Open Source Network Management Tools

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Open Source Network Management Tools

• Bruce Zamaere
• bsiza_at_kth.se

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Overview

• Introduction
• NOC Philosophy
• Available Tools

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introduction

• wikipedia A network operations center (or NOC,
  pronounced nock) is one or more locations from
  which control is exercised over a computer,
  television broadcast, or telecommunications
  network.

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Functions of a NOC

• Responsible for monitoring the network for alarms
  or adverse conditions (e.g. power failures, link
  failure)
• NOC staff analyze problems, troubleshooting,
  collaborate with other technicians on site.
• NOC tracks issues/problems until they are
  resolved.
• Problems not solved within a specified time frame
  can be escalated to the appropriate personnel.
• Standard Operating Procedures exists that detail
  how to remedy issues/problems.

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NOC Philosophy

• (Adapted from RedHat documentation)
• Automate everything
• Document everything
• Communicate as much as possible
• Know your resources
• Know your users
• Know your business
• Security cannot be an afterthought
• Plan ahead

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Purpose

• NOCs are dedicated to monitoring and coordinating
  network operations.
• This requires that the following functional areas
  are addressed

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MRTG

• Multi Router Traffic Grapher
• http//oss.oetiker.ch/mrtg/
• Based on SNMP
• Used to monitor traffic load on network links.
• Many hacks exist to allow you to monitor other
  things (e.g. incoming / outgoing emails, cache
  hits and misses)

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Weathermap 4RRD

• Generates network weather maps.
• Shows the network link utilization on the network
  map by color scheme
• Data used to create graph are acquired from
  RRDTool databases or MRTG HTML files

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Nagios

• http//www.nagios.org/
• an enterprise-class network and server monitoring
  system.
• Useful for
• Monitoring of network services.
• Monitoring of host resources (processor load,
  disk usage, system logs)
• Contact notifications when service or host
  problems occur and get resolved (via e-mail,
  SMS).
• You can define event handlers that execute when
  triggered by certain events. (Proactive problem
  resolution)

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OpenNMS

• http//www.opennms.org
• Functionalities
• High performance
• A single instance of OpenNMS supports monitoring
  of a large number of nodes.
• Automation
• OpenNMS minimizes the amount of manual
  configuration.
• Rule-based configuration
• Flexible rules can be used to specify what
  services are polled on what devices.

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ZABBIX

• http//www.zabbix.com
• Functionalities
• Performance monitoring
• User alerts
• Monitoring of log files
• Logging services
• Capacity planning
• Assuring and monitoring of SLA
• High level view of IT resources and services
• Graphical representation of collected information
• Network maps

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Cacti

• http//www.cacti.net
• Similar to MRTG.
• Based on RRDtool.
• Offers excellent graphing capabilities.
• Has extensive templates.

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NTop

• http//ntop.org
• Network probe that shows network activity just
  like top.

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Request Tracker

• http//bestpractical.com/rt/
• Tracks data/conversations/requests.
• Convenient for end users.
• Highly customizable.
• Easy to install (hmm)

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Security Tools

• Some security tools to consider
• NetFilter IP Tables Firewall
• WireShark Protocol analyzer
• Snort Intrusion detection
• Netcat Feature rich tool. Great for debugging.
• Nessus Vulnerability scanner
• Many many more

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Recommended Reading

• Practice of System and Network administration by
  Thomas A. Limoncelli
• How to accelerate your Internet E-book
  http//bwmo.net/
• Red Hat Linux Network Management Tools (CD-ROM
  included) (Paperback) By Steven Maxwell.