Keeping users' computers in large enterprises up-to-date is a mammoth task, especially the never-ending upgrading of system software to prevent security breaches. Herald the advent of the desktop economy; desktop management evolved as a systems management discipline to co-ordinate application usage on desktop and laptop computers.

The management of multiple user profiles is a challenge which vendors and ISVs are actively tackling. The challenge has been to have centralized desktop management systems which can scale to an enterprise of any size. New desktop managers like Desktop Authority, guarantees desktop confuguration in the face of
extensive granularity of data in the enterprise-countries, locations, sites, departments down to individual profiles with distinct default settings, client configuration, custom scripts, log file configurations and alert messages can be configured. The task of assigning scripts to particular users and groups has been made idiot-proof today.

Now desktop management tools have abilities to remote control computers, worldwide

The latest desktop configuration tools make even logging client activity easy, by dynamically logging such information based on several variables; for example: date, time, operating system type and version, service pack version, MAC and TCP/IP address, authenticating server, user ID, physical RAM, free disk space, BIOS date, CPU speed or SID.

Many administrators consider Intel LANDesk Management Suite 6.5, as a good solution in server and desktop management. The general lack of comprehensive hardware support from major manufacturers in the past helped LANDesk attain this reputation. And though long-awaited support from the manufacturers-in the form of the proprietary products reviewed here-seems to have finally arrived, Intel has significantly boosted the extent of its suite's capabilities.

The rapid advances in remote desktop management are removing the network administrator from the scene. Remote desktop managers now automatically deliver multiple client configuration properties at log-on without a network administrator having to visit each desktop. Microsoft supports many Win32 platforms and many applications including Office, BackOffice, Small Business Server, Terminal Server, Exchange Server, ISA/Proxy Server, Systems Management Server and Citrix Meta-Frame. As per security access rules of each company, specific domain controllers, member servers, dial-up clients and/or specific computers can be excluded.

While security companies can afford to smile the implications on privacy are slowly being addressed. For, your office computer is no more totally yours. IT personnel have developed abilities to remote control computers and transfer data – worldwide. The good news is that remote desktop managers now allow you to manage files, shares, processes, services, registry settings and permission via secure remote access from any Web browser without the need to install additional client software.

Team DQ

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