CMDB Federation Part 5

This is the 5th of a series of posts dealing with the concept of CMDB Federation. Application #3: CMDB Federation the Dynamic View of Existing Data The third definition of federation is much like the one we just addressed and struggles with many of the same challenges. However, in this application a central CI record is not actually created with a replication of chosen data from distributed sources. This model is based on the concept of creating a dynamic view of a CI by pulling from existing data sources each time a request is made.

CMDB Federation Part 3

This is the 3rd in a series of posts dealing with the concept of a Federated CMDB There are three traditional objections to this first application of the word federation:

 
    • The database would be huge and performance would be an issue
    • The ITSM processes don't need all of that data so why would I mess up the CMDB with information these processes don't require.
    • The cost of this consolidation would outweigh the benefit

The Federated CMDB Part 1

The emerging capability of federating data sources is the biggest boon and the largest potential pitfall that has arisen for the discipline and process called Configuration Management! On the surface this may appear to be a completely contradictory statement. However, as is the case with all good intentions it all comes down to the application. First and foremost, database federation is an absolute must for a successfully Configuration Management Database (CMDB) implementation.

Business Alignment or Business Integration?

Many books and papers have been written on the subject of IT and business alignment. While not to downplay this important topic, one needs to ask why we are having this conversation. You don't see the equivalent concerns about HR and business alignment, Finance and business alignment or Engineering and business alignment. The very fact that these are relevant topics today tells us something about the current level of maturity of our industry.