In the ever-changing realm of technology, we are in the middle of an unprecedented shift from on-premises infrastructure to the cloud delivered apps and services. These can be delivered in either a hybrid model or completely over the internet. Just look at the transitions taking place at companies like Microsoft (Azure), Amazon (AWS), and Google Cloud. It’s true that this change brings scalability, flexibility, and cost efficiency. However, it also introduces new challenges in maintaining performance, reliability, and security. Because these products exist in the cloud, IT administrators are no longer fully in control of the systems their users interface with. As result, remediating issues in performance and uptime can be more challenging. Is the problem with the app? Is it an internet connectivity issue? Who knows? This is where observability emerges as a vital piece of your IT team’s toolkit.
Observability refers to the ability to gain insights into the inner workings of complex systems through data collection, analysis, telemetry, and visualization. While on-premises environments often have well-established monitoring practices, cloud offerings can often lead to reduced visibility. This is due to assets being housed in disparate locations, opacity with regard to network paths, and lack of standards between vendors, among other things. This is where Cisco and its Full Stack Observability (FSO) products shine.
Cisco’s first offering is AppDynamics, commonly referred to as AppD. AppD is a comprehensive performance monitoring solution provides real-time insights into application performance and user experiences. The way AppD provides insights is through a series of agents feeding real time data to the controller dashboard. Agents can monitor code, runtime, and behavior. Once deployed, agents monitor every line of code from device to containers and hosts, all the way to applications. This rich data is fed to the controller from as little as one to thousands of agents, letting you monitor, troubleshoot, and analyze your entire application landscape from one simple interface.
Next is Cisco ThousandEyes. With cloud delivered services, the network paths that data traverses have become more diverse and dynamic. ThousandEyes provides visibility into the network layer, helping businesses appreciate the impact of network latency, packet loss, and other factors that affect application performance. This visibility is crucial for maintaining a seamless user experience and pinpointing potential bottlenecks as applications shift to the cloud.
Last is Intersight, Cisco’s management platform for hybrid cloud environments. Intersight offers holistic infrastructure visibility, orchestration, and analytics across on-premises and hybrid cloud environments. This comprehensive approach empowers businesses to monitor and manage their entire infrastructure ecosystem seamlessly.
As needs evolve, Cisco’s FSO offerings deliver rich telemetry and insights that span the entire digital experience, providing administrators the context-based analysis they need in order to get people back up and running. AppDynamics, ThousandEyes, and Intersight, address the unique challenges of this transition to the cloud, ensuring that organizations maintain a high level of visibility and performance, while maintaining security. By leveraging these solutions, businesses can confidently embrace cloud adoption while retaining the similar levels of control and oversight they enjoyed in on-premises environments.
For more information, please reach out to Steven.Wallace@tdsynnex.com to schedule a consultation. And for a deep dive, please sign up for our TD SYNNEX webinar “Observability and the Cloud” on Wednesday, October 4 at 12:00 PM CDT here.
