Documentation forNetFlow Traffic Analyzer
Analyzing network traffic and bandwidth is a key capability of Hybrid Cloud Observability Advanced and is also available in a standalone module, NetFlow Traffic Analyzer (NTA). Hybrid Cloud Observability Advanced and NTA are built on the self-hosted SolarWinds Platform.

DNS resolution in NTA

DNS resolution is done on the main polling engine. SolarWinds NTA does not support resolving DNS on additional polling engines.

Resolve and store IPv4 hostnames immediately when a flow record is received

Domain names are resolved continuously for all devices involved in flow monitoring. This is the default for new installations.

If you select Resolve and store IPv4 hostnames immediately when a flow record is received, define:

  • Default Number of Days to Wait Until Next DNS Lookup to set the interval on which endpoint domain names are refreshed in the SolarWinds Platform database.
  • Default Number of Days to Wait Until Next DNS Lookup for Unresolved IP Addresses to set the interval on which NTA attempts to resolve domain names for unresolved endpoints in the SolarWinds Platform database.

Views may load more quickly because resolved domain names are retained, but database query times may increase as your database is continuously queried.

Top Domains widgets and SolarWinds Platform reports that include DNS names require resolving and storing IPv4 hostnames immediately when a flow record is received. NTA does not support internationalized domain names which include special characters, symbols, and non-English letters.

Resolve IPv4 and IPv6 addresses to DNS hostnames

DNS is resolved only when requested from the database.

Resolving IPv4 and IPv6 addresses to DNS hostnames is intended to assist users with larger networks. With this option, an endpoint domain name is only resolved when information about it is actually requested from the SolarWinds Platform database. Database query times may improve as queries are limited, but the load time for some endpoint-related widgets may increase as NTA waits for domain name resolution.

Top Domains widgets and SolarWinds Platform reports that include DNS names require immediate resolving and storing of IPv4 hostnames. They will not display DNS names if Resolve IPv4 and IPv6 addresses to DNS hostnames is selected.