Documentation forNetFlow Traffic Analyzer

Work with Traffic Path Analysis

To access the Traffic Path Analysis view:

  1. In the SolarWinds Platform Web Console, click My Dashboards > NetFlow.

  2. Click Traffic Paths.

Traffic Path Analysis opens as its own page. It is a standalone view, separate from the NTA Summary view and the existing NTA widgets.

The page always opens with a predefined view already loaded. For more information, see Choose a predefined Traffic Path Analysis view.

Reading the chart

Traffic Path Analysis renders traffic as a Sankey diagram. In a Sankey diagram, the width of each band represents the proportional quantity of traffic, in bytes, moving between two values.

Traffic Path Analysis currently measures traffic in bytes only. Packet count and percentage-of-total are not currently available as metrics.

  • Chart columns run left to right in the order set for the current view. Each column represents one dimension.

  • Where a view includes the same dimension in more than one column (for example, Country appears on both sides of a view that shows country-to-country traffic), the columns are distinguished with an A/B suffix, such as Country A and Country B, or Endpoint A and Endpoint B. The A/B suffix reflects only the column position in the chart, from earlier (A) to later (B) in the left-to-right order. It does not indicate which side initiated the conversation, which side is a client or server, or verified traffic direction.

  • The width of a band is proportional to the amount of traffic, in bytes, between the two values it connects. A wider band means more traffic passed between those values.

  • Hover over a node or a band to display its exact byte count and its percentage of the total traffic shown in the chart.

  • Click a node or a band to highlight the complete path, from the A side to the B side, that passes through it.

  • Traffic Path Analysis shows only the top 25 conversations by bytes for the selected time period. As a result, the bands entering and leaving a node represent only those top 25 conversations, not all traffic through the node.

  • To gauge how representative the displayed conversations are, check the total above the chart, for example Displaying 7.3 GiB of 13 GiB Transferred.

    This shows what share of total traffic the visible top 25 conversations represent, making the impact of the cutoff clear.

  • Navigating from a node or band directly to a Conversation or Endpoint Details view is currently not supported. To continue investigating, note the endpoints or applications shown in the chart, and find them in the relevant Top XX or Conversations widget.

  • Dragging chart nodes or zooming the chart is currently not supported.

Filter the chart

You can filter the chart to a specific scope.

  1. Click Add Condition.

  2. Select a filter type: Node, IP Version, Application, or Protocol.

  3. Select Include or Exclude.

  4. In the value list, search for and select one or more values.

  5. Repeat to add additional conditions.

  6. Click Reset to clear all filter conditions.

Filter conditions are combined, and are reflected in the page URL, so a filtered view can be bookmarked or shared with other users.

Change the time period

  1. Click the time period label above the chart.

  2. Select a preset period (Last 15 Minutes, Last 30 Minutes, Last Hour, Last 2 Hours, or Last 24 Hours), or specify a custom From and To date and time.

When you select a preset period, the chart refreshes automatically if auto-refresh is enabled in NTA Settings. Auto-refresh does not apply when you select a custom period.

Change the chart dimensions

  1. Click Manage Dimensions.

  2. Reorder the current dimensions by dragging them into a new position. On the NetFlow Flow History (Custom) view only, you can also add or remove dimensions.

    At least two dimensions must remain selected.

  3. Click Apply.

Reordering dimensions changes which columns are treated as the A side and which are treated as the B side of the chart. See Reading the chart.