Systems and methods for displaying and editing hierarchical data

A method comprising:

• processing hierarchical data which describes a distributed computing environment, wherein:
• the hierarchical data includes a plurality of levels;
• at least one said level includes a plurality of containers;
• each said container includes one or more items;
• and
• each said item is disposed in another said level that is a child of the at least one said level;
• and
• outputting the processed hierarchical data for display in a single window on a display device, wherein the processed hierarchical data, when displayed:
• indicates a relationship between each said item and a respective said container;
• and
• is configured such that each said item may be edited without interacting with another window.

One or more computer-readable media comprising computer executable instructions that, when executed, configure a computer to process hierarchical data describing a distributed computing environment for display, wherein:

• the hierarchical data has a plurality of levels, at least one said level includes a plurality of containers, each said container includes one or more items, and each said item is disposed in another said level that is a child of the at least one said level;
• and
• the processed hierarchical data, when displayed concurrently in a single window:
• indicates a relationship between each said item and at least one other said item;
• indicates a relationship between the at least one level and the other said level;
• and
• is configured such that each said item may be edited without navigating through another window.