Businesses already confident in the Y2K-readiness of their systems and networks aren't so worried about the possibility of computer failures as the year rolls over from 1999 to 2000. Such is the case for Southwest, which always faces network congestion just before and after Thanksgiving and Christmas, Coons says. Three years ago, the company started using Concord's Network Health software to analyze trends in network utilization. This way, Southwest can create long-term plans, making sure it has enough bandwidth available for spikes in usage.
Coons says the airline also generates daily reports, to look for slowdowns in the network.
With that data, the company can troubleshoot problems on individual network segments with a Network Associates Sniffer. Southwest isn't the only company in this situation. But the network service provider broadcasts streaming media over its network - and there will be many concerts happening this New Year's Eve. During that time, NextLec will watch its servers closely, using Ipswitch's WhatsUp Gold systems management software. The company will use the software to watch for servers failing or services on the server going down.