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Technical | Business | Press
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| Q: | |
My company doesn`t build management products, is there
any reason we should be looking into the
Java Management extensions ("JMX") specification?
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| A: | |
If your company builds applications or devices that
would benefit from being manageable then the answer is yes.
Making these elements manageable increases their value to
yourself and your clients. It makes them easier to install,
configure, and maintain. And because is relatively easy to do,
making your products manageable through JMX technology is
something you should definitely consider.
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| Q: | |
Why shouldn`t I just use existing, say SNMP, agent
kits to instrument my Java technology-based functions?
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| A: | |
JMX technology is native to the Java programming language.
As such, it offers extremely efficient, lightweight, and
natural management extensions to Java technology-based functions.
One might say that, thru JMX technology, Java technology-based
components can "inherit" manageability from the environment in
which they were built and execute.
Note further, that JMX specification compliant implementations
such as Sun`s
Java Dynamic Management
Kit (Java DMK) can present an SNMP conformant interface to the outside world through
facilities that are called tooling.
Tooling can be delivered by JMX specification compliant
implementations as optional utilities that are not part of
the formal JMX specification. Note that Sun`s Java DMK supported
product enables several forms of management such as SNMP and HTTP.
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| Q: | |
How difficult is JMX technology to use? What`s the
learning curve?
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| A: | |
If you want to use JMX technology to instrument your
applications or devices for manageability it`s actually
quite simple. JMX technology is a Java platform extension and
shares Java technology`s component model, object model, and
many other aspects of standard Java technology. If you know the
Java programming language and are familiar with the JavaBeans
component architecture model, then you already know 95% of all
you need to.
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| Q: | |
Many management platform providers also provide frameworks
for building agents. How is JMX technology positioned with
respect to these products?
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| A: | |
JMX technology applies to Java technology-based
managed resources. JMX technology is positioned as THE
way to instrument any function that has been built using
Java technology. This represents a significant benefit to all
users of the Java platform for developing embedded, commercial
or enterprise software--the platform not only provides excellent
facilities for creation but also a single coherent framework
for management. Thus, for example, router manufacturers can
create embedded Java technology functionality that naturally
and efficiently implements JMX specification compliant
manageability --- and this manageability is compatible with
any JMX specification compliant management platform.
The concept of specific integration with specific management
platforms becomes obsolete.
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| Q: | |
My applications consist of different Java technology-based
components ("Java components"), JavaBeans, servlets, and
Enterprise JavaBeans architecture components ("EJB Components").
Can I manage all of them with JMX technology?
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| A: | |
Yes, JMX technology APIs can be invoked from any Java
Virtual Machine and any Java technology-based program.
You can instrument your application for management with
JMX such that it is transparent what type of Java component
is actually `doing the work`. You simply expose the appropriate
application management interfaces accross your application
implementation.
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| Q: | |
What will it cost to adopt the JMX specification as
my standard for instrumenting Java technology-based functions?
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| A: | |
The JMX specification is being developed according to the
Java Community Process, and will comprise a separate package
for each tier of the management architecture. The Instrumentation
tier will be absolutely free. Other tiers can be built from
the public specifications or from reference implementations
available under Sun Community Source License.
Alternatively, you can purchase commercially supported
products such as Sun`s Java Dynamic Management Kit (Java DMK),
that also offer more tools for developing and deploying management
solutions. See Sun for Java DMK licensing information.
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| Q: | |
What will be the cost of maintaining a management solution
based on JMX technology?
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| A: | |
Because JMX technology is an extension of standard Java
technology, the costs associated with training new staff to
maintain a JMX technology-based solution is minimal. Also,
because of their distributed nature, JMX implementations can
distribute the cost of development and maintenance across the
stakeholders of distributed systems.
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| Q: | |
I want to supply my own stand alone application manager,
but I want my application managable by enterprise managers too.
Can I solve both of these problems with JMX technology?
Yes, and you even have choices on how to do this.
You can instrument manageability in your application with
JMX technology. Your application manager can use its own JMX
technology adapter to manage the application - the same way the
enterprise managers do! Alternatively, your application manager
can expose the managed resources and management interfaces to
JMX on behalf of your entire application. Obviously, with JMX
technology, you can have the best of both worlds.
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| Q: | |
What impact will JMX technology have on distributed computing?
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| A: | |
We think that JMX technology will have a significant impact
on the proliferation of distributed computing. Java technology
is already leading the way in distributed computing. One of the
greatest remaining challenges, however, is the inherent complexity
of distributed computing. JMX technology addresses this particular
issue head on. And because it is an extension of the Java platform,
the tools needed to address these problems will be readily available
to developers in this field.
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| Q: | |
How is JMX technology positioned with respect to existing
enterprise management platforms from companies such as Bull,
Computer Associates and IBM/Tivoli?
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| A: | |
JMX technology represents a standard framework for
instrumentation and management of Java technology-based resources.
Enterprise management platforms such as OpenMaster, Unicenter,
and TMS can leverage JMX technology to manage Java technology-based
resources that are JMX specification compliant. JMX technology is
the window through which all management platforms gain visibility
into the growing world of Java technology-based applications--
embedded, telco, or enterprise.
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| Q: | |
Is JMX technology only available in large Java virtual
machines for the Enterprise?
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| A: | |
JMX technology can be used in ANY implementation of Sun`s
Java Virtual Machine specification -
embedded to enterprise -
that supports the Java SE platform.
This means that your
manageability is portable across platforms with the Java
programming language as well as portable across Java
technology-based environments with JMX technology.
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