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Network Working Group R. Stine, Editor
Request for Comments: 1147 SPARTA, Inc.
FYI: 2 April 1990
FYI on a Network Management Tool Catalog:
Tools for Monitoring and Debugging TCP/IP Internets
and Interconnected Devices
Status of this Memo
The goal of this FYI memo is to provide practical informa-
tion to site administrators and network managers. This memo
provides information for the Internet community. It does
not specify any standard. It is not a statement of IAB pol-
icy or recommendations. Comments, critiques, and new or
updated tool descriptions are welcome, and should be sent to
Robert Stine, at stine@sparta.com, or to the NOCTools work-
ing group, at noctools@merit.edu.
Distribution of this memo is unlimited.
1. Introduction
This catalog contains descriptions of several tools avail-
able to assist network managers in debugging and maintaining
TCP/IP internets and interconnected communications
resources. Entries in the catalog tell what a tool does,
how it works, and how it can be obtained.
The NOCTools Working Group of the Internet Engineering Task
Force (IETF) compiled this catalog in 1989. Future editions
will be produced as IETF members become aware of tools that
should be included, and of deficiencies or inaccuracies.
Developing an edition oriented to the OSI protocol suite is
also contemplated.
The tools described in this catalog are in no way endorsed
by the IETF. For the most part, we have neither evaluated
the tools in this catalog, nor validated their descriptions.
Most of the descriptions of commercial tools have been pro-
vided by vendors. Caveat Emptor.
1.1 Purpose
The practice of re-inventing the wheel seems endemic to the
field of data communications. The primary goal of this
IETF NOCTools Working Group [Page 1]
RFC 1147 FYI: Network Management Tool Catalog April 1990
document is to fight that tendency in a small but useful
way. By listing the capabilities of some of the available
network management tools, we hope to pool and share
knowledge and experience. Another goal of this catalog is
to show those new in the field what can be done to manage
internet sites. A network management tutorial at the end of
the document is of further assistance in this area.
Finally, by omission, this catalog points out the network
management tools that are needed, but do not yet exist.
There are other sources of information on available network
management tools. Both the DDN Protocol Implementation and
Vendors Guide and the DATAPRO series on data communications
and LANs are particularly comprehensive and informative.
The DDN Protocol Implementation and Vendors Guide addresses
a wide range of internet management topics, including
evaluations of protocol implementations and network
analyzers.* The DATAPRO volumes, though expensive (check
your local university or technical libraries!), are good
surveys of available commercial products for network manage-
ment. DATAPRO also includes tutorials, market analyses,
product evaluations, and predictions on technology trends.
1.2 Scope
The tools described in this document are used for managing
the network resources, LANs, and devices that are commonly
interconnected by TCP/IP internets. This document is not,
however, a "how to" manual on network management. While it
includes a tutorial, the coverage is much too brief and gen-
eral to serve as a sole source: a great deal of further
study is required of aspiring network managers. Neither is
this catalog is an operations manual for particular tools.
Each individual tool entry is brief, and emphasizes the uses
to which a tool can be put. A tool's documentation, which
in some cases runs to hundreds of pages, should be consulted
for assistance in its installation and operation.
1.3 Overview
Section 1 describes the purpose, scope, and organization of
this catalog.
Section 2 lists and explains the standard keywords used in
_________________________
* Instructions for obtaining the DDN Protocol Guide are
given in Section 7 of the appendix.
IETF NOCTools Working Group [Page 2]
RFC 1147 FYI: Network Management Tool Catalog April 1990
the tool descriptions. The keywords can be used as a sub-
ject index into the catalog.
Section 3, the main body of the catalog, contains the
entries describing network management tools. The tool
entries in Section 3 are presented in alphabetical order, by
tool name. The tool descriptions all follow a standard for-
mat, described in the introduction to Section 3.
Following the catalog, there is an appendix that contains a
tutorial on the goals and practice of network management.
1.4 Acknowledgements
The compilation and editing of this catalog was sponsored by
the Defense Communications Engineering Center (DCEC), con-
tract DCA100-89-C-0001. The effort grew out of an initial
task to survey current internet management tools. The cata-
log is largely, however, the result of volunteer labor on
the part of the NOCTools Working Group, the User Services
Working Group, and many others. Without these volunteer
contributions, the catalog would not exist. The support
from the Internet community for this endeavor has been
extremely gratifying.
Several individuals made especially notable contributions.
Mike Patton, Paul Holbrook, Mark Fedor and Gary Malkin were
particularly helpful in composition and editorial review,
while Dave Crocker provided essential guidance and
encouragement. Bob Enger was active from the first with the
gut work of chairing the Working Group and building the
catalog. Phill Gross helped to christen the NOCTools Work-
ing Group, to define its scope and goals, and to establish
its role in the IETF. Mike Little contributed the formative
idea of enhancing and publicizing the management tool survey
through IETF participation.
Responsibility for any deficiencies and errors remains, of
course, with the editor.
