Best Practices for Proactively Monitoring the BlackBerry network using the NeedTEXT Monitor for BlackBerry Enterprise

Transcription

1 Best Practices for Proactively Monitoring the BlackBerry network using the NeedTEXT Monitor for BlackBerry Enterprise Epoch Integration Inc. All rights reserved. NeedTEXT is a registered trademark of Epoch Integration Inc. BlackBerry Enterprise Server, the BlackBerry and RIM families of related marks, images and symbols are the exclusive properties and trademarks of Research In Motion Limited. All other trademarks are property of their respective owners.

2 Table of Contents Introduction... 3 Purpose of this document... 3 Messaging & BES Administration staff Server/Service Level Alerts Detecting Hung Threads and Stopped Message Flow Use status information for troubleshooting problems Server Level Usage Reports for Performance Analysis BES License Auditing Network Operations Center staff Receiving BlackBerry-Related Alerts Help Desk & Desk Side Support staff Access to view BlackBerry handheld user details Ability to search BlackBerry Handheld users Line of Business Management & Finance Ability to access the reporting functionality of NeedTEXT Monitor All Users Report Unused Devices Report Additional Handheld Usage Reports Conclusion Page 2 of 31

3 Introduction NeedTEXT Monitor for BlackBerry Enterprise Server is a monitoring application designed for organizations that operate and manage the BlackBerry Enterprise Server (BES) infrastructure. It provides automated monitoring of the BlackBerry server systems and alert notifications so that the problems can be identified and fixed before any BlackBerry users are affected. BlackBerry administrators have the opportunity to configure thresholds on particular values to suit their particular organization s monitoring needs. In addition to the extensive monitoring and alerting capabilities, there are numerous reporting, charting and user search features to better manage the BlackBerry deployment. Purpose of this document This document describes various usage scenarios of the NeedTEXT Monitor application for the different stakeholder groups within a BlackBerry-using organization. This includes IT personnel as well as line of business managers. Throughout the document, these stakeholder groups are categorized as: Messaging & BES Administration staff Network Operations Center staff Help Desk & Desk Side Support staff Line of Business Management & Finance The usage scenarios that follow highlight some of the core features of the application which include (but are not limited to): Customizable Monitoring Alert Notifications Multi user capability Reporting Charts User Search Page 3 of 31

4 Messaging & BES Administration staff 1. Server/Service Level Alerts Using the NeedTEXT Monitor solution, messaging and BES administration staff can monitor the resource load and usage of the BES hardware and monitor all BlackBerry Services. Example Case: CPU Utilization of the BES should never exceed 20%. BlackBerry Mobile Data Service should never be stopped NeedTEXT Monitor Solution: 1) Monitoring Console: Set a threshold on CPU Utilization of <20 using Manage Thresholds BlackBerry services, including Mobile Data Service are by default monitored to be started CPU Utilization of the BES has exceeded the allowed threshold of 20% and BlackBerry Mobile Data Service is not running. NeedTEXT Monitor will provide a visual change of state i.e. red icons, message generation and a notification transmission i.e. alert Page 4 of 31

5 2) Notifications: Configure a notification address list to be notified of any faults that may occur as a result of the threshold Page 5 of 31

6 Faults appear in the NeedTEXT Monitor console message window and are routed via to those on the notification list Page 6 of 31

7 2. Detecting Hung Threads and Stopped Message Flow Sometimes BES will unexpectedly stop processing messages due to various unknown circumstances, including hung threads within the BES application itself. Since the BES Windows Services still appear to be running, detecting the fault is difficult. NeedTEXT Monitor allows you to monitor the message flow of each BES, which can give you an early indication of a hung thread condition. Example Case: The BES server should not experience any 15 minute period during which there are no messages processed (i.e. message flow has stopped) NeedTEXT Monitor Solution: 1) Monitoring Console: Set a time-based threshold on Processed at the BES server level: [15m]> Page 7 of 31

8 3. User Level Performance Threshold Alerts NeedTEXT Monitor continually verifies that BlackBerry handheld users are experiencing a normal, consistent BlackBerry service. BES issues that could cause an interruption are brought to the attention of messaging & BES administration staff. Example Case: All handheld users on the BES should never have more than 40 messages pending to ensure that there isn t excessive load on the BES outgoing queues NeedTEXT Monitor Solution: 1) Monitoring Console: Set a global user threshold on "Pending" to be < Page 8 of 31

