The environment for system and network administration today is composed by heterogeneous computing systems supporting multi-vendor applications upon a variety of underlying transmission facilities and switching systems. In this environment, there is great need for tools that facilitate the tasks of network administrators. While there are lots of tools freely available that can be used to perform such tasks, the specific components of each network environment concerning systems and services offered are different, making the task of integrating and deploying the tools particularly tedious. Experience has shown that the most useful tools available come in the form not of complete software systems, but on the form of libraries that their use can be tailored to a specific environment. Two relevant examples will be presented: a system for managing dial-up users and a generic reporting mechanism for monitoring the status of various systems and services. Both systems are based on various freely available tools. The expected audience should have an interest in heterogeneous network management practices.

Alexios Zavras has been using and administrating Unix systems and networks for more than fifteen years, and still remembers the time when ``network troubleshooting'' meant editing UUCP code. He is currently working in the Network Operation Center of the Athens University of Economics and Business in Greece. He has studied Computer Science in Greece and the United States, and worked for a number of private companies and academic institutions, almost exclusively on Unix machines.