The new version includes features for managing end-to-end network performance in virtualized environments.

Apparent Networks, a provider of network fault and performance management solutions, today announced that it has released an updated version of PathView Cloud, its hosted network management service. The company states that the new version includes unique features for managing end-to-end network performance in virtualized environments.

It claims that with PathView Cloud's virtualization-enabled analytics, IT and operations teams can, understand network performance from the perspective of applications running on virtual machines. The company avers that with this extended visibility, PathView Cloud lets IT teams find and fix network performance problems, regardless of whether they occur in physical or virtual infrastructure. It adds that to familiarize customers with PathView Cloud's new features, it is offering a free, five-path version of the product.

"Many enterprises are now wrapping up their initial forays into virtualization," said Jim Melvin, President and CMO of Apparent Networks. "They've successfully virtualized low-hanging fruit like under-utilized servers and non-critical applications such as Web hosting and collaboration. But the next phase of virtualization will be more challenging because the targets are the revenue-generating, performance-sensitive applications that enterprises rely on. IT leaders won't move forward unless they know their critical services will run properly and continue to meet the needs of the business. PathView Cloud gives enterprises the testing and troubleshooting tools they need to confidently take their virtualization initiatives to the next level."

"Network performance has been a concern for enterprises as they evaluate using virtualized assets to support business-critical applications," said Jim Metzler, Vice President of Ashton, Metzler & Associates. "By providing the ability to more easily understand and address performance issues that can affect application delivery, tools like PathView Cloud can help organizations to move past those concerns and expand the range and importance of the types of applications they place on their virtual infrastructures."

"The greatest value from virtualization will come with dynamic service delivery," added Jim Melvin. "That's where workloads can move readily from one VM to another or from datacenter to datacenter based upon load spikes, cost efficiencies, availability and disaster recovery scenarios. Before those moves can happen, operations teams must ensure that all the necessary resources, including network performance, are in place and ready for the switch. PathView Cloud is the only solution on the market today that can provide this insight, which is a critical component to dynamic virtual service delivery."