Network Management Fundamentals A guide to understanding how network management technology really works Alexander Clemm, Ph.D. Network management is an essential factor in successfully operating a network. As a company becomes increasingly dependent on networking services, keeping those services running is synonymous with keeping the business running. Network Management Fundamentals provides you with an accessible overview of network management covering management not just of networks themselves but also of services running over those networks. Network Management Fundamentals explains the different technologies that are used in network management and how they relate to each other. The book focuses on fundamental concepts and principles. It provides a solid technical foundation for the practitioner to successfully navigate network management topics and apply those concepts to particular situations. The book is divided into four parts: Part I provides an overview of what network management is about and why it is relevant. It also conveys an informal understanding of the functions, tools, and activities that are associated with it. Part II examines network management from several different angles, culminating in a discussion of how these aspects are combined into management reference models. Part III provides more detail into different building blocks of network management introduced in Part II, such as management protocols, management organization, and management communication patterns. Part IV rounds out the book with a number of management topics of general interest, including management integration and service-level management. Dr. Alexander Clemm is a senior architect with Cisco®. He has been involved with integrated management of networked systems and services since 1990. He has provided technical leadership for many leading-edge network management development, architecture, and engineering efforts from original conception to delivery to the customer, and he has also served as technical program co-chair of the 2005 IFIP/IEEE International Symposium on Integrated Network Management. Grasp the business implications of network management Examine different management reference models, such as Fault, Configuration, Accounting, Performance, and Security (FCAPS) Understand the building blocks of network management and their purposes Assess the implications and impact of management technologies and put them in perspective Prepare for decisions about network management that require an understanding of the “big picture” This book is part of the Cisco Press® Fundamentals Series. Books in this series introduce networking professionals to new networking technologies, covering network topologies, example deployment concepts, protocols, and management techniques. Category: Networking Covers: Network Management

Table of Contents:
Introduction Part I Network Management: An Overview Chapter 1 Setting the Stage Defining Network Management Analogy 1: Health Care—the Network, Your Number One Patient Analogy 2: Throwing a Party A More Formal Definition The Importance of Network Management: Many Reasons to Care Cost Quality Revenue The Players: Different Parties with an Interest in Network Management Network Management Users Network Management Providers Network Management Complexities: From Afterthought to Key Topic Technical Challenges Organization and Operations Challenges Business Challenges Chapter Summary Chapter Review Chapter 2 On the Job with a Network Manager A Day in the Life of a Network Manager Pat: A Network Operator for a Global Service Provider Chris: Network Administrator for a Medium-Size Business Sandy: Administrator and Planner in an Internet Data Center Observations The Network Operator’s Arsenal: Management Tools Device Managers and Craft Terminals Network Analyzers Element Managers Management Platforms Collectors and Probes Intrusion Detection Systems Performance Analysis Systems Alarm Management Systems Trouble Ticket Systems Work Order Systems Workflow Management Systems and Workflow Engines Inventory Systems Service Provisioning Systems Service Order–Management Systems Billing Systems Chapter Summary Chapter Review Chapter 3 The Basic Ingredients of Network Management The Network Device Management Agent Management Information, MOs, MIBs, and Real Resources Basic Management Ingredients—Revisited The Management System Management System and Manager Role A Management System’s Reason for Being The Management Network Networking for Management The Pros and Cons of a Dedicated Management Network The Management Support Organization: NOC, NOC, Who’s There? Managing the Management Inside the Network Operations Center Chapter Summary Chapter Review Part II Management Perspectives Chapter 4 The Dimensions of Management Lost in (Management) Space: Charting Your Course Along Network Management Dimensions Management Interoperability: “Roger That” Communication Viewpoint: Can You Hear Me Now? Function Viewpoint: What Can I Do for You Today? Information Viewpoint: What Are You Talking About? The Role of Standards Management Subject: What We’re Managing Management Life Cycle: Managing Networks from Cradle to Grave Planning