Overview A local government authority in Wales, manages a network infrastructure that is crucial to its operations. The network supports over a 1,000 devices, including Cisco Catalyst switches, routers, servers, door access controllers, and Building Management Systems (BMS). As the ICT Infrastructure Officer responsible for this network, ensuring reliability, security, and efficiency is paramount.

However, our previous network management tool, SNMPc, was no longer meeting our needs. Faced with limited automation, insufficient oversight, and unreliable backups, we needed a new solution that could address these challenges.

The Search for a Solution We began our search for a new network management solution by exploring various options online. After considering several tools, including a well-known IT management platform, we discovered LogicVein’s ThirdEye. The solution immediately caught our attention due to its robust feature set and positive industry reviews.

We downloaded a trial version of ThirdEye to conduct a thorough internal evaluation. Our primary focus was on ease of deployment, cost-effectiveness, and the quality of customer support. LogicVein’s ThirdEye excelled in all three areas, making it the clear choice for us. Additionally, we found the competing solution we evaluated to be 'not intuitive,' further strengthening our decision to go with LogicVein.

Key Benefits of LogicVein’s ThirdEye

1. Ease of Deployment: The setup process was seamless, with no significant challenges. This was a welcome change compared to other solutions, which often required extensive time and resources to implement.
2. Cost-Effectiveness: Budget constraints are a reality for any local government authority. LogicVein’s ThirdEye offered significant savings in licensing, deployment, and ongoing support, making it an ideal choice for our needs.
3. Responsive Support: One of the biggest frustrations with our previous tool was the lack of timely support. LogicVein’s support team, however, was incredibly responsive, quickly resolving any issues we encountered during our trial.

The Impact of ThirdEye on Our Operations Since deploying ThirdEye in June 2024, we’ve seen immediate and significant improvements in our network management capabilities:

• Automated Network Management: The ability to automate tasks, such as pushing configurations to all switches simultaneously, has greatly improved our operational efficiency. This was a task that used to consume a lot of our time and resources.
• Enhanced Remote Manageability: We can now manage devices remotely with ease, including executing IOS XE pushes via compliance policies. This capability has been crucial in maintaining network integrity and performance across our infrastructure.
• Reliable Backup Tools: The lightweight yet powerful backup tools provided by ThirdEye have given us peace of mind. We can now ensure that our data is securely backed up and easily recoverable in the event of an issue.

Unexpected Advantages We also discovered some unexpected benefits after deploying ThirdEye:

• Security Integration: The solution’s ability to tie in with our InfoSec efforts has been invaluable. We can now use inventory reporting and side-by-side configuration comparisons to enhance our security posture and ensure compliance with all regulations.
• Feature Highlights: Several features have stood out to us, including the compliance policy setup that ensures uniform settings across all devices, smart automation for managing new devices, and task management through the incidents feature. These capabilities have streamlined our operations and improved overall efficiency.

Looking Ahead While we’re extremely satisfied with ThirdEye, we’re always looking for ways to further improve our network management. We’re particularly interested in more customizable MIB outputs, which would help our junior staff better understand network data. Additionally, we see potential for other teams within our council to leverage features like automated job scheduling and device discovery.

Choosing LogicVein’s ThirdEye has been one of the best decisions we’ve made for our network management. It’s a cost-effective, easy-to-deploy solution backed by outstanding customer support. The improvements we’ve seen in automation, remote management, and security integration have been game-changing for our operations.

If you’re facing similar challenges with your network management tools, I highly recommend giving LogicVein’s ThirdEye a try. Our experience has been overwhelmingly positive, and I’m confident it can deliver the same results for your organization.