Oracle Adds to Lineup of Verified Tools

Source: IBSMA e-News #36, September 17, 2010

Dublin, Ireland-based iQuate announced April 27, 2010 its iQSonar auto-discovery tool for Oracle is the first verified by Oracle as having up-to-snuff technology to audit inventory and usage data (see Oracle License Management Services). Oracle recently added Flexera FlexNet Manager for Oracle to the list (see Flexera). Rumors have been swirling for months that others would be added though Oracle representatives declined to name names or offer timelines, citing nondisclosure agreements.

Oracle's Web site states that "data from these tools will still need to be analyzed" and can be used to supplement Oracle's license-management review process (see Tools for Managing Oracle Licenses). That's not surprising because license agreement terms and conditions also need to be analyzed—with usage and installation data—to determine a customer's license and financial obligations.
Oracle's carefully worded statement is not an endorsement and no guarantee of new business for the tool provider. Demand for tools for Oracle applications is strong and Oracle users would be wise to consider the advantages to using "verified" tools. Oracle isn't ruling out practitioner self-audits and using data from recognized tools could put customers in a better position to bypass an on-site license review. Another advantage is avoiding the time-consuming process of installing and running Oracle's free inventory tools. Third-party products offer more in terms of contract management and reporting and the data can be imported into a central license-management repository. More on this in the next section.

The tools lineup
Oracle provides its customers a free set of elementary inventory and monitoring tools (see Tools Manager 2008 ITAM and SAM Review). Customers who actively manage Oracle licenses and usage are sure to save time and effort with the extra features and functions offered on the third-party tools listed here.
iQuate (iquate.com), founded in 2002, offers iQSonar, an agentless auto-discovery tool for Windows and UNIX desktop and server computers. The company also offers a monitoring tool and sells its products direct and via resellers and managed service providers. iQSonar is an inventory tool and does not include a software catalog for normalizing data or license management functions. It does offer an expanded range of data elements when compared to other products we've seen. Watch for ECP's report on iQSonar later this year.
Flexera's FlexNet Manager for Oracle, an agent-based tool, offers basic functionality for contract, license and financial management. We expect Flexera to beef up these areas and add components from ManageSoft ECM, a product in acquired earlier this year. No time frame has been set and, for now, customers looking for more robust license and financial management can extract data and manage it in a full-function repository.
IQuate and Flexera are not the only players. BDNA offers Oracle auto-discovery and license management, although its product has not been verified. BDNA Insight offers agentless technology to discover deep levels of data on a tremendous breadth of platforms, including IBM mainframe, HP-UX, Solaris, VMware ESX, Microsoft SoftGrid, XenSource, Mac OS X, SAP and Oracle. Support for Oracle VM was added in version 6.1. To receive a free copy of the Tools Manager report, contact BDNA/PS'Soft.

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