A Best-of-Breed Model for a Great End User Experience of Managed Storage

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1 A Best-of-Breed Model for a Great End User Experience of Managed Storage An NTP Software White Paper Abstract The storage hosted on your network is a service you provide to your end users. The right way to think about it and its management is not as hardware, but as a consumer service offering. Once you frame it this way, you manage it differently. The key to success in running this service offering is the same as with any other service keep the client informed and engaged throughout the process. Here is a best practice way to do this. Rev 1.1, August 2003 Copyright 2003 by NTP Software. All rights reserved. Doc # 5661EF

2 The information contained in this document is believed to be accurate as of the date of publication. Because NTP Software must constantly respond to changing market conditions, what is here should not be interpreted as a commitment on the part of NTP Software, and NTP Software cannot guarantee the accuracy of any information presented after the date of publication. This Technical Note is for informational purposes only. NTP SOFTWARE MAKES NO WARRANTIES, EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, IN THIS DOCUMENT. NTP Software, Quota & File Sentinel, Quick Status, Storage Investigator are either registered trademarks or trademarks of NTP Software in the United States and/or other countries. Other product and company names mentioned herein may be the trademarks of their respective owners. NTP Software, 20A NW Blvd., #136, Nashua, NH 03063, USA Copyright 2003 by NTP Software. All rights reserved. Doc # 5661EF

3 Introduction Storage is still one of the most costly and fastest growing aspects of everyone s network, and is likely to remain so for some time. Every network user is a storage user. We are all part of a community that shares the costs and the benefits of this expensive resource. Storage management can be a challenging task. There is so much hardware, so many alternatives, and so many issues that it is easy to get lost in the details and fail to see the forest for the trees. Networked storage is a service not a product. While hardware is necessary for you to provide the service, successful storage management requires a good customer experience, not expensive hardware. Your users are bound to you and the level of service you provide. They cannot purchase a unit of storage and take it home with them, nor can they buy storage from another supplier and install it on your network. Therefore we have to treat our users as a customer of our services, not a customer of some product. The elements that lead to success in the service business are different from those that lead to success in a product business. In particular, service customers want to be a part of those processes that affect them. They want to participate on an on-going basis with the things that will affect them, and it is this participation that leads them to accept and embrace the outcomes they receive. The challenge to us, then, as the managers of storage in a cost constrained world, is to create a high-touch experience for our end users that keeps them continuously engaged at a price we can afford. Fortunately for us, in the 21 st Century, we have technology that allows us to do this almost for free. This paper describes how to create a best-of-breed end user experience in a managed storage environment. The only way to do this cost-effectively is through the use of world-class technology. Here is how to do it by using NTP Software s applications. Copyright 2003 by NTP Software. All rights reserved. Page 1

4 Getting In Touch The first step in creating a world-class end user experience is to engage the user and keep them engaged. Our first opportunity to communicate with a user of the network is when they logon. NTP Software Quota & File Sentinel (QFS) supplies a Quick Status application designed to be included in logon and other scripts. Each time a user logs on they are reminded that storage is a managed resource, and they are shown where they stand relative to the policies that apply to them. In many environments, a particular resource is likely to be governed by more than one policy. The Quick Status application is careful to show only the policies that will limit this user. Copyright 2003 by NTP Software. All rights reserved. Page 2

5 And Staying In Touch Once the users have logged on and begun work, then we stay in touch with them by setting thresholds on their activity and using the QFS messaging engine to communicate with them. As the user approaches a limit, a warning message is sent. If the first message is ignored, reminders can be sent. In addition to setting limits on the amount of space that can be used, we can also control content. If the user attempts to save proscribed content, the action is refused and a message explaining the policy is sent. By configuring the right thresholds and using rich, informative messages, the system automatically keeps in touch with the user community and no one is ever confused about where they stand or why the system acted as it did. Copyright 2003 by NTP Software. All rights reserved. Page 3

6 More Help Is Always Needed Even though we have managed to engage our users and include them as a regular member of the storage management team, we are far from done. As experts in storage management and as the people who set the policies, we understand them all. Our users, on the other hand, have a different skill set and probably were not at the table when the rules were laid down. It is going to take more than a warning message for them to fully understand their situation and how to deal with it. NTP Software Quota & File Sentinel provides for this by including an intranet help site whose pages explain storage management in general and each message and status in particular. When a message is sent to a user, it includes a link to the appropriate help pages. At the help site users can explore their situation and gain an understanding of what it means to be in a particular situation or status and the options for dealing with it. Our goal is to help users understand the complete picture and to give them this information when they need it, as situations occur, and without requiring them to talk to another person or call the Help Desk. Today s users are accustomed to looking up information on-line. They expect to be able to find what they need and get it immediately 7 days a week, 24 hours a day. If we create the right on-line infrastructure, our users won t be disappointed. Copyright 2003 by NTP Software. All rights reserved. Page 4

