9-1
C
HAPTER
9U

SING

RMON

Introduction

This chapter describes how to use Remote Monitoring (RMON) to more effect ively monitor your network.
RMON provides a cost-effective way to monitor large networks by placing embedded or external probes on
distributed network equipment (i.e., hubs, switches or routers). Elite View can access the probes embedded in
recent SMC network products to perform traffic analysis, troubleshoot network problems, evaluate historical
trends, or implement proactive management policies. RMON has already become a valuable tool for network
managers faced with a quickly changing network land scape that contains dozens or hundreds of se parate segments.
RMON is the only way to retain control of the network and analyze applications running at multi-megabit speeds.
It provides the tools you need to implement either reac tive or proactive policies that can keep your network
running based on real-time access to key statistical information.
RMON can be used to perform a wide range of management tasks, including:
• Troubleshoot problems
• Track down intermittent problems
• Locate bottlenecks
• Plan for network expansion
A Brief Description of RMON
Remote Monitoring allows you to instruct a remote device to collect information or respond to specified events on
an independent basis. An RMON-capable device can independently perform a wide range of tasks, significantly
reducing network management traffic. It can continuously r un diagnostics and log network performance. If an
event is triggered, the remote device can automatically n otify the network administrator of a failure and provide
historical information about the event. If the remote device cannot connect to the management agent, it will
continue to perform any specified tasks and pass data back to the management station the next time it contacts the
remote device.