: Evaluate Technical Feasibility of Plans . . . . . . . . . . .335

Step 12: Assign and Schedule the Implementation of Plans . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .335

Assessing an Infrastructure’s Strategic Security Process . . . . . . 336

Measuring and Streamlining the Security Process . . . . . . . . . . . 339

Summary. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 339

Test Your Understanding . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 340

Suggested Further Readings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 340

Chapter 17 Business Continuity . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 341

Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 341

Definition of Business Continuity . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 342

Case Study: Disaster at the Movie Studio . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 342

Three Important Lessons Learned from the Case Study . . . . .343

Steps to Developing an Effective Business Continuity Process . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 344

Step 1: Acquire Executive Support . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .345

Step 2: Select a Process Owner . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .346

Step 3: Assemble a Cross-Functional Team . . . . . . . . . . . . . .347

Step 4: Conduct a Business Impact Analysis . . . . . . . . . . . .348

Step 5: Identify and Prioritize Requirements . . . . . . . . . . . . .348

Step 6: Assess Possible Business Continuity Recovery Strategies . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .348

Step 7: Develop a Request for Proposal (RFP) for Outside Services . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .349

Step 8: Evaluate Proposals and Select the Best Offering . . . .349

Step 9: Choose Participants and Clarify Their Roles on the Recovery Team . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .349

Step 10: Document the Business Continuity Plan . . . . . . . . .349

Step 11: Plan and Execute Regularly Scheduled Tests of the Plan . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .350

Step 12: Conduct a Lessons-Learned Postmortem after Each Test . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .350

Step 13: Continually Maintain, Update, and Improve the Plan . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .350

Nightmare Incidents with Disaster Recovery Plans. . . . . . . . . . . 351

Assessing an Infrastructure’s Disaster Recovery Process. . . . . . 353

Measuring and Streamlining the Disaster Recovery Process. . . . 356

Summary. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 356

Test Your Understanding . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 357

Suggested Further Readings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 357

Chapter 18 Facilities Management . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 359

Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 359

Definition of Facilities Management . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 359

Major Elements of Facilities Management. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 360

The Facilities Management Process Owner . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 362

Determining the Scope of Responsibilities of a Facilities Management Process Owner . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .363

Desired Traits of a Facilities Management Process Owner . . .363

Evaluating the Physical Environment. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 365

Major Physical Exposures Common to a Data Center . . . . . . .366

Keeping Physical Layouts Efficient and Effective . . . . . . . . . .366

Tips to Improve the Facilities Management Process. . . . . . . . . . 367

Facilities Management at Outsourcing Centers . . . . . . . . . . . . . 369

Assessing an Infrastructure’s Facilities Management Process . . 369

Measuring and Streamlining the Facilities Management Process . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 372

Summary. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 372

Test Your Understanding . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 373

Suggested Further Readings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 373

Chapter 19 Developing Robust Processes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 375

Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 375

What Contributes to a World-Class Infrastructure. . . . . . . . . . . . 375

1. Executive Support . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .376

2. Meaningful Metrics Analyzed . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .377

3. Proactive Approach . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .378

4. Call Management . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .379

5. Employee Empowerment . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .379

6. Well-Developed Standards . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .379

7. Well-Trained Employees . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .380

8. Well-Equipped Employees . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .380

9. Robust Processes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .380

10. Effective Use of Technology . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .381

11. Integrated Systems Management Functions . . . . . . . . . .381

Characteristics of a Robust Process. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 381

1. Process Objective Is Identified . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .382

2. Executive Sponsor Is Identified and Involved . . . . . . . . . . .382

3. Process Owner Is Identified and Given Responsibility for and Authority Over the Process . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .382

4. Key Customers Are Identified and Involved . . . . . . . . . . . .383

5. Secondary Customers Are Identified and Consulted . . . . . .383

6. Process Suppliers Are Identified and Involved . . . . . . . . . .383

7. Process Outputs Are Identified . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .383

8. Process Inputs Are Identified . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .384

9. Process Is Described by a Sound Business Model . . . . . . .384

10. Process Hierarchy Is Understood . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .384

11. Execution Is Enforceable . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .384

12. Process Is Designed to Provide Service Metrics . . . . . . .384

13. Service Metrics Are Compiled and Analyzed, Not Just Collected . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .385

14. Process Is Designed to Provide Process Metrics . . . . . . .385

15. Process Metrics Are Compiled and Analyzed, Not Just Collected . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .386

16. Documentation Is Thorough, Accurate, and Easily Understood . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .386

17. Process Contains All Required Value-Added Steps . . . . . .387

18. Process Eliminates All Non-Value-Added Steps . . . . . . . .387

19. Process Guarantees Accountability . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .388

20. Process Provides Incentives for Compliance and Penalties for Avoidance or Circumvention . . . . . . . . . . . .388

21. Process Is Standardized Across all Appropriate Departments and Remote Sites . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .388

