Integrating Change and Configuration Management (CCM)

Closed loop integration with BMC BladeLogic Client Automation is the mechanism for the accelerated execution of a change request. It also provides verification that the change was successfully performed, based on requirements specified in the change request.When you perform a change to the configuration of IT managed resources, you must maintain consistency and control through the entire process. A "closed loop" approach makes sure that the change is properly documented, assessed, tracked, implemented, and verified. A closed loop Change and Configuration Management (CCM) solution from beginning to end makes sure that the change requested was completed. all these stages are provided in the CCM suite of products. This section provides an overview of the integration points between the components in the solution.

BMC CCM solution overview

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The BMC CCM solution addresses three types of change essential to an IT organization:

• Software packaging
• Patch deployment
• Software license management

Among the numerous advantages in using the BMC CCM solution are these:

• Consistent identification of Configuration Items (CI) and Storage locations throughout the change process, which improves communication between members of the support staff
• Reduction of cost and overhead using an integrated out of the box solution that preserves flexibility
• Automatic transfer of critical information between steps to maintain the integrity of the change
• Closed loop verification of software-related tasks to make sure that the change was successful and to provide an audit trail

At the heart of the CCM solution is the Remedy Administrator. The Remedy Administrator, in the context of ITIL, supports the following primary functions:

• Accounts for all IT assets
• Provides accurate information to support other Service Management processes
• Provides a sound basis for Incident, Problem, Change, Asset, and Release Management
• Enables the verification (and correction) of records against the infrastructure
• Provides access to federated data stored outside the Remedy Administrator, but linked to CIs, extending the Remedy Administrator functionality to a vast data store of related information and detailed attributes:
  • Related information, such as detailed Incident or Discovery data, does not qualify as a CI, but its data relationships with CIs enable you to view it through the Remedy Administrator.
  • Detailed attributes, such as machine details or problem records, are CI attributes you do not track at the Remedy Administrator level.