ServiceNow Redefines Observability Landscape with Cloud Application Solution

By Greg Tavarez, TMCnet Editor  |  June 01, 2023

The migration of IT operations to the cloud has given enterprises access to unparalleled scalability, flexibility and cost-efficiency. However, this transition has also brought about its own set of challenges, particularly for developer teams responsible for ensuring optimal performance and stability of digital business applications.

In response to these challenges, the industry has witnessed the emergence of a holistic, end-to-end solution designed to address the specific requirements of cloud-native environments: ServiceNow Cloud Observability.

Powered by observability leader Lightstep (which ServiceNow acquired in May 2021), Cloud Observability helps organizations manage the growing scale and complexity of cloud and cloud-native infrastructure and break down siloes for complete visibility across the entire enterprise, all within one unified solution.

By seamlessly integrating logs, metrics and traces, this solution empowers teams to enhance security measures, streamline workflows, foster collaboration, optimize customer and employee experiences and improve ROI). Leveraging the robust foundation of the Now Platform, ServiceNow (News - Alert) Cloud Observability equips organizations with the tools needed to swiftly identify issues, minimize outages, safeguard revenue and bolster customer satisfaction.

A standout feature of ServiceNow Cloud Observability is its ability to consolidate diverse telemetry data sources into a unified interface. This comprehensive approach allows organizations to gain insights into their digital operations, enabling them to make informed decisions and take proactive measures.

By bringing together critical data (such as logs, metrics and traces), ServiceNow Cloud Observability offers a complete view of digital user interactions while eliminating non-essential data. This optimization of resources and reduction of clutter saves time for DevOps teams, enabling them to focus on core tasks and deliver efficient results.

Cloud Observability also introduces two new capabilities designed to further enhance organizations' operational efficiency and effectiveness:

The first capability is Cloud-Native Logging. In a strategic move, ServiceNow acquired Era Software in 2022, enabling them to harness Era Software's advanced cloud-native logging technology. This integration allows ServiceNow to provide fully integrated and scalable log management capabilities specifically designed for cloud-native applications. This feature grants organizations unparalleled visibility into all aspects of digital user interactions, facilitating rapid issue detection and resolution.

By eliminating non-essential data, ServiceNow Cloud Observability optimizes the performance of DevOps teams, saving valuable time and resources.

The second capability is Service Graph Connector. This innovative resource allows organizations to effortlessly extract data from popular cloud frameworks such as OpenTelemetry and Kubernetes directly into ServiceNow IT Operations Management. Without the need for additional tools, this seamless integration connects cloud insights with the existing IT infrastructure, providing a comprehensive and holistic solution.

The reduction of time required to gain valuable insights into cloud application performance allows organizations to respond more swiftly to potential issues, ensuring uninterrupted service delivery while maintaining robust security measures.

"Managing cloud and cloud-native applications in enterprise environments has been complex. This has forced businesses to invest in multiple observability tools to improve application performance across estates, creating massive challenges for IT teams as they navigate siloed visibility to resolve issues," said Ben Sigelman, General Manager of Cloud Observability and co-founder of Lightstep. "With a unified, scalable cloud-native observability solution connected to the Now Platform, we are helping digital businesses seamlessly integrate observability into their most essential operations.”

ServiceNow Cloud Observability is generally available now.




Edited by Alex Passett
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