Documentation forSolarWinds

Network Monitor tool

The Network Monitor tool in ETS for the Desktop can monitor hundreds of devices, keeping track of response time and packet loss. Network Monitor can also notify you when a device stops responding.

To monitor interface traffic and errors, use the Network Performance Monitor tool.

Open the Network Monitor tool

  • To launch the tool from the Toolset Launch Pad, locate the Network Monitor tool and click Launch.

  • You can add the tool to a tab in the Workspace Studio, and access it from there.

  • To launch the tool from the Windows Start menu:

    1. Click Start > All > SolarWinds Engineer's Toolset.

    2. Right-click Network Monitor, click More, and click Run as administrator.

Add devices to monitor

If you can use ICMP to ping a device, you can monitor that device with the Network Monitor tool. Network Monitor monitors hundreds of devices (nodes), providing a simple Up/Down/Warning status that includes information on response and packet loss. You can import nodes rather than add them to Network Monitor individually. See Import into Network Monitor.

  1. Click Nodes > New Node.

  2. In the Add Node window, enter the node host name or IP address, and then click OK.

  3. Ensure the correct information is provided on the Node Details window:

    • To send an e-mail message or page, check Send E-Mail/Page notifications for events on this node.

      You must configure your SMTP settings to receive e-mail and page alerts. See Modify Network Monitor settings .

    • Poll interval is the node polling frequency using ICMP.

    • Fast poll interval is the node polling frequency when packet loss occurs.

      If the device does not respond during the fast poll interval, it is considered down. While in the fast poll interval, it is considered in a warning state.

  4. Click the Icons & Sounds tab, and then specify any customizations to the node icons and sounds used for Active, Warning, and Inactive states.

  5. Click Close.

Import into Network Monitor

Several file formats are supported for importing IP address lists into Network Monitor.

  1. Click File > Import, and then select the format of the file to import:

  2. Select the nodes to import into Network Monitor, and then click OK.

Import from a Network Sonar database

If you have discovered your network using Network Sonar, you can import the discovery results directly into Network Monitor. See Network Sonar.

Import from a comma-delimited file

When you create a comma-delimited file, also referred to as a CSV or comma separated value file, each field is separated by a comma. For Network Monitor, ensure the first field is the IP address and the second field is the node name. The following example was created with Ping Sweep, leaving response time out of the report.

# Exported from PingSweep

"IP address ","DNS Lookup"

10.45.19.1,Admin.SolarWinds.com

10.45.19.2,www.NovtekVideo.com

10.45.19.3,PerfMan.SolarWinds.com

10.45.19.4,F3.SolarWinds.com

10.45.19.5,Development.SolarWinds.com

10.45.19.6,ww2.SolarWinds.com

10.45.19.7,

10.45.19.8,

10.45.19.9,

10.45.19.10,

10.45.19.11,

10.45.19.12,

10.45.19.13,

10.45.19.14,

10.45.19.15,

10.45.19.16,

10.45.19.17,

10.45.19.18,

10.45.19.19,

10.45.19.20,WebDev.SolarWinds.com

Import from a tab-delimited file

Each field in this file format is separated by a tab. The first field is the IP address and the second field is the node name. The following example was created with Ping Sweep, leaving response time out of the report.

# Exported from PingSweep

IP address DNS Lookup

216.60.197.200ww2.SolarWinds.com

216.60.197.201Admin.SolarWinds.com

216.60.197.202www.NovtekVideo.com

216.60.197.203PerfMan.SolarWinds.com

216.60.197.204Family.SolarWinds.com

216.60.197.205Development.SolarWinds.com

216.60.197.206www.RCC4Jesus.org

216.60.197.207

216.60.197.208

216.60.197.209

216.60.197.210

216.60.197.211

216.60.197.212

216.60.197.213

216.60.197.214

216.60.197.215

216.60.197.216

216.60.197.217

216.60.197.218

216.60.197.219

216.60.197.220WebDev.SolarWinds.com

Import from a Microsoft Access database

This import method reads directly from a Microsoft Access database. You must select the table within the Access database that contains the nodes to import.

Network Monitor attempts to determine which field contains the IP addresses. If it cannot determine which field contains the IP addresses, and then you must select the field. You must also select the field that contains the name of each node.

