Small Business

Manage Your Network with Spiceworks 3.0

By Rick Broida

Updated on: June 23, 2008 / 12:01 PM EDT / MoneyWatch

Remember Spiceworks, the amazingly powerful free network-management tool? Version 3.0 of this SMB gem just dropped, bringing with it a host of new and improved features. Highlights include:

Faster performance and network scanning.
Improved device detection (so you get fewer "unknowns").
Exchange server monitoring.
Automatic backup scheduling.

Designed for small- and medium-size businesses, Spiceworks offers network inventory, monitoring, reporting, and troubleshooting, along with a complete IT help desk. Similar commercial packages cost hundreds, if not thousands, of dollars. This one's still free; it's compatible with Windows 2000 and later. [via Confessions of a Freeware Junkie]