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Compaq adds management software for servers

The company adds simplified management software to its Intel server line in an attempt to make the machines more reliable and to provide itself with a new source of revenue.

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Compaq has added simplified management software to its Intel server line in an attempt to make the machines more reliable and to provide itself with a new source of revenue.

Though the software will be shipped at no extra charge with future server purchases, Compaq also will sell the management software to users of the more than 2 million Proliant servers Compaq already has sold, said Lee Johns, Compaq's director of marketing for enterprise management software.

The software, called Comdex 2000: Back to the future Compaq Availability Agent, offers administrators a number of preset options for dealing with Windows NT or Windows 2000 servers. The software monitors parameters such as how much of a disk's capacity is filled or how much memory a program is using, Johns said.

The software then will take automatic actions, such as deleting temporary files or restarting programs that are gobbling up memory, Johns said. More experienced administrators can set up the software so it executes customized scripts, he added.

The software costs $499 per server, though prices drop to as low as $120 when bought in quantities of 500, he said.