Chapter 1. Conducting a Network Audit | Performance and Fault Management: A Practical Guide to Effectively Managing Cisco Network Devices (Cisco Press Core Series)

You bought this book to find out which management data to collect from the network, so why is the first chapter about audits and documentation? Simply put: You can't measure performance and watch for faults effectively without understanding where everything is and how it's connected. No matter how sophisticated the tools you purchase or build may be, the measures and alerts mean nothing without understanding how the network works.

Effective network management begins with a well-designed network. Unfortunately, most people do not have this luxury; if they do have network access, they usually cannot redesign the network to improve their ability to manage the infrastructure. Aside from simplifying the management, starting with good network design or improving existing network design facilitates simpler and quicker resolution of network problems.

In order to implement effective network management, you must begin by learning and documenting the network as it currently exists. This includes documenting the physical and logical makeup of the network and its components, the people involved and their responsibilities, and the processes in place (if any) to enhance and maintain the network. These are the steps that make up a network audit. This chapter describes the primary tasks that are useful for learning and documenting how the servers, network devices, and users are connected. By learning and documenting the physical connectivity and logical configuration of your network, you will simplify the troubleshooting process when problems arise. The resultant information provides the foundation and integrity necessary to proceed with the creation and seeding of the knowledge base described in Chapter 3, "Developing the Network Knowledge Base."

Although not an exhaustive study, this chapter covers the following topics:

The purpose of network audits
Why documentation is important
Conducting a physical inventory audit
Conducting a connectivity audit
Conducting a process and personnel audit