7 They Need The Right Tools To Do The Work In the end, what we want, is for the user community to participate aggressively in managing themselves and helping us manage storage overall. By keeping them informed and engaged in the process, we have already come a long way in accomplishing the mission. But for them to do the work, they also need the right tools. Natively, Windows supplies an application, Windows Explorer, that allows you to accomplish basic file manipulations. But this is not storage management. Windows Explorer is not an appropriate tool for end users to use in managing their storage. It provides no insight into when files were last used and has no connection with any storage management policies that may govern the users behavior. For users to manage their storage content, they need essentially the same information that we, the network administrators, do. Which files are not being used? Are there any duplicates? Is there some big file I could delete to save space? Etc. If we have gone so far as to engage the user community in the mission of storage management, we want to be careful not to frustrate them in their efforts by denying them the tools they need to succeed. For them to do the job we want, they need the appropriate resources. Copyright 2003 by NTP Software. All rights reserved. Page 5

8 NTP Software Storage Investigator (SI) is a desktop application that gives its user realtime storage management information. With it users can find big files, unused files, duplicate files, files with no backup, etc. Armed with this information, users can make intelligent decisions about how to manage their use of the resource. From the SI console they can organize and cleanup their space on the spot. Now, not only are our users engaged in the process of storage management, they have the tools and information to do what we need them to do manage their own space. A Community Project By using the strategies discussed above, we will do a good job of keeping the users in touch and engaged in helping us with storage management. But it is important to remember that while the users remain our main focus, there are other important people who are also involved. Responsibility for certain resources may have been delegated. The help desk is always a part of what we do. In some situations security administrators may want to be included. To get full value from our investment, we need to be able to include these groups as full participants in the storage management community, too. Copyright 2003 by NTP Software. All rights reserved. Page 6

9 To do this, we turn back to our messaging engine. What we need is the ability to send certain 3 rd parties a message from time to time that keeps them in touch with what users may be doing or the results of their actions. NTP Software Quota & File Sentinel recognizes three types of entities: 1. The user who is presently taking action 2. The owner of the object being acted upon 3. Other interested parties We already know what it means to communicate with the users (option 1). What we need to do is to extend our communication to include other parties who may need to know or who may be affected by someone else s storage use. All objects in Windows have an owner, identified by a system ID. Normally the owner ID is the ID of the person who created the object. But it doesn t have to be. In fact, on many networks Administrator is the owner of all or most storage objects. Copyright 2003 by NTP Software. All rights reserved. Page 7

10 In the case of storage used by several people, we can, if we want, use the Windows owner to identify the person responsible for the shared object. We can then use the messaging system to send this person a notice when certain activities occur. This allows a department head or a project leader to stay in touch with the fact that the resources they are responsible for are growing or in other ways in need of attention. The other group we would commonly want to include in our community is the Help Desk. Even though we have cradle-to-grave on-line support for our users, in moments of extreme crisis, they are more likely to call the help desk than to check the on-line support. Our Help Desk will be better prepared to assist if they are not taken by surprise when the call comes. As QFS sends a critical message to the user, it can also send a copy to the help desk. When the Help Desk gets such a message, it can prepare for the end user s call. If the call doesn t come and the Help Desk sees the problem isn t being addressed, it can reach out to the user before a problem becomes a disaster and business is lost. By including these groups and possibly others (security administration, for example), we can greatly improve everyone s enjoyment of the resource while at the same time significantly reducing its cost of ownership. The Checklist For A Great End User Experience A great end user experience requires that we have all the necessary facilities and that we make available to them the right tools and applications. These are the required items: Rich communication facilities o The ability to send well formatted, easy to read messages o The ability to know precisely why the message was triggered. (For example, was the threshold hit because usage was increasing, or because usage was decreasing?) o The ability to embed web links and pointers in the message o The ability to include within the message information about the policy that caused it be sent An on-line support infrastructure o Supplemental explanation for the meaning of messages o Links to further support resources o The ability to automate appropriate storage management tasks End user resources for storage management o The ability for the end user to know their policy status o A Desktop storage management application suitable for end users The ability to inform and include other groups in the process o A way to signal the individual responsible for shared objects that something needs attention o The option to send certain status information to support centers such as the Help Desk Copyright 2003 by NTP Software. All rights reserved. Page 8

11 The Benefits Of A Great End User Experience There is everything to be gained and nothing to be lost by providing our users with the best possible experience. For example: Improved customer satisfaction o People are happier when they are involved and understand what s going on o Less confusion means less stress and few after-hours calls Reduced cost of ownership and operation o Automatic messages and on-line support reduce the amount of staff time needed to perform normal functions or resolve problems o System enforced policies reduce waste and eliminate down time o A leaner, better managed storage environment provides savings other areas such as backup and recovery Greater cooperation and collaboration o The ability to keep multiple groups informed and in synch allows everyone to work as a team rather than just react o Support organizations such as the Help Desk can reach out and correct problem situations before major trouble occurs Better security o Cleaner, managed storage offers fewer opportunities for errors and misdeeds NTP Software Professional Services For further assistance in creating a corporate Storage Management Policy, please contact your NTP Software Representative at or NTP Software Professional Services offers training and consulting services in support of the deployment and configuration of your Storage Resource Management software. Copyright 2003 by NTP Software. All rights reserved. Page 9