SNMP Overview
162 7705 SAR OS System Management Guide
SNMP Overview
SNMP Architecture
The Service Assurance Manager (SAM) consists of two elements: managers and agents. The
manager is the entity through which network management tasks are facilitated. An agent is a
software module integrated into the operating system of the managed device that
communicates with the network manager. Managed devices, such as bridges, hubs, routers,
and network servers can contain managed objects. A managed object can be a configuration
attribute, performance statistic, or control action that is directly related to the operation of a
device.
Managed devices collect and store management information and use Simple Network
Management Protocol (SNMP). SNMP is an application-layer protocol that provides a
message format to facilitate communication between SNMP managers and agents. SNMP
provides a standard framework to monitor and manage devices in a network from a central
location.
An SNMP manager controls and monitors the activities of network hosts that use SNMP. An
SNMP manager can obtain (get) a value from an SNMP agent or store (set) a value in the
agent. The manager uses definitions in the management information base (MIB) to perform
operations on the managed device such as retrieving values from variables or blocks of data,
replying to requests, and processing traps.
Between the SNMP agent and the SNMP manager, the following actions can occur.
• The manager can get information from the agent.
• The manager can set the value of a MIB object that is controlled by an agent.
• The agent can send traps to notify the manager of significant events that occur on the
managed device (for example, the 7705 SAR router).
SNMP is supported on network hosts using the IPv4 and IPv6 protocols.
Management Information Base
A MIB is a formal specifications document with definitions of management information used
to remotely monitor, configure, and control a managed device or network system. The agent’s
management information consists of a set of network objects that can be managed with
SNMP. Object identifiers are unique object names that are organized in a hierarchical tree
structure. The main branches are defined by the Internet Engineering Task Force (IETF).
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