Knowing the Network Monitoring
อัปเดตเมื่อ 12 ม.ค. 2564
Implementing Network Management in your organization , is one of the key successes of your IT network monitoring. It is not just only monitoring, but also can helps the IT admin to improve their day to day workload as well as predicting the network’s performance trends.
We have to admit the fact that the complicated networks infrastructure becomes one of a IT dilemma. Whenever the road is not unpaved, we have to struck in controlling and monitoring those networks in order to perform our tasks effectively as we wished. Network systems are presumably link-liked road traffics in the large cities, yet unpredictable - like a human being (if we are not sitting in his/her mind). This is a good analogy!! Network systems are also, they work in two circumstances: -
One is under the Control Plane which technically directed by the built-in network devices of the operating systems. We could find it being operated as a proprietary standard for some brands like Cisco and Juniper. In this operating, data or information are sent in line with the preset algorithm control of the operating systems built by each manufacturer. – There are also other global standards that accepted by internationally on any network equipment, such standards as OSPF, which is not affiliated with any manufacturer. Key function of Control Plane, besides its control capability, is to transmit data/information through the preset path directed by the calculated algorithm. The other internal working parts is the “User Plane” which used to convey data/information in the IP Packet forms to interface with the destinations, controlled by the control plane-like we were tamed by parents in childhood days. The Control Plane acts like a brain while the User Plane is the body parts, hands or legs, to take whole things outside into body.
According to those mentioned, we could do nothing except having the new working system-that separates Control Plane from User Plane. By this, network devices will not have Control Plane accordingly, left only User Plane, while Control Plane are now taking place in a software form of the servers, useable to centralized-control the networks, so-called the SDN ( Software Defined Network).
Meanwhile, current networks that do not have the SDN have to encountering traffic uncertainties. The only way to take is to monitor the network operating by using the Network Monitoring and Management.
Benefits and advantages of Network Monitoring
As a matter of fact, IT systems and infrastructures need the periodically look after, this is very importance. Not only to achieve highest working performance from early maintenance but also to uncovers the unpredictable system malfunctions as well. Moreover, we could pre-plan of system upgrading for higher efficiency, monitoring, diagnosing includes trouble-shooting of device malfunctions, Cyber security, etc. proactively.
Plenty of Software solutions for system monitoring are currently on market: Freeware and Shareware, many prices offered. Most importantly, it does not rely only on price but must be by applicability, could them provide us problem solving solutions and compatible with our systems. Besides, we have to clarify the usefulness of them, what the numerical figures displayed means to us? Will it warning us when thing go wrong?? It is all about “Body of Knowledge”. First of all, we have to understand what are the objectives of using the Monitor.
1. Availability
To ensuring service continuity, e.g. network’s nodes or devices monitoring, interface status; up or down. Monitoring should cover nodes or interfaces being “Restart or Reset” themselves since these occasional incidents indicate the “End of their working-life”, Just let them R.I.P. or look for the new ones to replace, timely.
2. Diagnosing of errors
System monitoring could detect network frequently malfunctions, large number of incidents and occurrences or inform us if the CRC Error is higher than 1% (Comparing overall Traffics). The monitoring is prompted to indicate and detect networks garbage, network latency, mistakes in files sending, network disconnect.
3. Performance of the network and related equipment
Accessing and realizing the efficiency of the network, it allows network system administrators or network service provider realize the capabilities of their system that it is in accordance with the SLA agreement or contract that has been committed to the user. It also allows planning of capacity improvement of the system (Capacity Planning) as well.
4. Monitoring the traffic of network resources
Resources here refer to the internal components of the network equipment, including the network’s bandwidth, how much has been consumed. Some parameters must be set or controlled in the event of the data traffic being exceeded, which could lead to network malfunctions or the network’s performance declined.
5. Monitoring of potential threats impact to the network system
Monitoring system allows to detect some traffic flows that suspect it could be a security threat of network systems and organizations, by showing the unusual traffic and be able to prepare to cope those treats, early.
These factors are the critical issue in network administration, which to focus on quality, safety and reliability. Using the network monitoring tool will help organizations avoid losses, due to the interruption from threats or problems of the network be down. The tool also helps to plan, manage and deal with various problems efficiently.
Dr.Virintr Mekpraditsin