Modify Network Monitor settings

Before you can receive e-mail or page alerts based on node events, you must configure your Network Monitor settings. These settings control the following configuration options:

  • Who to notify and for what events
  • Message contents for node down, node warning, node up events
  • Network Monitor database maintenance
  • SMTP mail setup
  • Polling intervals
  • Icon and sound settings
  • ICMP ping timeout and included data

To modify Network Monitor settings:

  1. Click File > Settings.

  2. Click the Event Notification tab, and then specify the following:

    • E-mail / Pager Recipient:

      Enter the comma-separated e-mail and pager addresses to notify when events occur. Network Monitor sends the events to all E-mail / Pager addresses entered here.

    • From E-mail Account:

      Provide the name and reply address information for notifications sent by Network Monitor. Many pagers display the reply address as the name of the person who sent the page.

    • Event Types to send notification on:

      Select the events for which you want notification.

      You must turn on event notification for each node from which you want to receive notification. See View and modify node details and View Event details .

  3. Click the Messages tab, and then complete the following procedure:

    1. Click the event enter you want to customize, and then enter a subject line.

    2. Enter a custom message you want to use for this event. The following macros can be used in message bodies:

      • %NODENAME: The name of the device
      • %DATE: The date of the event
      • %TIME: The time of the event

    3. Repeat this procedure for each event enter you want to customize.

  4. Click the Database Size tab, and then enter the following:

    • Nightly Database Maintenance:

      Specify a time when maintenance should be performed.

    • Response Time Summarization:

      Specify when response time statistics are summarized into hourly averages, and when hourly averages can be summarized into daily averages.

    • Event Archiving:

      Specify when old events can be deleted.

  5. Click the SMTP Gateway tab.

    You must have an SMTP server configured for Network Monitor to send e-mail and page notifications. Specify the information:

    • SMTP Gateway:

      Provide the IP address or host name of the SMTP server you want to use for email and pager notification.

    • Retry attempts:

      Use the slider to select how many times an email or page will be attempted.

    • Show status:

      The E-mail Notification Service can display a status box whenever a message is sent to the SMTP server. The status window shows you the interaction between the notification service and the SMTP server, including any errors that occur.

  6. Click the Polling tab, and then enter the following:

    • Poll Interval:

      Poll interval is the frequency with which the node is polled using ICMP for response time and packet loss.

    • Fast Poll Interval:

      Fast poll interval is the frequency with which the node is polled when packet loss occurs. If the device does not respond during the fast poll interval, it is considered down. While in the fast poll interval, it is considered in a warning state.

  7. Click the Icons & Sounds tab, and then complete the following:

    1. To change the default icons, click Change Default Icons, select an icon, and then click OK.

    2. To change the default alarms, click the event for which you want to modify the alarm, select a sound, and then click OK.

    3. To mute the alarms, select Mute by the event you want to mute.

  8. Click the ICMP tab, and then change the ICMP timeout to reflect your network speed and the data included with the packet. High-latency networks such as frame-relay or satellite networks can require longer ICMP timeouts.

Export and print node lists and event details

While monitoring a device, Network Monitor enables you to transfer node lists and event details to other tools through exporting and printing.

Export node lists and event details

  1. Click File > Export, and then select the type of export.

  2. Select the information to export.

  3. Specify the name and path for the exported information.

Print node lists and event details

Click File > Print, and then select the information to print.

Publish to the web

Network Monitor node lists and event details can be published to a static HTML page containing all the statistics for a specific statistics group.

Save a node list to an HTML page

  1. Click File > Publish to Web.

  2. Select the fields you want to include, and then click OK.

  3. Name and choose a location for the file, and then click Save.

Save event details to an HTML page

  1. Click File > Export to HTML File or Export to MHTML File.

  2. Select the fields you want to include, and then click OK.

  3. Name and choose a location for the file, and then click Save.

View and modify node details

You can change the following attributes of a node:

  • Name
  • IP address
  • Polling intervals
  • Associated icons and sounds

To modify node details:

  1. Click the node, and then click Nodes > Node Details.

  2. Review the information about the node, click Refresh to update response time and packet loss.

  3. Ensure the correct information is provided on the Node Details window:

    • To send an e-mail or page, check Send E-Mail/Page notifications for events on this node.
      You must configure your SMTP settings to receive e-mail and page alerts. See Modify Network Monitor settings .