9 Users above the threshold show as being in fault Page 9 of 31

10 2) Reports: Generate a custom report to get a snapshot view of the Top 10 Users with highest pending messages Page 10 of 31

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12 4. Use status information for troubleshooting problems Example Case: One of the mail servers connected to the BES has gone into fault NeedTEXT Monitor Solution: 1) Monitoring Console: Drill down to the exact location of the mail server in question - it appears that the average response time has exceeded its threshold Handheld users may begin to experience, or may have already experienced, slow message delivery. By analyzing the data provided by NeedTEXT Monitor, the administrator can make a more educated guess as to the root of the problem being either the BES or the mail server Page 12 of 31

13 5. Server Level Usage Reports for Performance Analysis Example Case: Messaging & BES administration staff need to audit the performance of their BES hardware in relation to the number of handheld users and how heavily the users are using their devices. This will help them determine if new hardware may be needed, or if some users need to be moved to another BES. NeedTEXT Monitor Solution: 1) Reports: Generate a canned Server report to get a tabular view of all servers hardware resource usage vs. BES aggregate device usage and number of users Page 13 of 31

14 Generate a custom Server Usage report in HTML format with detailed Mobile Data Service statistics Page 14 of 31

15 The same report can be generated in CSV format to be exported and manipulated in Excel or any other reporting engine that supports the CSV data file format Page 15 of 31

16 2) Charts: Generate a custom chart with CPU Utilization, Memory Utilization, etc. Using this data, administration staff can make an educated decision about any reorganization of handhelds, or hardware that may be required Page 16 of 31

17 6. BES License Auditing Example Case: Messaging and administration staff need to audit their licenses and users on the BES to determine if they require more licenses, or if they can use CALs from another BES NeedTEXT Monitor Solution: 1) Monitoring console: Set a threshold monitor to notify you if the number of used licenses is close to the total number of purchased licenses 2) Reports: Generate a customized server report for all servers displaying the following columns: Server Name, Number of Users, Licenses Used, Licenses Available and Licenses Total Page 17 of 31

18 Network Operations Center staff 1. Receiving BlackBerry-Related Alerts Example Case: The NOC staff need to receive any BlackBerry-related alerts and react to them if deemed necessary. If the NOC staff receive a NeedTEXT Monitor alert, they require the proper tools and information to diagnose the problem NeedTEXT Monitor Solution: 1) Multi-user feature: The NOC staff members can log in to the NeedTEXT Monitor application as a view only user. Being a web-based application, NeedTEXT Monitor can be accessed from anywhere using a standard web browser Page 18 of 31

19 2) Monitoring Console: The NOC staff can view the source of the failure (i.e. SRP Connection). Based on instructions from the messaging and BES administration staff, the NOC staff can handle it accordingly Page 19 of 31

20 The NOC staff can view all of the alert notification messages and decide the next course of action Page 20 of 31

21 Help Desk & Desk Side Support staff 1. Access to view BlackBerry handheld user details Example Case: The help desk team has no visibility into the native BES management console or any knowledge of handheld user status. If a handheld user calls with a complaint, the help desk team can log in and see various handheld performance statistics NeedTEXT Monitor Solution: 1) Multi-user accounts: Multiple help desk staff members can log in simultaneously to the NeedTEXT Monitor application as view only users Page 21 of 31

22 2) Monitoring Console: With a view into NeedTEXT Monitor, help desk technicians are more educated about BES, allowing them to troubleshoot more end user problems. They are also able to determine the root cause of many user problems (i.e. BES service is down, SRP is down, etc.) prior to contacting next level of support. Furthermore, they can view user statistics such as: Last Contact time, Pending Messages, Last Error Text, Last Error Time, etc Page 22 of 31

23 2. Ability to search BlackBerry Handheld users Example Case: When a user calls in about a problem with their handheld, help desk staff need to be able to quickly determine which BES to which the user is registered NeedTEXT Monitor Solution: 1) User Search: The help desk staff can do a quick search by User Name, PIN, Network, or Server across the entire BlackBerry deployment to find out which BES the user belongs to and view all the user s performance statistics upon completion of the search Page 23 of 31

