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SNMP CONFIGURATION
When configuring SNMP, go to these sections for information you are interested 
in:
■ “SNMP Overview” on page 931
■ “SNMP Configuration” on page 933
■ “Configuring SNMP Logging” on page 935
■ “Trap Configuration” on page 936
■ “Displaying and Maintaining SNMP” on page 937
■ “SNMP Configuration Example” on page 938
■ “SNMP Logging Configuration Example” on page 939
SNMP Overview Simple Network Management Protocol (SNMP) offers a framework to monitor 
network devices through TCP/IP protocol suite. It provides a set of basic operations 
in monitoring and maintaining the Internet and has the following characteristics:
■ Automatic network management: SNMP enables network administrators to 
search and modify information, find and diagnose network problems, plan for 
network growth, and generate reports on network nodes.
■ SNMP shields the physical differences between various devices and thus realizes 
automatic management of products from different manufacturers. Offering 
only the basic set of functions, SNMP makes the management tasks 
independent of both the physical features of the managed devices and the 
underlying networking technology. Thus, SNMP achieves effective 
management of devices from different manufacturers, especially in small, 
high-speed and low cost network environments.
SNMP Mechanism An SNMP enabled network comprises network management station (NMS) and 
Agent.
■ NMS is a station that runs the SNMP client software. It offers a user friendly 
interface, making it easier for network administrators to perform most network 
management tasks. Currently, the most commonly used NMSs include 
Quidview, Sun NetManager, and IBM NetView.
■ Agent is a program on the device. It receives and handles requests sent from 
the NMS. Only under certain circumstances, such as interface state change, will 
the Agent inform the NMS.
■ NMS manages an SNMP enabled network, whereas Agent is the managed 
network device. They exchange management information through the SNMP 
protocol.
SNMP provides the following four basic operations: