Explain IBM Rational Automation Framework?

What is Rational Automation Framework?

- Rational automation frame work is a tool developed by IBM using which control can be gained over the middle-ware environments.
- It is also used for the automation of the deployment tasks and complex administration.
- This automation frame work is highly customizable.
- Using it, one can obtain automated build – outs.
- Using it, one can even deploy a number of applications and manage the configuration of the application.
- It has been recorded that with the use of rational automation frame work, you can cut down the operational costs by huge margins and production can be improved.
- This automation frame work can be extended.
- The rational automation frame work provides a rich automation support for the following:
1. Web sphere middleware
2. JBoss application server
3. Web logic application server

Features of Rational Automation Framework

The following are features of the rational automation frame work:
1. Increases the productivity while reducing the staffing needs of the routine tasks. The routine tasks included are:
a) Automation of the manual operations
b) Error prone tasks
c) Freeing up the admin resources which are scarce.
All these tasks help in focusing up on strategic projects.

2. It helps in the improvement of application’s quality, consistency and speed. All these three factors are used to deliver applications that are business critical with the help of process which possesses the following three qualities namely accuracy, consistency and repetition.

3. It helps in the reduction of the cost of compliance, IT governance and disaster recovery. It improves the following 3 things without causing any overheads:
a) Governance
b) Disaster recovery planning and
c) Automated documentation for compliance

4. It automates the below mentioned things:
a) Environment build – outs
b) Configuration management
c) Application deployment tasks
For the following portfolio:
a) Web sphere foundation
b) Web sphere BPM suite
c) Web sphere portal

5. It is a great means for extending the automation benefits as well as qualities of services to the following:
a) Web sphere connectivity (web sphere message broker and MQ)
b) Red hat JBoss application server
c) Oracle web logic application server
This it does via the MidVision extensions to IBM RAF.

6. Helps in facilitating team – based administration with the help of a robust automation engine with improved reliability and performance.

7. Makes sure that the virtual patterns are efficiently managed with rapid provisioning with web sphere cloud burst appliance.

8. Enhances the control and workflow management in data center environments by integrating it with LDAP directories, source control tools, and rational asset manager.

This product comes with extensions that assist in the management of the additional middle-ware environments such as WMB, MQ, Jboss and web logic etc. These environments are managed with the same QoS and automation platform. The web sphere cloud burst appliance of the rational application developer helps in speeding up the virtualization environments with hyper-visor images.

We shall now state some of the features and their benefits:
1. It is a data driven and centralized automation frame work: it helps in ensuring that the appropriate data is being associated with the appropriate application and in the right environment every time.
2. It has got a rich user interface. The middle-ware configuration data can be designed, edited and managed using this frame work. New configurations can be added to a cell.
3. It is also an environment generation wizard that can also be used for specifying the criteria for a particular environment.
4. This product comes with self – documentation feature which ensures that the appropriate deployment information is captured and artifacts are properly managed.
5. Agent less technology
6. Customizable
7. Deployment artifacts are separated from the deployment process.