EMA Radar for Application Performance Management (APM) for Cloud Services: Q1 2012

Transcription

1 EMA Radar for Application Performance Management (APM) for Cloud Services: Q Compuware Profile By Julie Craig, Research Director Enterprise Management Associates (EMA) January 2012

2 Table of Contents Compuware Gomez Profile...1 Overview...1 Architecture and Integration...2 Functionality...2 Deployment and Administration...3 Cost Advantage...3 Vendor Strength...4 Strengths and Limitations...4 Strengths...4 Limitations...4 I

3 Compuware Gomez Profile Overview Compuware Gomez Application Performance Management (APM), the solution bundle profiled for this study, covers a broad array of on-premises and SaaS-delivered solutions. For this reason, the customer base is equally broad and runs the gamut of company size from SMB to enterprise companies and service providers. Compuware is probably best known for its flagship Compuware Gomez Data Center Real User Monitoring (RUM) product (formerly Vantage) that observes and analyzes the end user experience from the perspective of the network. While Gomez Data Center RUM is used in monitoring Infrastructure as a Service (IaaS) and Platform as a Service (PaaS), Compuware s SaaS-based Cloud solutions are a result of its acquisition and successful assimilation of two key technology companies. The acquisition of Gomez in 2009 brought with it rich synthetic and real user monitoring capabilities for Internetdelivered services from the outside in via a global network of monitoring stations. The acquisition of dynatrace in 2011 added the inside out, code level perspective. The Compuware Gomez APM solution aggregates and correlates information from all three component solutions, supporting comprehensive APM monitoring and root cause analysis. It encompasses the following component solutions: 1

4 End-User Experience (Real User Monitoring): Passive monitoring which captures application performance metrics based on actual traffic delivered to the user. Insight is delivered by JavaScript injection (via dynatrace User Experience Monitoring), code instrumentation, and Data Center RUM (appliance-based). The Gomez First Mile RUM appliance provides an integrated view of web application performance inside and outside the datacenter. End-User Experience (Synthetic Monitoring): Synthetic End-User Experience Monitoring leverages the Gomez Synthetic Monitoring Backbone, an array of testing servers deployed at 150+ Internet backbone locations, and the Gomez Last Mile, an array of 150K+ real consumer desktops spanning the globe. It pairs with RUM to deliver visibility to the end-user experience and application availability/performance across both customer-facing Internet applications and private on-premise systems. Transaction tracing and Java and.net monitoring: These capabilities are delivered via dynatrace Software, a division of Compuware. dynatrace s patented PurePath Technology captures timing and code-level context for all transactions, end-to-end, from user click, across all tiers, to the database of record and back. Infrastructure and Component Analysis: Third-party Data Correlation: Integrates data from multiple third party (hardware, software and monitoring) vendor solutions Network Performance Monitoring: Correlates network statistics with application-level reporting; includes support for NetFlow and VOIP. Performance Analytics and Testing: Compuware s CloudSleuth uses the Gomez testing network to monitor the web performance analytics of major Cloud providers. 24/7 monitoring results are available for viewing at: This combination of components and capabilities results in a very strong solution offering. Architecture and Integration Factors comprising this score include overall design, scalability, breadth of support, and integration/ interoperability. This is a very strong area for Compuware, with scores bolstered by its modular architecture and the breadth of application environments supported. With its combination of Real User Monitoring, Synthetic Monitoring, and Transaction tracing, Compuware supports performance monitoring for tiered transactions spanning on-premises and public Cloud, integrated environments, and on-premises tiered applications. Drill-down, root cause analysis capabilities are supported for on-premises, private, and public Cloud environments. Functionality Factors comprising this score include application discovery, metrics coverage, cross technology visibility, security, analytics and similar functional areas. This was the top-scoring area for Compuware, which combines good coverage of metrics from both external and internal monitoring with crosstechnology visibility via the Infrastructure and Component Analysis solution. dynatrace delivers transaction replay capabilities supporting root cause analysis. 2

