RES extends Automation Manager to non-Windows platforms

RES Software has updated its Automation Manager tool with support for non-Windows systems and integration with Microsoft's System Center Configuration Manager.

Announced today at Citrix Synergy in Barcelona and set to be available by the end of this year, Automation Manager 2012 adds a number of enhancements to the software's existing capabilities for automating everyday IT tasks and applying business rules.

However, the most significant new feature is support for non-Windows platforms in the shape of management agents for Red Hat Enterprise Linux and Suse Linux Enterprise, plus IBM's AIX.

"We've had support for Windows automation for years, but we kept being asked by sys admins whether we could do the same for Linux, because of the costs of support for these platforms," said Grant Tiller, senior product manager at RES Software.

Linux tasks supported include command execution, reboot or shutdown, and the downloading of resources, according to RES.

Tiller said that Automation Manager's key value to customers is in negating human error when carrying out everyday multi-step admin tasks.

"We want to get IT away from fire-fighting and into being more productive," he explained.

Also added to the 2012 release is integration with Microsoft's System Center Configuration Manager, as many RES customers are now using this for software distribution, Tiller said.

Where administrators previously needed to create custom scripts to deploy software, Automation Manager can now invoke configuration manager to perform this task.

Other enhancements include scalability and performance improvements, such as full 64-bit support, plus better support for customers operating multi-tenant environments, such as service providers.

Automation Manager 2012 is currently available for testing as a release candidate, and the full version is due before the end of the year.