Summary


The previous sections covered many kinds of information you will want to include in your knowledge base. This summary brings this information together.

Taken together, all the information that you desire to store in your knowledge base will define its schema. Collecting this information as you define your needs for your network will allow you to define a custom schema for your knowledge base. Table 3-1 compiles the information from the preceding sections into an example schema.

Table 3-1. Network Knowledge Base Schema
Knowledge Base Section Subsection Object Required?
Network inventory Device Name Yes
    IP address(es) Yes
    Location Yes
    Contact information Yes
    Switch No
    Switch port No
    Function No
    Usernames/passwords No
    Community strings Yes
    Physical key or badge requirements No
    MAC address(es) No
    Layer 2 connectivity No
    Layer 3 connectivity No
    VLAN No
Policy management   Service level agreements No
    Policies For policy management
    Rules For policy management
Performance measurement and reporting   Interesting devices Yes
    Device groups No
  Availability Device name or address Yes
    Protocols to use Yes, unless only one
    Frequency to poll Yes
    Number of attempts Yes
    Timeout value Yes
  Response time Source/destination pairs Yes
    Response thresholds Yes
    Protocol to measure Yes, unless only one
  Accuracy Objects for each interface type Yes
    Accuracy thresholds Yes
  Utilization Rising thresholds Yes
    Falling thresholds If hysteresis is supported
  Reporting Report definitions Yes
    Devices or groups to report on Yes
Configuring events   Objects to set thresholds on Yes
    Devices and interfaces Yes
    Trigger values Yes
Prioritizing faults   Port or interface priority Yes
    How time of day affects priorities Desirable

Choose a method of implementing your knowledge base that starts out simply, yet can expand as you expand the amount and type of network management activities. Keep things simple and only implement the items that are more difficult if they are truly required in your network.

The bottom line for all this information is use it or lose it. If you are not actively using this information, it will quickly become out-of-date and useless. So, rely on this information and you will keep it accurate.

Now that you have a storage vehicle for information about your network, you can use it. The next chapter discusses performance management of your network, and will rely on the knowledge base to determine what to collect and to store the collected data.



Performance and Fault Management
Performance and Fault Management: A Practical Guide to Effectively Managing Cisco Network Devices (Cisco Press Core Series)
ISBN: 1578701805
EAN: 2147483647
Year: 2005
Pages: 200

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