Network management tools are precisely what they sound like. They are tools that monitor and maintain the network. One use you might find for them is if someone starts torrenting on your network, which is to say they are downloading a huge file, and suddenly no one can access the internet. If you are running a business this can be a huge problem. If you don’t want to go around to every single computer and restart the Spanish inquisition, then it would help to have some network management software installed. Using this software you will be able to tell where the packets are going, and if your software is very good you will be able to see what computer the program is running on.

In order to figure out what sort of network management tools you need, you’ll have to evaluate a few things. One would be the size of your network. If you only have a few users then it’s a given that your package wouldn’t have to be very robust. You can actually go online and find websites that offer network management tools, and they have packages for all different sizes.

The next thing you’ll need to determine is what you use your network for. If it is a school network per say, you will want to be able to monitor each and every computer to see what the students are doing. The same is true for some work environments where the use of the network is restricted to only work related tasks.

Finding your network management software should be relatively easy, it all depends on what you need it for and the size of your budget. That being said, network management software is not cheap. You will find that some packages run up to a thousand dollars easily so make sure that you spend wisely.

Other than that, you should have no problem finding what you need!Finding Your Network Management Tools

Just about anyone can set up a network, in fact a good technician can probably set one up blindfolded. But that same technician will soon find out that there is more to running a network than just setting it up. Sure, it may be solid but there is a factor that you need to consider: users. Every network is going to have its users unless you have set up a ten network computers to play DOOM with yourself. If you have done this then I’m really not ragging on you; I did the same thing when I was in high school. If you have set up a network for several users however you are going to require some sort of network management tools.

Network management tools are precisely what they sound like. They are tools that monitor and maintain the network. One use you might find for them is if someone starts torrenting on your network, which is to say they are downloading a huge file, and suddenly no one can access the internet. If you are running a business this can be a huge problem. If you don’t want to go around to every single computer and restart the Spanish inquisition, then it would help to have some network management software installed. Using this software you will be able to tell where the packets are going, and if your software is very good you will be able to see what computer the program is running on.

In order to figure out what sort of network management tools you need, you’ll have to evaluate a few things. One would be the size of your network. If you only have a few users then it’s a given that your package wouldn’t have to be very robust. You can actually go online and find websites that offer network management tools, and they have packages for all different sizes.

The next thing you’ll need to determine is what you use your network for. If it is a school network per say, you will want to be able to monitor each and every computer to see what the students are doing. The same is true for some work environments where the use of the network is restricted to only work related tasks.

Finding your network management software should be relatively easy, it all depends on what you need it for and the size of your budget. That being said, network management software is not cheap. You will find that some packages run up to a thousand dollars easily so make sure that you spend wisely.

Other than that, you should have no problem finding what you need!

In general terms, a network management system is a convenient interface between human operators and complex networks. An NMS collects and collates information from networked nodes, possibly spread over large areas, and makes that information available in one central location. This is done through a variety of methods and protocols, the Simple Network Management Protocol (SNMP) being the most common.

Networks are more than a group of scattered, connected points. Each node on the network is in essence comprised of an even smaller network composed of the device’s peripherals and internal hardware. A workstation, for instance, might be thought of as a self-contained network of internal components–CPU, video card, network interface, etc. While not directly responsible for all of these, an NMS’ key feature is the ability to gather status and receive critical alerts concerning major hardware failures. An NMS, for instance, can instantly alert an operator to an overheating CPU on a distant node or, in some instances, may be able to take preemptive action to mitigate the issue.

NMSs also allow a high degree of control over various device properties. SNMP defines a Management Information Base (MIB), a dictionary of sorts that links a set of fixed numeric values to device properties. With this level of freedom, skilled network administrators can respond to problems more quickly and precisely than would otherwise be possible if physical access was required for each fix.

Network management systems also have a holistic view of the network. This top-down perspective allows an NMS to quickly produce reports on any number of network metrics instantly and more accurately than would otherwise be possible with non-centralized reports scattered across separate network hubs.

Some network problems exist not within a single node, but in how they interact. Routing issues, for instance, may not spring from a single node but rather from misconfigurations in several. A top-down view of the network as a whole might spot the problem, but may not be capable of zeroing in on the cause. A bottom-up view may in time spot the configuration discrepancy while missing major clues to the problem. Due to the multiple perspectives of a network management system, it can not only spot the issue immediately but also identify the nodes at fault and, quite possibly, reconfigure them in real-time to eliminate the problem, all coordinated from a central location.

As networks grow in complexity, so must the tools and perspectives with which we manipulate and view them. Network management systems allow for an unprecedented level of control and adaptability that is both essential for present issues and compatible with future expansion.

SNMP’s primary goal is to provide centralized management of networks. It does this via the Manager/Agent model in which the Manager, the central server from which all network operations are coordinated, exchanges UDP packets with monitored agents. Acting as an interface between the network and one or more human operators, the manager maintains logs, dispatches alerts, and creates a variety of reports about network topology and usage. While UDP itself is not a reliable protocol in the same sense that TCP is, UDP is lighter on network resources. Also, since SNMP traffic consists of a large number of events, it is thought that missing a single packet is not as critical, as further requests can be sent to compensate for losses, or that subsequent related events will trigger whatever behavior was desired as a result of the dropped packet.

Any resource which is to be monitored or controlled in an SNMP setup is referred to as an agent. Such resources might include firewalls, switches, wireless access points, and workstations. Each runs an SNMP client that communicates with the central manager.

This communication happens via five SNMP primitives. A manager retrieves information from an agent by either “get” or “get-next,” the difference being that the latter is used in scenarios where multiple values are expected. Managers can also use “set” to, as its name implies, set a value, or behavior on the agent.

Agents respond with only two primitives. “get-response” is used to return some value in response to a manager’s “get” or “get-next.” “trap” immediately grabs the manager’s attention about an alert condition. In this manner, agents can pro-actively alert managers about problems without requiring that the manager take notice first.

These five primitives are the ways in which the manager and agents exchange data. The content of that data is defined in something called the Management Information Base (MIB). Residing on the agent, the content of this database is defined as an internet standard and contains over a thousand distinct objects. The MIB, as such, acts as a dictionary that maps information bundled in the various calls to characteristics of the agent’s hardware.

The MIB is structured as a tree, with its leaves referred to via numeric tags. Structured as long strings of numbers delimited by decimals, these tags are mapped to readable labels in the MIB, and are displayed accordingly in whatever interface is provided by the manager.

Designed in 1988, SNMP inherits a number of weaknesses inherent to most protocols defined at that time. As a result, further versions built upon this basic functionality to provide more secure, robust communication. Introduced in 1994, SNMPv2 added a sixth primitive, “get-bulk,” for retrieving multiple packets without the need for a new command for each. SNMPv3, released in 2004, adds additional functionality to support packet encryption and integrity checks, as well as various enhancements related to remote configuration.

Numerous network management applications are available to control SNMP networks. There are likewise many devices and clients that support the protocol. As such, SNMP represents a simple yet powerful addition to any IT toolkit.