The SNMP protocol and credentials

The SNMP protocol allows the discovery engine to query detailed device information from each SNMP-enabled device. The correct SNMP Read community names, along with the appropriate timeout and number of retries are required for successful network queries.

This section describes how to add and maintain the appropriate SNMP protocol settings for successful network discovery.

To add a SNMP protocol setting:

  1. From the main menu of the WhatsConnected console, select Configure > Protocol Settings. The Protocol Settings dialog appears.
  2. The left pane of the dialog displays all registered protocols; SNMP is a default protocol. Select the root SNMP node, the tree node expands.
  3. Browse the default SNMP settings by clicking on the SNMP entries in the tree.

    If your SNMP settings are not visible, you can add a new SNMP setting by right-clicking on the SNMP root and selecting New. A new SNMP entry is placed in the tree. In the right pane, a default Read/Write community name appears.

  4. Select the SNMP Version (v1 or v2) that your network devices are configured to support.
  5. Enter the new SNMP Read Community name.
  6. Optionally, enter a new SNMP Write Community name.
  7. Increase or decrease the SNMP Timeout. This setting is dependent on the latency and load on your network devices. Longer timeouts can cause discovery to slow down. However, if the network is experiencing a lot of network traffic, a longer timeout is recommended. A default of 1000 milliseconds is recommended for small to medium size networks.

    Note: If you are discovering across a WAN link, allow for a longer timeout.

  8. Increase or decrease the number of SNMP Retries. This setting is dependent on the latency and load on your network devices. More retries allow for SNMP failures or heavy network loads. However, more retries slow down the discovery process. One or two retries is recommended for small to medium size networks.

    Note: If you are discovering across a WAN link, increase the number of retries.

  9. Click OK, to save the protocol changes.

Note: As Layer 2 Network Discovery runs, each SNMP protocol setting is used until a successful community name is found. Consider keeping the number of SNMP community names to a minimum to increase the efficiency of the network scan. Also, the discovery scan uses the SNMP settings in the order that they are listed in the protocol list. Use the Move Up and Move Down options on the right-click menu to move the most likely SNMP community names to the top of the list.

To edit a SNMP protocol setting:

  1. From the main menu of the WhatsConnected console, select Configure > Protocol Settings. The Protocol Settings dialog appears.
  2. The left pane of the dialog displays all registered protocols; SNMP is a default protocol. Select the root SNMP node, the tree node expands.
  3. Browse the default SNMP settings by clicking on the SNMP entries in the tree. Select the SNMP entry you would like to modify.
  4. Modify the existing settings.
    • Select the SNMP Version (v1 or v2) that your network devices are configured to support.
    • Edit the SNMP Read Community name.
    • Optionally, edit the SNMP Write Community name.
    • Increase or decrease the SNMP Timeout. This setting is dependent on the latency and load on your network devices. Longer timeouts can cause discovery to slow down. However, if the network is experiencing a lot of network traffic, a longer timeout is recommended. A default of 1000 milliseconds is recommended for small to medium size networks.

      Note: If you are discovering across a WAN link, increase the number of retries.

    • Increase or decrease the number of SNMP Retries. This setting is dependent on the latency and load on your network devices. More retries allow for SNMP failures or heavy network loads. However, more retries slow down the discovery process. One or two retries is recommended for small to medium size networks.

      Note: If you are discovering across a WAN link, allow for a longer timeout.

  5. Click OK to save the protocol changes.

To delete a SNMP protocol setting:

  1. From the main menu of the WhatsConnected console, select Configure > Protocol Settings. The Protocol Settings dialog appears.
  2. The left pane of the dialog displays all registered protocols; SNMP is a default protocol. Select the root SNMP node, the tree node expands.
  3. Browse the default SNMP settings by clicking on the SNMP entries in the tree. Select the SNMP entry you would like to delete.
  4. Right-click the SNMP node, then click Delete. The SNMP entry is removed.
  5. Click OK to save the protocol changes.