IBM has announced that it had completed the acquisition of BigFix, Inc., a privately-held company based in Emeryville, Calif.  Financial details were not disclosed.  

The closing comes less than three weeks after IBM's July 1st announcement that it had entered into a definitive agreement to acquire BigFix to accelerate its smart data center and security initiatives.

BigFix will become part of IBM Software Group– helping organizations more intelligently secure the enterprise by managing and automating security and compliance updates on thousands of computers around the globe.  BigFix software is also critical to IBM's automation portfolio that controls the ever-expanding data center, including PCs and laptops, in addition to servers, software, storage and physical assets as diverse as cellular sites, water mains and manufacturing equipment.

"IBM is focused on delivering a simplified and automated approach to managing and securing the IT infrastructure," said Steve Robinson, general manager, IBM Security Solutions.  "With BigFix software integrated with IBM software offerings, IBM clients will be able to more easily manage and secure their PCs and laptops, a complex task as the costs and risks associated with security threats continue to grow."

Organizations today are challenged with managing thousands of computers and ensuring they are running properly and that the information on them is secure and in compliance with industry and organizational policies and mandates.  BigFix software has built-in intelligence that identifies which devices are not in compliance with policies and recommends security fixes and timely software updates to up to 500,000 machines in a matter of minutes.  

With BigFix software, IBM customers can manage the following functions from a single view:  

• Secure by Design: BigFix software contributes to IBM's security infrastructure that is secure by design – consolidating endpoint protection, systems lifecycle management, security configuration and vulnerability management.  BigFix's platform helps distribute and manage a client's anti-virus, anti-malware, firewall and network access control software.
• IT Compliance: IBM customers will have a single view of thousands of computers running in the data center, get real-time reporting of compliance status and deploy new software distributions and tools to help assure compliance. BigFix software manages these functions centrally across Windows, Mac, UNIX and Linux operating systems, helping avoid customized services and consultant solutions.
• Energy and Resource Consumption: IBM customers can also use BigFix software to manage power consumption by being able to automatically configure and shutdown desktops overnight, helping save thousands of dollars in energy use. Clients can monitor global print usage to help reduce costs and environmental harm.

IBM has aggressively pursued a strategy to grow and diversify its security portfolio.  BigFix is the 11th security-related company acquired by IBM since 2006.