24 The detailed user information in the monitoring console can be drilled into directly from the user search results Page 24 of 31

25 Line of Business Management & Finance 1. Ability to access the reporting functionality of NeedTEXT Monitor For line of business managers and budget owners of BlackBerry service within your organization, NeedTEXT Monitor provides useful reporting features for tracking usage, licensing, etc. Example Case: Currently, line of business management and budget owners do not have access to any tools that will enable them to generate BES and BlackBerry handheld reporting statistics NeedTEXT Monitor Solution: 1) Multi-user: These groups can log in to the NeedTEXT Monitor application as reports only users 2) Reports: The Report Centre provides many Quick Reports, which are pre-configured to be used for common administrative tasks. Also, a report builder allows customized reports to be generated and formatted for sending to key BlackBerry stakeholders within the organization Page 25 of 31

26 2. All Users Report Example Case: Line of business managers need to know on an ongoing basis how many handhelds are deployed within their organizations The billing department needs to know how many users there are to charge back to various lines of business NeedTEXT Monitor Solution: 1) Reports: Generate a canned All Users Report on a monthly/quarterly basis to determine how much the BlackBerry Infrastructure is growing or how many users there are to be charged Generate custom reports of handheld activity level on a monthly basis to plan for future deployments Page 26 of 31

27 Reports can be generated in CSV format for viewing and manipulation in spreadsheet programs and other applications Page 27 of 31

28 3. Unused Devices Report Example Case: Line of business managers and Finance need to know how many handhelds are not being used, to determine if these devices should be redistributed to other users or taken out of service NeedTEXT Monitor Solution: 1) Reports: Generate a canned Inactive Users report on a quarterly basis to determine infrequently used devices Page 28 of 31

29 4. Additional Handheld Usage Reports A report sorted by Oldest Device Interaction displays the last time these handhelds made contact with the BlackBerry Enterprise Server. This may indicate whether devices are being used productively, or whether they are even being used at all Page 29 of 31

30 In addition to determining which handheld users do not use their device that often, it is equally important to understand those users who use their devices the most. This data is especially useful for load-balancing initiatives Conclusion As described in this document NeedTEXT Monitor for BlackBerry Enterprise Server provides value to a range of business units within an organization. It is an effective monitoring, troubleshooting, data analysis and reporting tool for all those involved in supporting the BlackBerry deployment. The ability to monitor multiple BlackBerry Enterprise Servers at different geographical locations from one web console, to search and report across all servers, and to have the granularity of monitoring on a per handheld basis are some of the key reasons that make this an invaluable solution. About Epoch Integration Epoch Integration Inc. is a leading developer of enterprise software for businesses using the BlackBerry wireless platform, developed by Research In Motion. The company's products, including the popular NeedTEXT suite, are focused on enhancing the capabilities of organizations responsible for the implementation, management and support of BlackBerry solutions. The company currently provides network management solutions to such high-profile customers as TD Securities, Walmart.com and the U.S. Army, in addition to small and medium-sized businesses around the globe. About ReSoft International Page 30 of 31

31 ReSoft has, for over 11 years, acted as a trusted advisor to hundreds of organizations, applying the relevant technologies and techniques from its broad set of & IM Security tools to reduce liability risks and save time. This paper has set out to illustrate the significant experience offered by ReSoft and it s partners in providing professional services and solutions that have helped many organizations to define & implement policy-based archiving & discovery systems across industries and organizations of all sizes. Review the ReSoft website at if you are seeking ways to: reduce Mailbox Sizes and manage Retention & Quotas in your Lotus Domino & Microsoft Exchange systems undertake Legal & Regulatory Discovery Searches of and IM archives reduce Usage Violations, Loss of Intellectual Property & SPAM in , Webmail and IM make & IM delivery more Secure to meet HIPAA, GLB, SOX etc. make Exchange OWA & Outlook Calendar more Usable and Secure measure /web Bottlenecks, Availability & Cost-Recovery proactively defend against Spyware, P2P, Worms and other emerging threats For Further Discussions, please contact: ReSoft International LLC PO Box 124 New Canaan CT Page 31 of 31