NetDirector is a client-server application that allows you to simultaneously manage a large number of servers from a single web browser running on any platform. The NetDirector Server Manager web user Interface uses  AJAX (asynchronous javascript and XML) to give the same rich client experience of a desktop application but with the flexibility to use the server manager from any desktop browser.

  Conceptual View - Colors Represent Distinct Roles

NetDirector Server Manager

NetDirector Server Manager runs Java servelets on the Tomcat java application server. Data can then be stored in either a MySQL or PostgresSQL database. The NetDirector Server Manager has two types of logins, admin and user logins. Logging in as an admin user lets you define who has access to manage individual servers and services on those machines. When you set these policies you are defining roles. When you login as a user you see only the servers available to your role.

NetDirector Agents

The NetDirector agents are written in Python so that it's relatively easy to port them from platform to platform. When you install the agents they create a certificate and connect over SSL to the NetDirectror server. All traffic is encrypted over SSL so security between servers and server mangement is always secure. The agent can be used to execute commands on the server so configuration files can be copied to the server manager, rewritten, and replaced. The NetDirector agent can also be used to perform other tasks on the managed hosts such as stop and restart services. You could develop your own modules as well to perform adminstrative tasks like run shell scripts or perform backups.

NetDirector Installation

Server Manager is available as a deb package for easy installation on Debian or Ubuntu.  It's possible to install Server Manager manually on other OSes.

Once the server manager is installed you must then install the NetDirector agent on all the servers you would like to manage. You could then lock down the servers so that configuration changes only happen through the central NetDirector interface and no unauthorized changes could be introduced onto the server.