IETF NOCTools Working Group [Page 3]
RFC 1147 FYI: Network Management Tool Catalog April 1990
2. Keywords
This catalog uses "keywords" for terse characterizations of
the tools. Keywords are abbreviated attributes of a tool or
its use. To allow cross-comparison of tools, uniform key-
word definitions have been developed, and are given below.
Following the definitions, there is an index of catalog
entries by keyword.
2.1 Keyword Definitions
The keywords are always listed in a prefined order, sorted
first by the general category into which they fall, and then
alphabetically. The categories that have been defined for
management tool keywords are:
o+ the general management area to which a tool
relates or a tool's functional role;
o+ the network resources or components that are
managed;
o+ the mechanisms or methods a tool uses to perform
its functions;
o+ the operating system and hardware environment of a
tool; and
o+ the characteristics of a tool as a hardware pro-
duct or software release.
The keywords used to describe the general management area or
functional role of a tool are:
Alarm
a reporting/logging tool that can trigger on specific
events within a network.
Analyzer
a traffic monitor that reconstructs and interprets pro-
tocol messages that span several packets.
Benchmark
a tool used to evaluate the performance of network com-
ponents.
IETF NOCTools Working Group [Page 4]
RFC 1147 FYI: Network Management Tool Catalog April 1990
Control
a tool that can change the state or status of a remote
network resource.
Debugger
a tool that by generating arbitrary packets and moni-
toring traffic, can drive a remote network component to
various states and record its responses.
Generator
a traffic generation tool.
Manager
a distributed network management system or system com-
ponent.
Map
a tool that can discover and report a system's topology
or configuration.
Reference
a tool for documenting MIB structure or system confi-
guration.
Routing
a packet route discovery tool.
Security
a tool for analyzing or reducing threats to security.
Status
a tool that remotely tracks the status of network com-
ponents.
Traffic
a tool that monitors packet flow.
The keywords used to identify the network resources or com-
ponents that a tool manages are:
Bridge
a tool for controlling or monitoring LAN bridges.
IETF NOCTools Working Group [Page 5]
RFC 1147 FYI: Network Management Tool Catalog April 1990
CHAOS
a tool for controlling or monitoring implementations of
the CHAOS protocol suite or network components that use
it.
DECnet
a tool for controlling or monitoring implementations of
the DECnet protocol suite or network components that
use it.
DNS
a Domain Name System debugging tool.
Ethernet
a tool for controlling or monitoring network components
on ethernet LANs.
FDDI
a tool for controlling or monitoring network components
on FDDI LANs or WANs.
IP
a tool for controlling or monitoring implementations of
the TCP/IP protocol suite or network components that
use it.
OSI
a tool for controlling or monitoring implementations of
the OSI protocol suite or network components that use
it.
NFS
a Network File System debugging tool.
Ring
a tool for controlling or monitoring network components
on Token Ring LANs.
SMTP
an SMTP debugging tool.
Star
a tool for controlling or monitoring network components
on StarLANs.
The keywords used to describe a tool's mechanism are:
IETF NOCTools Working Group [Page 6]
RFC 1147 FYI: Network Management Tool Catalog April 1990
Curses
a tool that uses the "curses" tty interface package.
Eavesdrop
a tool that silently monitors communications media
(e.g., by putting an ethernet interface into "promiscu-
ous" mode).
NMS
the tool is a component of or queries a Network Manage-
ment System.
Ping
a tool that sends packet probes such as ICMP echo mes-
sages; to help distinguish tools, we do not consider
NMS queries or protocol spoofing (see below) as probes.
Proprietary
a distributed tool that uses proprietary communications
techniques to link its components.
SNMP
a network management system or component based on SNMP,
the Simple Network Management Protocol.
Spoof
a tool that tests operation of remote protocol modules
by peer-level message exchange.
X
a tool that uses X-Windows.
The keywords used to describe a tool's operating environment
are:
DOS
a tool that runs under MS-DOS.
HP
a tool that runs on Hewlett-Packard systems.
Macintosh
a tool that runs on Macintosh personal computers.
IETF NOCTools Working Group [Page 7]
RFC 1147 FYI: Network Management Tool Catalog April 1990
Standalone
an integrated hardware/software tool that requires only
a network interface for operation.
UNIX
a tool that runs under 4.xBSD UNIX or related OS.
VMS
a tool that runs under DEC's VMS operating system.
The keywords used to describe a tool's characteristics as a
hardware or software acquisition are:
Free
a tool is available at no charge, though other restric-
tions may apply (tools that are part of an OS distribu-
tion but not otherwise available are not listed as
"free").
Library
a tool packaged with either an Application Programming
Interface (API) or object-level subroutines that may be
loaded with programs.
Sourcelib
a collection of source code (subroutines) upon which
developers may construct other tools.
IETF NOCTools Working Group [Page 8]
RFC 1147 FYI: Network Management Tool Catalog April 1990
2.2 Tools Indexed by Keywords
Following is an index of catalog entries sorted by keyword.
