148 Intel NetStructure Cache Appliance Administrator’s Guide
Centralized administration
The Intel NetStructure Cache Appliance incorporates many native command and
control features for carrier-class system management and administration. The
following list provides an overview of these features:
Single system image
The appliance maintains a single system image for every node configured
into the appliance cluster.
Multicast management protocol
The appliance uses a multicast management protocol to manage the cluster’s
single system image. Information about cluster membership, configuration,
and exceptions is shared across all managers in the cluster, and the appliance
automatically propagates configuration changes to all nodes in the cluster.
Node discovery
The appliance automatically detects new appliance nodes on your network
and adds them to the cluster, propagating the latest configuration information
to the newcomer. This feature provides a convenient way to bootstrap new
machines.
Browser-based management interface
The Manager UI is a Web-based interface that you can access through a
browser. You can configure management access to the Manager UI through
password authentication. See Chapter 4‚ Configuring the Appliance for
information about using the Manager UI.
Command-line interface
In addition to the Manager UI, the appliance supports a command-line
interface (CLI). The CLI provides a text-based interface that lets you
configure the system’s network addresses and control, configure, and monitor
the appliance. See Chapter 1‚ Using the Command-Line Interface for more
information.
SNMP
The appliance supports SNMP access for reading statistics and sending traps
(SNMP alarms). The appliance integrates into existing SNMP-managed
networks, appearing as additional managed device.
SNMP is a standard way of managing everything that is a part of your
network environment. SNMP-compliant devices or agents store data about
themselves in Management Information Bases (MIBs) and return this data to
the SNMP managers. SNMP managers probe devices for status and SNMP
agents report whether a device is functioning properly.
Note The Intel NetStructure Cache Appliance supports two MIBs: MIB-2 (a
standard MIB) and the Intel NetStructure Cache Appliance MIB. You can