network inventory utility

Next comes the preparation of the service for delivery to the network inventory utility. This phase is focused on certification of the new service. This involves a refinement of the architecture, detailing how the service is to be installed and used, followed by installation and configuration packaging to automate the process. Here, a strong emphasis is placed on service cohabitation—cohabitation and perhaps collaboration with all of the existing services in the network. Once again, the service undergoes thorough testing, including deployment testing through a pilot project or a proof of concept if the testing can be done in a smaller scale. Once all tests are complete and results are documented, the service is deployed.

It then passes to the production phase. This phase concentrates on the operation of the service. It begins with an update of existing network inventory utility (this part is often tied to the actual deployment), followed by a process for change tracking for the service. Since the service is deployed, it will require both problem management and user support in addition to the administration of service availability. This is done through regular backups and data protection as well as security verifications and service maintenance. If data is associated with the service, storage management will also be involved. Service operation also entails service level agreement maintenance. This is done through performance tuning, capacity adjustments, and the generation of statistics on availability, reliability and responsiveness of the service.