Deployment Operations Decommissioning Management Layer: It’s a Device... No, It’s a Service... No, It’s a Business Element Managment Network Management Service Management Business Management Network Element Additional Considerations Management Function: What’s in Your Toolbox Management Process and Organization: Of Help Desks and Cookie Cutters Chapter Summary Chapter Review Chapter 5 Management Functions and Reference Models: Getting Organized Of Pyramids and Layered Cakes FCAPS: The ABCs of Management F Is for Fault C Is for Configuration A Is for Accounting P Is for Performance S Is for Security Limitations of the FCAPS Categorization OAM&P: The Other FCAPS FAB and eTOM: Oh, Wait, There’s More How It All Relates and What It Means to You: Using Your Network Management ABCs Chapter Summary Chapter Review Part III Management Building Blocks Chapter 6 Management Information: What Management Conversations Are All About Establishing a Common Terminology Between Manager and Agent MIBs The Managed Device as a Conceptual Data Store Categories of Management Information The Difference Between a MIB and a Database The Relationship Between MIBs and Management Protocols MIB Definitions Of Schema and Metaschema The Impact of the Metaschema on the Schema A Simple Modeling Example Encoding Management Information Anatomy of a MIB Structure of Management Information—Overview An Example: MIB-2 Instantiation in an Actual MIB Special MIB Considerations to Address SNMP Protocol Deficits Modeling Management Information Chapter Summary Chapter Review Chapter 7 Management Communication Patterns: Rules of Conversation Layers of Management Interactions Transport Remote Operations Management Operations Management Services Manager-Initiated Interactions—Request and Response Information Retrieval—Polling and Polling-Based Management Configuration Operations Actions Management Transactions Agent-Initiated Interactions: Events and Event-Based Management Event Taxonomy The Case for Event-Based Management Reliable Events On the Difference Between “Management” and “Control” Chapter Summary Chapter Review Chapter 8 Common Management Protocols: Languages of Management SNMP: Classic and Perennial Favorite SNMP “Classic,” a.k.a. SNMPv1 SNMPv2/ SNMPv2c SNMPv3 CLI: Management Protocol of Broken Dreams CLI Overview Use of CLI as a Management Protocol syslog: The CLI Notification Sidekick syslog Overview syslog Protocol syslog Deployment Netconf: A Management Protocol for a New Generation Netconf Datastores Netconf and XML Netconf Architecture Netconf Operations Netflow and IPFIX: “Check, Please,” or, All the Data, All the Time IP Flows Netflow Protocol Chapter Summary Chapter Review Chapter 9 Management Organization: Dividing the Labor Scaling Network Management Management Complexity Management Hierarchies Management Styles Management Mediation Mediation Between Management Transports Mediation Between Management Protocols Mediation of Management Information at the Syntactic Level Mediation of Management Information at the Semantic Level Stateful Mediation Chapter Summary Chapter Review Part IV Applied Network Management Chapter 10 Management Integration: Putting the Pieces Together The Need for Management Integration Benefits of Integrated Management Nontechnical Considerations for Management Integration Different Perspectives on Management Integration Needs The Equipment Vendor Perspective Integration Scope and Complexity Management Integration Challenges Managed Domain Software Architecture Quantifying Management Integration Complexity Approaches to Management Integration Adapting Integration Approach and Network Provider Organization Platform Approach Custom Integration Approach Containing Complexity of the Managed Domain Chapter Summary Chapter Review Chapter 11 Service Level Management: Knowing What You Pay For The Motivation for Service Level Agreements Identification of Service Level Parameters Significance Relevance Measurability Defining a Service Level Agreement Definition of Service Level Objectives Tracking Service Level Objectives Dealing with Service Level Violations Managing for a Service Level Decomposing Service Level Parameters Planning Networks for a Given Service Level Service Level Monitoring—Setting Up Early Warning Systems Service Level Statistics—It’s Fingerpointin’ Good Chapter Summary Chapter Review Chapter 12 Management Metrics: Assessing Management Impact and Effectiveness Network Management Business Impact Cost of Ownership Enabling of Revenues Network Availability Trading Off the Benefits and Costs of Network Management Investments Factors that Determine Management Effectiveness Managed Technology—Manageability Management Systems and Operations Support Infrastructure Management Organization Assessing Network Management Effectiveness Management Metrics to Track Business Impact Management Metrics to Track Contribution to Management Effectiveness Developing Your Own Management Benchmark Assessing and Tracking the State of Management Using Metrics to Direct Management Investment Chapter Summary Chapter Review Part V Appendixes Appendix A Answers to Chapter Reviews Appendix B Further Reading Glossary 1587201372 TOC 11/3/2006