22. Process Is Streamlined as Much as Possible and Practical . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .389

23. Process Is Automated Wherever Practical, but Only after Streamlining . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .389

24. Process Integrates with all Other Appropriate Processes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .389

Understanding the Differences Between a Formal Process and an Informal Process . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 390

Helpful Ground Rules for Brainstorming . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 390

Methods for Prioritizing Requirements . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 391

Summary. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 393

Test Your Understanding . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 394

Suggested Further Readings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 394

Chapter 20 Using Technology to Automate and Evaluate Robust

Processes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 395

Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 395

Automating Robust Processes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 395

Evaluating an Infrastructure Process . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 398

Evaluating Process Documentation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 401

Benefits of the Methodology to Evaluate Process Documentation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 404

Summary. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 413

Test Your Understanding . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 414

Suggested Further Readings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 414

Chapter 21 Integrating Systems Management Processes . . 415

Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 415

Distinguishing Strategic Processes from Tactical Processes . . . . 415

Identifying Strategic Processes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .416

Identifying Tactical Processes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .417

The Value of Distinguishing Strategic from Tactical Processes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .418

Relationships Between Strategic and Tactical Processes . . . . . . 418

Difficulties with Integrating Solely Tactical Processes . . . . . . .420

Difficulties with Integrating Solely Strategic Processes . . . . . .421

Difficulties with Integrating Tactical and Strategic Processes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .421

Examining the Integrated Relationships Between Strategic and Tactical Processes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 423

Significance of Systems Management Process Relationships. . . 428

Summary. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 430

Test Your Understanding . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 431

Suggested Further Readings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 431

Chapter 22 Special Considerations for Client-Server and Web-Enabled Environments. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 433

Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 433

Client-Server Environment Issues. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 434

Vendor Relationships . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .434

Multiplatform Support . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .434

Performance and Tuning Challenges . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .435

Disaster-Recovery Planning . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .436

Capacity Planning . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .438

Web-Enabled Environment Issues. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 439

Traditional Companies . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .441

Moderate and Growing Companies . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .442

Dotcom Companies . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .443

Summary. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 445

Test Your Understanding . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 446

Suggested Further Readings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 446

Appendix A Frequently Asked Questions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 447

Appendix B Summary of Definitions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 459

Appendix C Assessment Worksheets Without

Weighting Factors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 461

Appendix D Assessment Worksheets With Weighting

Factors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 475

Appendix E Historical Perspective . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 489

Appendix F Evolving in the 1970s and 1980s . . . . . . . . . . . . 505

Appendix G Into and Beyond the New Millennium . . . . . . . . . 521

Appendix H Answers to Selected Questions . . . . . . . . . . . . . 537

Bibliography . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 541

Index . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 543

9780137025060, TOC, 1/11/2010

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Privacy Notice

Overview

Pearson Education, Inc., 221 River Street, Hoboken, New Jersey 07030, (Pearson) presents this site to provide information about products and services that can be purchased through this site.

This privacy notice provides an overview of our commitment to privacy and describes how we collect, protect, use and share personal information collected through this site. Please note that other Pearson websites and online products and services have their own separate privacy policies.

Collection and Use of Information

To conduct business and deliver products and services, Pearson collects and uses personal information in several ways in connection with this site, including:

Questions and Inquiries

For inquiries and questions, we collect the inquiry or question, together with name, contact details (email address, phone number and mailing address) and any other additional information voluntarily submitted to us through a Contact Us form or an email. We use this information to address the inquiry and respond to the question.

Online Store

For orders and purchases placed through our online store on this site, we collect order details, name, institution name and address (if applicable), email address, phone number, shipping and billing addresses, credit/debit card information, shipping options and any instructions. We use this information to complete transactions, fulfill orders, communicate with individuals placing orders or visiting the online store, and for related purposes.

Surveys

Pearson may offer opportunities to provide feedback or participate in surveys, including surveys evaluating Pearson products, services or sites. Participation is voluntary. Pearson collects information requested in the survey questions and uses the information to evaluate, support, maintain and improve products, services or sites, develop new products and services, conduct educational research and for other purposes specified in the survey.

Contests and Drawings

Occasionally, we may sponsor a contest or drawing. Participation is optional. Pearson collects name, contact information and other information specified on the entry form for the contest or drawing to conduct the contest or drawing. Pearson may collect additional personal information from the winners of a contest or drawing in order to award the prize and for tax reporting purposes, as required by law.

Newsletters

If you have elected to receive email newsletters or promotional mailings and special offers but want to unsubscribe, simply email information@informit.com.

Service Announcements

On rare occasions it is necessary to send out a strictly service related announcement. For instance, if our service is temporarily suspended for maintenance we might send users an email. Generally, users may not opt-out of these communications, though they can deactivate their account information. However, these communications are not promotional in nature.

Customer Service

We communicate with users on a regular basis to provide requested services and in regard to issues relating to their account we reply via email or phone in accordance with the users' wishes when a user submits their information through our Contact Us form.