    • Poll interval is the frequency with which the node is polled using ICMP.

    • Fast poll interval is the frequency with which the node is polled when packet loss occurs.
      If the device does not respond during the fast poll interval, it is considered down. While in the fast poll interval, it is considered in a warning state.

  4. Click the Icons & Sounds tab, and then specify any customizations to the node icons and sounds used for Active, Warning, and Inactive states.

  5. Click Close.

Delete nodes

If you no longer need to monitor a device, you can remove the node from Network Monitor.

Click the node, and then click Nodes > Delete Node.

If you delete a node in error, you can restore the most recently-deleted node, including all statistics for the node. Click Nodes > Undo Delete.

View node-specific events

You can display the events for a specific node.

  1. Click the node.

  2. Click Nodes > Node Details > Events or Node > Node Events.

View the Event Monitor

The Event Monitor provides an excellent overview of all current, uncleared Network Monitor events. As new events occur, they are added to the Event Monitor window. As events are cleared, they are removed from the Event Monitor.

The Event Monitor is not constrained by the Network Monitor window and can be left open while the Network Monitor is minimized. This enables you to remain informed of your events without having the full application restored at all times.

  1. Click Events > Event Monitor.

  2. To clear events from the Event Monitor, click X at the event.

View Event details

The Event Details window provides a detailed view of the current network events. As new events occur, they are added to the Event Details window. As events are cleared, they are removed from the Event Details window.

Unlike the Event Monitor, specific detail is provided for each event. They are not summarized and grouped by the event enter.

  1. Click Events > Event Details.

  2. To clear events from the Event Monitor, click X at the event to clear.

  3. To clear an entire category of events on the Current Network Monitor Events window, click Events, and then select the category of events you want to clear:

    • Clear selected events
    • Clear informational events
    • Clear node up events
    • Clear node down events
    • Clear all events

Cleared events are stored in the database and can be searched. See Search previous events

Search previous events

Cleared events are still available for you to view, search, and export from the database.

  1. Click Events > Event Details.

  2. Click Events > Past Events.

  3. To view all events during a specific time period, specify a start and end date, and then click Search.

    • To view all uncleared events for a specific node, specify the node, and then click Search.

    • To view all uncleared events of a specific category, specify the category, and then click Search.

You can select dates, nodes, and categories together. After each change, click Search.

Run database maintenance

If your database is getting too large or you are running out of disk space and want to immediately run database maintenance, complete the following procedure.

Click File > Run Nightly Database Maintenance Now.

The settings for database maintenance you configured will be executed immediately. See Modify Network Monitor settings

Response Time Charts

The Response Time Charts tool is an integral part of SolarWinds Network Monitor. To display response time charts, you must first add a device in Network Monitor. You may not see any information in Response Time Charts for 15-20 minutes after you add the device to Network Monitor. Response Time Charts displays historical response time and packet loss charts. Real time charts of response times can be configured in the Enhanced Ping tool.

Response time charts provide you a historical overview of response time for the selected node.

  1. Click the node you want to chart.

  2. Click Nodes > Response Time Chart.

  3. To change the time period, click Period, and then select the period you want to display:

    • Today
    • This week
    • This month
    • Last 30 days
    • Last 3 months
    • Last 12 months
    • This year
    • Custom period

  4. The custom period option enables you to specify the bounds of the time period and the sample rate to display.

    • To view a table of the response times, click Chart > Response Time Table.

    • To increase or decrease the sample rate of the data, click Chart > More Detail or Chart > Less Detail.
      When you select less detail, individual response times are averaged together.

    • To customize the chart, click Edit > Customize Chart, and then tab through the available customization options.

    • To copy the chart, click Edit > Copy Bitmap or Edit > Copy Metafile.

    • To print the chart, click File > Print.

    • To Export the chart, click File > Export, and then select the target export enter.

    • To load a new chart of another node, click File > Build New Chart, and then select the node and click OK.

  • If no chart is displayed, there is inadequate response time information in the database for the selected node. If you recently added the node, you must wait 15-20 minutes for Network Monitor to accumulate data and add it to the database.

  • Network Monitor only adds response time details to the database when it is running. If you exit Network Monitor, response times cannot be added to the database. Your response time chart will have a section or sections missing.