Taking the Configuration Management Database to the Next Level: The Federated Data Model

Computerworld - With the growing interest in adopting best practices across IT departments, particularly according to standards such as the Information Technology Infrastructure Library (ITIL), many organizations are deciding to implement a configuration management database (CMDB). A CMDB should help them discover and manage the elements in their IT infrastructure so they can better understand the relationships among components and facilitate changes effectively. This is important because there is a significant business value in having a single "source of record" that provides a logical model of the IT infrastructure to identify, manage and verify all configuration items in the environment.
Having reliable data requires more than a database. It requires a well-conceived configuration management strategy; without knowing what's in your environment, you can't hope to control it, maintain it or improve it.
Since configuration items are at the heart of the CMDB, it's important to understand what they encompass. A configuration item is an instance of a physical, logical or conceptual entity that is part of your environment and has configurable attributes specific to that instance. Examples of configuration items would be a computer system (attributes could include a serial number or IP address) or even an employee (with configurable attributes such as hours worked and department number).
Getting Started: Developing the Right Strategy
Once you have determined that you may need a CMDB, how do you select the approach that's best for you? Everything begins with ITIL, the industry framework for IT service management. To get started on developing a configuration management strategy, set your objectives according to ITIL goals, which state that configuration management accounts for all the IT assets and configurations within the organization and its services. According to ITIL, the ideal CMDB should also provide accurate information on configurations and their documentation to support all the other service management processes. In addition, it must provide a sound basis for incident management, problem management, change management and release management. It must be able to verify the configuration records against the infrastructure and correct any exceptions. If you think that creating a CMDB is a major undertaking, you're right. But it can be done effectively if you follow the right approach for your organization.
Lessons Learned: The Evolution of the CMDB
The concept of a CMDB has evolved over the years from a collection of isolated data stores to integrated data stores to a single, central database. Each time, it gets closer to being the source of record for configuration data without taking a toll on the infrastructure. However, those