Excellent. I’ve been waiting for something like Landscape for quite a while, thinking about building something basic myself. Web-based centralised management portal for pushing updates and installing packages is the best way to do this.
Canonical Launches Web-Based Systems Management Tool For Ubuntu Deployments.
About Landscape
With Landscape, users can manage, monitor and maintain all their Ubuntu machines simply by registering them with the service. Focused on being easy to deploy, Landscape is immediately available with an easy to use Web interface to common administration tasks.
Security and stability are enhanced with visibility of new security fixes and updates as soon as they’re available for Ubuntu. Individual systems, or groups can be updated making it simple and quick to keep them secure. With package management across a range of systems the total cost of managing an Ubuntu deployment of desktops, laptops and servers is reduced.
Key features of Landscape include:
Package management: All the package management features for remotely managing a system. Quickly find installed packages, view information about them and add or remove them.
System updates: Secure Ubuntu systems quickly and easily. Instantly view packages that need updating across all systems that Landscape knows about. Install security and feature updates as they become available.
Manage groups of machines: With Landscape you can manage multiple machines within a group, either acting on them all or just one machine within the group. Groups are flexible and fast to set up, whether you want to manage machines by location or function.
Semi-connected management: Safely and securely manage systems that are infrequently connected to the Internet. Landscape queues tasks for disconnected and distributed desktops, laptops, or servers. When they come on-line it carries out the queued instructions.
System inventory: Reduce the speed and cost of supporting users with the detailed information needed to resolve problems. Landscape reports on individual system hardware giving a view of all the system’s components. In addition, it reports how Ubuntu sees the system, including elements like the running kernel.
Performance reporting: An organization can compare the performance of multiple systems, viewing key measurements such as system load and disk usage, enabling workloads to be managed effectively.
System history: Administrators can audit the actions on their systems improving security. Landscape provides information on the tasks it will perform in the future. The historical view shows actions shows actions it performed and those done locally on the machine.
From osnews.