5 dynatrace provides a number of features to enable application discovery and topology mapping. dynatrace agents are smart, self-learning the application and auto-discovering the application architecture to automatically deploy themselves and their sensors at logical application boundaries. The smart agent connects with the dynatrace global collector and automatically performs deep application discovery across multiple tiers. dynatrace requires no configuration steps, scripts, code instrumentation, or transaction mapping. 1 Compuware can also leverage third-party solutions such as BMC Tideway for traditional application discovery and dependency. Advanced analytics scores were adversely impacted somewhat by the primarily manual nature of Compuware s application topology mapping, particularly for complex tiered and hybrid environments. Deployment and Administration Scores in this area are derived from a combination of deployment-related factors including time to deploy, packaging and training options, and support/training. This was a mid-range score for Compuware. On the plus side, unlike the majority of vendors participating in this survey, Compuware does not charge license fees for product copies deployed in test labs for the purpose of migration projects. Ongoing administration requirements are minimal, and the product includes multiple intelligent features such as automated baselining, configuration, and application discovery. Factors weighing down this score include the facts that when the solution is bought in entirety (on-premises and SaaS as configured for this study) it is not all-inclusive and requires multiple modules, a physical or virtual server, and a database. Agents are also an add-on. Professional services are vendordelivered, but there are no services hours bundled with the APM solution. If the customer chooses to use any single component of the Gomez solution, especially the SaaS products, deployment of individual Gomez products is cost effective and relatively quick. As customers move to implement the entire integrated APM solution, however, full implementation will likely require a rather significant services investment. Cost Advantage Factors comprising this score include product pricing, license model options, and maintenance and support costs. Again, customers selecting the SaaS-based Gomez products will find that this option fits well within any budget. Customers requiring the troubleshooting/root cause analysis capabilities delivered by the full APM solution will see prices at the higher end of the vendor spectrum. However, Compuware s value proposition appears to be commensurate with overall cost. Compuware scored well in terms of the flexibility of its licensing options, which are designed to suit virtually any customer. They include node-based, appliance-based, usage-based, and enterprise-wide licensing. 1 dynatrace automatically produces a Transaction Flow Diagram of business transactions across infrastructure. It includes a holistic overview, selected outlier transactions, or transactions that are part of specific SLAs. This shows application managers which components of the application are involved in processing the transactions. It also provides an understanding of interactions, the performance impact of inter-tier time, and the length of time the transaction spends in each tier. It also reveals the ratio of service invocations per transaction, highlighting common problem patterns with significant performance impacts. 3

6 Vendor Strength This score is derived from a combination of factors which include vision, strategy, overall financial strength, R&D investments, partnerships, and market credibility. Compuware s score on this index was boosted by solid scores in terms of revenue growth and overall Cloud-related vision and strategy. It was adversely impacted by relatively low R & D investments. Strengths and Limitations Strengths Broad range of coverage which includes SaaS-base and on-premises options offer solutions for companies of virtually any size. Strong positioning in End User Experience Management market. EUEM products have become increasingly relevant with the growth of public Cloud and momentum will likely continue to grow. Multiplicity of licensing options designed to fit virtually any customer or prospect. Analytics that combine top down, synthetic monitoring with bottom up EUE and infrastructure monitoring into a single pane of glass view of transaction execution are a key differentiator. Limitations Full APM solution is at the high end, pricing-wise. Moving beyond SaaS-based synthetic monitoring will likely require additional consulting investments. About Enterprise Management Associates, Inc. Founded in 1996, Enterprise Management Associates (EMA) is a leading industry analyst firm that provides deep insight across the full spectrum of IT and data management technologies. EMA analysts leverage a unique combination of practical experience, insight into industry best practices, and in-depth knowledge of current and planned vendor solutions to help its clients achieve their goals. Learn more about EMA research, analysis, and consulting services for enterprise line of business users, IT professionals and IT vendors at or blogs.enterprisemanagement.com. You can also follow EMA on Twitter or Facebook. This report in whole or in part may not be duplicated, reproduced, stored in a retrieval system or retransmitted without prior written permission of Enterprise Management Associates, Inc. All opinions and estimates herein constitute our judgement as of this date and are subject to change without notice. Product names mentioned herein may be trademarks and/or registered trademarks of their respective companies. EMA and Enterprise Management Associates are trademarks of Enterprise Management Associates, Inc. in the United States and other countries. EMA, ENTERPRISE MANAGEMENT ASSOCIATES, and the mobius symbol are registered trademarks or common-law trademarks of Enterprise Management Associates, Inc. Corporate Headquarters: 5777 Central Avenue, Suite 105 Boulder, CO Phone: Fax: CompuwareProfile