1. A method executed by a computer of graphically arranging components of an IT network into a layered representation for visualization purposes, the IT network comprising network components of different types, and links connecting network components, the method comprising: regarding at least one network component as a source component and assigning a corresponding hierarchy level to it; assigning hierarchy levels to the other network components, based on a distance measure that represents the number of links, or the sum of weights of links, which have to be traversed to get from the network component considered to a source component, and displaying the network components in a layered representation according to the hierarchy level assigned to each component.