OS X, Linux, Solaris Expertise

Network monitoring conventionally consists of tracking a system's bandwidth usage to help identify choke points or to analyze equipment or application issues. Nagios and MRTG are useful, Open Source monitoring tools that run with Linux and can be helpful to understand multi-platform environments where UNIX family systems and MS Windows both operate. Progent's network integration engineers can show you how to deploy each of these products to tune and troubleshoot your infrastructure.

Nagios Monitoring System
The Nagios network monitoring system is a host and service monitor that runs with Linux or a UNIX variant. The monitoring daemon runs intermittent inspections of hosts and services you specify by means of external plug-ins which bring back status information to Nagios. When issues are detected, the daemon can generate alerts to administrative personnel in a number of ways such as e-mail, instant messaging, or SMS. Current status information, archival records, and reports can be accessed using a standard web browser.

Key features of the Nagios monitor are:

• Tracking of network services such as POP3, HTTP, SSH, and PING
• Monitoring of host machines: processor load, memory/disk utilization, log files, etc.
• Capability to define network host ranking, allowing distinction between hosts that are down as opposed to ones that are not accessible
• Support personnel alerts via e-mail, beeper, or other user-specified method when service or machine problems occur or get resolved
• Option to define scripts to be run during service or host events for proactive problem remediation
• Accommodation for deploying redundant and dispersed monitoring computers
• External command interface that enables ad hoc edits to be made to the tracking and notification activity through the utilization of event scripts, the web GUI, and independent software
• Preservation of host and service state after program restarts
• Planned downtime for suppressing machine and service notifications when there are intentional outages
• Web applet for examining current network status, notification and problem archive, event logs, etc.
• Permissions protocol that enables you to restrict what users can view and do from the browser applet

MRTG
MRTG Graphical Traffic Load Monitor is a free utility to track the bandwidth utilization on your network. Running under MS Windows or Linux, MRTG reads the traffic counters of routers and creates web pages which offer a live visual representation of this traffic.

Multi Router Traffic Grapher lets you graph the bandwidth in and out of any SNMP network device. This includes servers, routers, and switches. You can use the resulting information to determine network trouble spots.

Data you are able to depict with MRTG include:

• Traffic in bits or bytes per second
• Connection rate in connections/sec
• Throughput through a particular VIP server or real server
• Number of simultaneous sessions

Ask Progent for Network Monitoring Help
Progent’s network monitoring consultants are experienced in using a variety of utilities that can help you to troubleshoot or optimize your connectivity infrastructure. To get network monitoring help, phone Progent at 800-993-9400 or send email to linux-help@progent.com.

Progent's Microsoft, Cisco, and Applications Consulting Expertise
Progent's Microsoft and Cisco authorized professionals offer clients in San Francisco, Silicon Valley, and in cities across the United States a wide range of knowledge covering the basic IT requirements common to most small and mid-size business environments. Progent's core consulting areas include system support, Microsoft Exchange consulting, network security support and HelpDesk consulting and staffing. Progent's Experts Team offers deep expertise in strategic application topics. By offering a one-stop resource for IT generalists and experts, Progent can tailor speedy, affordable and comprehensive network solutions that align with the specific needs of your business.