I am happy to announce General Availability (GA) of SolarWinds Network Configuration Manager (NCM) v7.3. Above all, I would like to draw your attention to the major architectural improvement that we have implemented in this version: NCM and Core/NPM databases have been merged. This improvement:

• Considerably simplifies installation, upgrade, and maintenance;
• Represents one further step towards full integration with other Orion modules;
• Is a prerequisite to the following enhancements:
  • Account limitations applied to NCM jobs.
  • Core node management page is used to add/remove devices from NCM.
  • Node sync is gone. (No more issues with NPM and NCM databases containing contradicting data.)
  • Subviews are fully supported.

In addition to the database merge, we have implemented the following improvements:

• A completely new version of the Configuration Management page
• EoL/EoS feature enhancements
  • Improved matching reliability for EoL/EoS.
  • EoL/EoS data includes more information.
• Admins can clear transfers for other users.
• Better support of Huawei devices.
• Jobs Summary table can be sorted according to any column.
• SWISv3 support

More details can be found in Network Configuration Manager v7.3 is Now GA!.

We just released Beta 3 of our SolarWinds VNQM for Avaya VoIP monitoring. This build mainly fixes issues we have found thanks to your previous co-operation on beta. Here comes the full list:

New Features:

1. 1) MOS score
2. 2) Latency for each call

Fixes:

1. 1) Avaya CLI - different characters in prompt
2. 2) Avaya Date Formatting (DDMM vs. MMDD)
3. 3) Handle RTCP sender reports
4. 4) Date handling (start-date v. start-date(4d))
5. 5) Handling of missing fields for investigation in logs
6. 6) “xterm” on CLI challenge
7. 7) IP Address parsing
8. 8) CDR Listener

If you want to participate in beta, you should own VNQM and be under active maintenance. Then you need to simply agree with this beta agreement: SolarWinds VoIP & Network Quality Manager 4.2 Beta Participation Survey and I'll send you download link. All previous Beta subscribers will receive email with download links from me automatically.

How to add Avaya call manager? Click on "Add new call manager" button on IPSLA Summary page and our wizard will take you through the process.

Adding draft of Avaya admin guide - how to start: http://downloads.solarwinds.com/solarwinds/Release/PreRelease14/Beta/VNQM4.2Beta1/VNQM4.2Beta1Guide.

Your feedback is important, share it with us on Beta Forum

Is this year going by fast or what?  It feels like I was putting together the January mission just last week. We're already into May and if you're anything like me, you've been planning your summer vacation(s).  Another thing we may have in common is having trouble putting work down even when you're out of the office.  Of course your reasons probably involve ensuring your end-users are taken care of while you're gone, I simply have separation anxiety from the "thwackPack" if we aren't in touch every few days.  Luckily, I work on a SaaS based platform to make changes on the fly.  And for all of you IT Pros, DameWare Remote Support 11.0 provides support to end-users whether you're in office or on the other side of the world.  Let's take a trip around the world to learn more on just how DRS 11.0 can make those work-related tasks a breeze while you're enjoying a Mai Tai on your next vacation.

May's Mission

Embark on your journey in this month's mission, Expedition DameWare.  During your travels, we'll be giving out a $25 AmEx card each day for those who answer that day's question within 24 hours of it opening (i.e. those who answer Day 1's question before Day 2 opens, will be entered into the Day 1 gift card drawing).  Answer all 20 questions correctly, and you'll be entered to win 2 round-trip airline tickets to choose your own adventure!  Follow the rules below to play.

Mission Rules

1. 1 question will open every business day until the end of May for a total of 20 questions.  Once a question opens, it will remain open until the end of the mission.
2. Answer each question within 24 hours of it's opening, and be entered to win a $25 AmEx gift card for that day.
   1. Gift card winners will be announced in the comments below the day after a question has opened (e.g. Monday's winner will be drawn on Tuesday, Tuesday's winner will be drawn on Wednesday, etc.)
3. Answer all 20 questions correctly and be entered to win 2 round-trip airline tickets to a destination of your choice (retail $1000.00 USD).
4. Only your first submission to each question will count - double check your answers before submitting!
5. 150 points will be awarded for each correctly answered question for a possible total of 3000 points.
   1. Points will be awarded at the end of the mission.

Click on the links below to answer the questions - each question will open @ 12am CDT on it's respective day.

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