Information security experts, enterprise IT teams and development teams share many workflows, technologies and even priorities. But each of this is unique in terms of operational visibility. Developers, especially those in charge of rapid and continuous software delivery processes, need to focus more on performance and alignment with their team’s work processes. This is where log management tools come in to ensure operational visibility in real time.
As new architectures continue to change software development demands, IT experts and developers need to focus on a set of capabilities when it comes to choosing the right tools. Here’s the ultimate DevOps guide to evaluating modern log management tools:
Measurable Performance
While every log management environment is different, there are core requirements that qualify modern tools as high-performance. Depending on the amount of data being handled and the volume of inbound messages coming in, it’s vital to evaluate each log management tool based on these key performance metrics, according to Solarwinds.com:
- Quick access and availability of log messages when troubleshooting live issues
- Prompt delivery of notifications, alerts and other actions to ensure reliability
- Log search reliability for a quick response
Without the ability to quickly log messages in real-time in your log management console, a dependable delivery process for comparing alerts and an established way to query performance tests, troubleshooting or debugging software issues can be a challenge. Make sure that the tool you choose meets these criteria.
Usability and Multiple-User Support
The best tools for log management are designed to make developers and IT experts more efficient and collaborative in the work. The best tools should support this and empower your team to move fast when troubleshooting issues. Here are five usability factors you should look out for:
- Easy End-User Adoption – To ensure effective rollout and adoption of log management software, your tool should be easy to use and intuitive.
- Multiple-User Support – Multi-user access for your entire team is critical without sacrificing performance or having to pay more. The tool should enable different users to query data, setup up alerts and dashboards and work simultaneously without any issues.
- Quick Troubleshooting – Developers and IT should be able to troubleshoot and find issues quickly with no prior training on using the tool.
- Easy Dashboard Creation – Users should be able to create and share different dashboards consisting of different system events and metrics within minutes.
- Seamless Log Data and Transaction Tracking – Users should be able to track each single user request across multiple systems and network components using a single unique transaction ID.
Tool Integrations and Extensibility
The most reliable log management tools should seamlessly work with other external systems and applications to provide a complete view of your workflow and operational environment. Once you’ve successfully integrated your log management tools with your existing alerting tools and data visualization dashboards, you need to be sure that information is flowing accurately, cleanly and fast without any data or latency drops.
Data Security and Compliance
To ensure data security and compliance with the latest standards, you need to be sure that your tool comes with the right configurations to prevent the loss of sensitive data. Data privacy concerns are growing among users and as a company, you need to make sure that your DevOps teams are relying on tools that are compliant to the latest privacy and security standards. Verify that your tools comply with relevant standards and laws like GDPR, HIPAA and PCI-DSS.
Conclusion
With almost all log management tools available today coming with the same capabilities and features, it takes more than just a simple evaluation to find the best tool for your business. Be sure to test drive your top options before choosing one tool. The success of your business may depend on it.