Documentation forSolarWinds Platform Self-Hosted

Monitor Power over Ethernet information

Power over Ethernet (PoE) is a technology that transmits both data and electrical power over a single Ethernet cable. This eliminates the need for separate power supplies for devices such as IP cameras, VoIP phones, or wireless access points.

You can enable PoE information polling on SNMP-polled devices that support it.

For monitored SNMP nodes that support PoE, you can see general node-based information. You can use alerts and reports relevant for PoE monitoring.

Requirements for PoE monitoring

  1. The device is monitored using SNMP.

  2. The device supports PoE OIDs: 1.3.6.1.2.1.105.1.3.1.1.

Enable PoE monitoring

If the device supports EnergyWise polling, PoE polling is not enabled by default. EnergyWise polling provides more information and control, so it takes priority. You need to enable PoE polling manually.

This also applies to devices found through Network Discovery. If PoE is supported on a discovered device and not already configured, it’s enabled automatically—unless EnergyWise is detected. If EnergyWise is detected, you need to enable PoE monitoring manually if you want to use it.

To enable PoE manually:

  1. In the web console, click Settings > Manage Nodes.

  2. Find the PoE node, select it and click List Resources.

  3. Select the Power Over Ethernet (PoE) box and submit your changes.

Monitored PoE metrics

The following metrics are monitored for PoE entities.

For PoE nodes

  • Group Index - A unique (per device) PoE group identifier

  • Operational Status - Available options: on, off, faulty

  • Power Budget - Device power budget in Watts

  • Consumption Power - Consumption power by all ports in Watts

  • Usage Threshold - A predefined limit or threshold for usage

  • Current Usage - The current usage in percent that is calculated from consumption power and budget.

For PoE ports

  • Port Index - A unique per-device PoE port identifier. Usually does not match the interface index.

  • Group Index - An identifier of the PoE Group the port is related to.

  • Power Classification - The class of power the ports relate to: class0, class1, class2, class3, class4

  • Admin Enable - A flag that states if port can provide the power sourcing equipment (PSE) function.

  • Power Pairs - Port Power Pairs: signal, signal pairs, spare

  • Detection Status - The operational status of the port PD detection: disabled, searching, deliveringPower, fault, test, otherFault

  • Power Priority - Power priority on the port: critical, high, low

  • PortInvalidSignatureCounter, PortPowerDeniedCounter, PortOverLoadCounter, PortShortCounter - Describe counts of different events on the port.

PoE widgets in the web console

If a node polls PoE data, you can see the following widgets on the node details view:

  1. PoE Ports on Node - Shows details for each PoE port on the node.

  2. PoE Device Groups - Shows power usage, thresholds, and group details.

  3. Top PoE Groups by Average Consumption Power - Shows historical power usage statistics.