Modern distributed computing systems are expected to be able to span a large number of heterogeneous interconnected devices while providing numerous and increasingly complex services to audiences on a global scale. Such systems are increasingly complex to deploy and operate and are stretching management techniques to a breaking point. Autonomic computing is emerging as an architectural philosophy and design approach that promises to cope with complexity and scale up to the needs of today's distributed systems. Its fundamental tenet is to increase the intelligence of individual components so that they become "self-managing," i.e., actively monitoring their state and taking corrective actions in accordance with overall system-management objectives.

In this paper we describe the standards for autonomic computing necessary for implementing an autonomic computing vision in a heterogeneous world where components and platforms are supplied by different vendors. After providing an overview of existing and emerging standards, we focus on Web-services-based standards for interoperability among autonomic managers and components of distributed systems. We cover specifically the scope and motivation for WS-Management, Web Services Distributed Management (WSDM) and the ongoing effort to converge the two into a common industry standard that will create a strong foundation for autonomic systems and automated management in general.