Juniper Networks J-Series manual Configuring Snmp for Network Management, Snmp Architecture

Chapter 3

Configuring SNMP for Network Management

The Simple Network Management Protocol (SNMP) enables the monitoring of network devices from a central location.

You can use either J-Web Quick Configuration or a configuration editor to configure SNMP.

NOTE: SNMP is not supported on Gigabit Ethernet interfaces on J-series Services

Routers.

This chapter contains the following topics. For more information about SNMP, see the JUNOS Network Management Configuration Guide.

■SNMP Architecture on page 47

■Before You Begin on page 50

■Configuring SNMP with Quick Configuration on page 50

■Configuring SNMP with a Configuration Editor on page 54

■Verifying the SNMP Configuration on page 58

SNMP Architecture

Use SNMP to determine where and when a network failure is occurring, and to gather statistics about network performance in order to evaluate the overall health of the network and identify bottlenecks.

Because SNMP is a client/server protocol, SNMP nodes can be classified as either clients (SNMP managers) or servers (SNMP agents). SNMP managers, also called network management systems (NMSs), occupy central points in the network and actively query and collect messages from SNMP agents in the network. SNMP agents are individual processes running on network nodes that gather information for a particular node and transfer the information to SNMP managers as queries are processed. The agent also controls access to the agent’s Management Information Base (MIB), the collection of objects that can be viewed or changed by the SNMP manager. Because SNMP agents are individual SNMP processes running on a host, multiple agents can be active on a single network node at any given time.

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