A widespread use of Microsoft’s enterprise server platforms in mission-critical production computer systems is on the increase globally. This situation has created both a need as well as a demand for established process guidelines in operating and managing these server platforms cost-effectively. In order to maximize the enterprise-wide operations manageability and to enable organizations in leveraging their IT Systems, Microsoft created MOF.

Choosing the IT Infrastructure Library (ITIL) body of knowledge of best practices as its foundation, the MOF model goes a step further to enhance ITIL’s collaborative industry standards with guidance in the IT products and technologies operation management domain.MOF through a collection of best practices, principles and models, provides technical guidance that enables organizations to achieve mission-critical system reliability, availability, supportability, and manageability of Microsoft products and technologies.

The MOF model also provides operational guidance in the form of white papers, operations guides, assessment tools, best practices, case studies, templates, support tools, and services. The model addresses the people, process, technology, and management issues pertaining to complex, distributed and heterogeneous IT environments.