SQL Server 2008 - Worth the Wait
Monitoring SQL Server databases is one of the most crucial jobs a DBA performs — it can be time-consuming and tedious. While Microsoft provides several good native tools to help you monitor how SQL Server is behaving, using these tools requires a lot of manual work. Wouldn't it be great if you could automate many of the routine monitoring tasks? With SQL diagnostic manager, a valuable tool from Idera, you can!
I reviewed this product using the following software and hardware configuration:
Installing SQL diagnostic manager was easy and took only two minutes to complete. During the process of installation, you need to input the Domain\UserName and Password. This account must be a local administrator.
The main window (below) displays general information about the registered servers. On the left-hand side, it displays all the registered servers in a familiar tree structure. The tree has a branch for each registered server and another branch that consolidates data from <All Servers> for easy usability.
At the bottom of this window, a To Do List displays errors considered most detrimental to the performance of managed servers. This easy-to-use list can be edited, viewed by other users, and used to keep DBAs informed about fixes so they can prioritize updates. Above the list, real-time graphs show the current status of each registered SQL Server.