IBM and AGS Ltd., a privately held purveyor of management solutions for data servers, has announced that the new Server Studio and Sentinel R. 6.1, the principal suite of integrated system management tools for IBM Informix Dynamic Server (IDS), is now available, with editions offered by both IBM and AGS.

The IDS data server is a strategic element of IBM's information management software portfolio, and the recently announced IDS 11, code named Cheetah, delivers increased performance, reliability, and scalability, along with the ability to handle massive volumes of complex data at very high speeds. IDS 11 also is the industry's first data server to provide clustered data centers with continuous data availability and disaster recovery regardless of the geographic location or distance between backup data center sites.

Server Studio and Sentinel together form a powerful infrastructure of multi-platform tools that help both seasoned database professionals and novices alike manage IBM Informix data server environments with an unprecedented ease and productivity. Native support of IDS 11 functionality in the Release 6.1 of Server Studio and Sentinel further enhances ability to deliver optimal performance, availability, and maintainability of Informix databases throughout their entire operational lifecycle.

"Our long-term partnership with AGS underscores IBM's steadfast commitment to providing IDS clients with the performance optimization, availability, and compliance management solutions they need," said Bernie Spang, director IBM data servers. "The new Release 6.1 of Server Studio and Sentinel will help protect the investment that our customers have made in their Informix data server infrastructures."

The versatility, rich functionality, and ease-of-use provided by Server Studio and Sentinel build on the legendary reliability and simple administration of IDS. The new toolset offered by AGS helps companies and organizations ensure that critical database applications remain up and perform at peak levels, allowing them to effectively manage change, handle regulatory compliance, and assure availability of vital business information.

Bank of America recently selected Server Studio and Sentinel for its IDS environment, one of the world's largest distributed data centers processing online financial transactions.

Collection of Integrated, Highly Productive System Management Tools

"The latest release of Server Studio and Sentinel provide a collection of integrated, highly productive system management tools that developers and DBAs working with IBM's Informix data servers have been demanding and waiting for. Informix now has very powerful graphical tools that exceed the capabilities of native and third party offerings available for any other database platform. Couple this with outstanding technical support and you get products with excellent value and a quick ROI," said Kevin Kleinhomer, vice president at Bank of America. "In our large distributed environment, Server Studio and Sentinel have simplified and automated many DBA tasks. With these additions, IBM's Informix data servers have been made significantly easier to administer and monitor."

Server Studio provides a comprehensive collection of easy-to-use, proven tools for DBAs and developers that improve efficiency of performing common database tasks such as: SQL development and debugging, schema management, configuration auditing, and change management, performance tuning, data storage management and reorganization, security administration and more. All this can be done from an integrated graphical console that unites development, administration, and maintenance activities for an entire Informix infrastructure at a central point of control.

Sentinel provides 24/7 operational monitoring, alerting, issue discovery, analysis and autonomic response automation infrastructure for IBM Informix data servers' environment. It's easy-to-deploy agent-less architecture equips DBAs with sophisticated diagnostics and remediation facilities which help pinpoint and resolve the underlying causes of performance bottlenecks and resource-contention issues that adversely affect databases' availability and impact users.

Smaller companies and organizations that do not have large IT staffs to manage large data server infrastructures have also benefited from the robust application development and administration capabilities provided by IDS and Server Studio.

"As a software developer and DBA, Server Studio is a tool that I use every day, and it is exactly what I demand from my toolsùstable, reliable, and powerful," said Sean Durity, manager of IT for CornerCap Investment Counsel. "Even the 'small' features of Server Studio are big timesavers. I can't imagine working with Informix and not using Server Studio. I won't work with anything less."

The relationship between AGS and IBM began in 2000 when IBM began distributing AGS' Server Studio as the primary database development and administration tools suite with Informix data servers. Product management, engineering, and QA teams of both companies work closely on product direction, technology development, and QA testing of Server Studio and Sentinel.

"We are proud of and greatly value our strategic partnership with IBM. Selection of AGS data servers' management solutions by IBM is a testament to our industry-leading technology," said Anatole Vishon, CEO of AGS Ltd. "We understand the vital importance of Informix, particularly in the retail, financial, telecommunications, healthcare, government, and SMB sectors. AGS is committed to supporting existing capabilities and developing new technologies for Informix data servers to add value for IBM customers."

Pricing and Availability

The Release 6.1 of Server Studio and Sentinel are available now through IBM and AGS worldwide. The Core Edition of Server Studio is provided by IBM to Informix customers at no additional cost. Its basic functionality can be extended by purchase of various premium editions available directly from AGS.

Additional information about Server Studio is available at: Server Studio, or AGS Server Studio. Additional information about Sentinel is available at: Sentinel, or AGS Sentinel. Additional information about Informix Dynamic Server is available at: Informix.