I'm a fan of nagios and cacti myself.

And for other monitoring, I am starting to really like munin.

H

Thomas, OpsWare is appropriate... if you're working for a major corporation. It automates things and does the job. However, it sounds like your company isn't so big that it needs all that OpsWare has to offer. The decision you have to make is to decide how much of the job you want to do for yourself. The stuff you've mentioned already, Nagios and Cacti, should be enough, but that, too, is relative if you need more information to present to your boss. Software is supposed to make life easier by working hard, not making you work harder. OpsWare, in the right environment can do the job of five good administrators, allowing one person to do it all. But, if you're already doing the job yourself you may find OpsWare becoming a full-time occupation.

I wish I had an answer for you, but I'm just a beginner with more opinion than experience. If I find out more I'll be sure to pass it along.

Love and light, dear ones.
Rev