Other Collection and Use of Information

Application and System Logs

Pearson automatically collects log data to help ensure the delivery, availability and security of this site. Log data may include technical information about how a user or visitor connected to this site, such as browser type, type of computer/device, operating system, internet service provider and IP address. We use this information for support purposes and to monitor the health of the site, identify problems, improve service, detect unauthorized access and fraudulent activity, prevent and respond to security incidents and appropriately scale computing resources.

Web Analytics

Pearson may use third party web trend analytical services, including Google Analytics, to collect visitor information, such as IP addresses, browser types, referring pages, pages visited and time spent on a particular site. While these analytical services collect and report information on an anonymous basis, they may use cookies to gather web trend information. The information gathered may enable Pearson (but not the third party web trend services) to link information with application and system log data. Pearson uses this information for system administration and to identify problems, improve service, detect unauthorized access and fraudulent activity, prevent and respond to security incidents, appropriately scale computing resources and otherwise support and deliver this site and its services.

Cookies and Related Technologies

This site uses cookies and similar technologies to personalize content, measure traffic patterns, control security, track use and access of information on this site, and provide interest-based messages and advertising. Users can manage and block the use of cookies through their browser. Disabling or blocking certain cookies may limit the functionality of this site.

Do Not Track

This site currently does not respond to Do Not Track signals.

Security

Pearson uses appropriate physical, administrative and technical security measures to protect personal information from unauthorized access, use and disclosure.

Children

This site is not directed to children under the age of 13.

Marketing

Pearson may send or direct marketing communications to users, provided that

Pearson will not use personal information collected or processed as a K-12 school service provider for the purpose of directed or targeted advertising.
Such marketing is consistent with applicable law and Pearson's legal obligations.
Pearson will not knowingly direct or send marketing communications to an individual who has expressed a preference not to receive marketing.
Where required by applicable law, express or implied consent to marketing exists and has not been withdrawn.

Pearson may provide personal information to a third party service provider on a restricted basis to provide marketing solely on behalf of Pearson or an affiliate or customer for whom Pearson is a service provider. Marketing preferences may be changed at any time.

Correcting/Updating Personal Information

If a user's personally identifiable information changes (such as your postal address or email address), we provide a way to correct or update that user's personal data provided to us. This can be done on the Account page. If a user no longer desires our service and desires to delete his or her account, please contact us at customer-service@informit.com and we will process the deletion of a user's account.

Choice/Opt-out

Users can always make an informed choice as to whether they should proceed with certain services offered by InformIT. If you choose to remove yourself from our mailing list(s) simply visit the following page and uncheck any communication you no longer want to receive: www.informit.com/u.aspx.

Sale of Personal Information

Pearson does not rent or sell personal information in exchange for any payment of money.

While Pearson does not sell personal information, as defined in Nevada law, Nevada residents may email a request for no sale of their personal information to NevadaDesignatedRequest@pearson.com.

Supplemental Privacy Statement for California Residents

California residents should read our Supplemental privacy statement for California residents in conjunction with this Privacy Notice. The Supplemental privacy statement for California residents explains Pearson's commitment to comply with California law and applies to personal information of California residents collected in connection with this site and the Services.

Sharing and Disclosure

Pearson may disclose personal information, as follows:

As required by law.
With the consent of the individual (or their parent, if the individual is a minor)
In response to a subpoena, court order or legal process, to the extent permitted or required by law
To protect the security and safety of individuals, data, assets and systems, consistent with applicable law
In connection the sale, joint venture or other transfer of some or all of its company or assets, subject to the provisions of this Privacy Notice
To investigate or address actual or suspected fraud or other illegal activities
To exercise its legal rights, including enforcement of the Terms of Use for this site or another contract
To affiliated Pearson companies and other companies and organizations who perform work for Pearson and are obligated to protect the privacy of personal information consistent with this Privacy Notice
To a school, organization, company or government agency, where Pearson collects or processes the personal information in a school setting or on behalf of such organization, company or government agency.

Links

This web site contains links to other sites. Please be aware that we are not responsible for the privacy practices of such other sites. We encourage our users to be aware when they leave our site and to read the privacy statements of each and every web site that collects Personal Information. This privacy statement applies solely to information collected by this web site.

Requests and Contact

Please contact us about this Privacy Notice or if you have any requests or questions relating to the privacy of your personal information.

Changes to this Privacy Notice

We may revise this Privacy Notice through an updated posting. We will identify the effective date of the revision in the posting. Often, updates are made to provide greater clarity or to comply with changes in regulatory requirements. If the updates involve material changes to the collection, protection, use or disclosure of Personal Information, Pearson will provide notice of the change through a conspicuous notice on this site or other appropriate way. Continued use of the site after the effective date of a posted revision evidences acceptance. Please contact us if you have questions or concerns about the Privacy Notice or any objection to any revisions.

Last Update: November 17, 2020

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