This index can be used to locate the tools with a particular
attribute: tools are listed under each keyword that charac-
terizes them. The keywords and the subordinate lists of
tools under them are in alphabetical order.
In the interest of brevity, some liberties have been taken
with tool names. Capitalization of the names is as speci-
fied by the tool developers or distributers. Note that
parenthetical roman numerals following a tool's name are not
actually part of the name. The use of roman numerals to
differentiate tools with the same name is explained in the
introduction of Section 3.
alarm bridge
CMIP Library ConnectVIEW
EtherMeter decaddrs
LanProbe NMC
LANWatch proxyd
NETMON (III) Snmp Libraries
osilog snmpd
SERAG
sma
Snmp Libraries CHAOS
snmptrapd LANWatch
SpiderMonitor map
Unisys NCC
WIN/MGT Station
xnetmon (I) control
XNETMON (II) CMIP Library
ConnectVIEW
NETMON (III)
analyzer NMC
LANWatch proxyd
Sniffer Snmp Libraries
SpiderMonitor snmpset
TokenVIEW
Unisys NCC
benchmark WIN/MGT Station
hammer XNETMON (II)
nhfsstone
SPIMS
spray
TTCP
Unisys NCC
IETF NOCTools Working Group [Page 9]
RFC 1147 FYI: Network Management Tool Catalog April 1990
curses DOS
Internet Rover Comp. Security Checklist
net_monitor ConnectVIEW
nfswatch hammer
osimon hopcheck
snmpperfmon LAN Patrol
LANWatch
netmon (I)
debugger NETMON (III)
SPIMS netwatch
OverVIEW
ping
DECnet Snmp Libraries
decaddrs snmpd (II)
LANWatch TokenVIEW
NETMON (III) XNETMON (II)
net_monitor xnetperfmon
NMC
Sniffer
Snmp Libraries eavesdrop
SpiderMonitor ENTM
XNETMON (II) etherfind
xnetperfmon EtherView
LAN Patrol
LanProbe
DNS LANWatch
DiG NETMON (II)
LANWatch netwatch
netmon (I) nfswatch
nslookup NNStat
OSITRACE
Sniffer
SpiderMonitor
Tcplogger
TRPT
IETF NOCTools Working Group [Page 10]
RFC 1147 FYI: Network Management Tool Catalog April 1990
ethernet free
arp arp
ConnectVIEW CMIP Library
ENTM CMU SNMP
etherfind DiG
etherhostprobe ENTM
EtherMeter etherhostprobe
EtherView hammer
LAN Patrol hopcheck
LanProbe HyperMIB
LANWatch Internet Rover
map map
NETMON (III) netmon (I)
netwatch NETMON (II)
Network Integrator netstat
nfswatch netwatch
NMC net_monitor
NNStat nfswatch
proxyd nhfsstone
SERAG NNStat
Sniffer NPRV
Snmp Libraries nslookup
snmpd (II) osilog
SpiderMonitor osimic
tcpdump osimon
Unisys NCC OSITRACE
WIN/MGT Station ping
XNETMON (II) query
xnetperfmon sma
SNMP Kit
tcpdump
FDDI tcplogger
Unisys NCC traceroute
TRPT
TTCP
generator
hammer
nhfsstone
ping
Sniffer
SpiderMonitor
spray
TTCP
Unisys NCC
IETF NOCTools Working Group [Page 11]
RFC 1147 FYI: Network Management Tool Catalog April 1990
HP IP
xup arp
CMU SNMP
Dual Manager
ENTM
etherfind
etherhostprobe
EtherView
getone
hammer
hopcheck
Internet Rover
LANWatch
map
Netlabs CMOT Agent
Netlabs SNMP Agent
netmon (I)
NETMON (II)
NETMON (III)
netstat
netwatch
net_monitor
nfswatch
NMC
NNStat
NPRV
OverVIEW
ping
proxyd
query
SERAG
Sniffer
SNMP Kit
Snmp Libraries
snmpask
snmpd (I)
snmpd (II)
snmplookup
snmpperfmon
snmppoll
snmpquery
snmproute
snmpset
snmpsrc
snmpstat
snmptrapd
snmpwatch
IETF NOCTools Working Group [Page 12]
RFC 1147 FYI: Network Management Tool Catalog April 1990
snmpxbar
snmpxconn manager
snmpxmon CMIP Library
snmpxperf CMU SNMP
snmpxperfmon ConnectVIEW
snmpxrtmetric decaddrs
SpiderMonitor Dual Manager
SPIMS getone
spray LanProbe
Tcpdump map
Tcplogger Netlabs CMOT Agent
Traceroute Netlabs SNMP Agent
TRPT NETMON (III)
TTCP NMC
Unisys NCC NNStat
WIN/MGT Station osilog
xnetmon (I) osimic
XNETMON (II) osimon
xnetperfmon OverVIEW
sma
SNMP Kit
library Snmp Libraries
CMIP Library snmpask
Dual Manager snmpd (I)
LANWatch snmpd (II)
proxyd snmplookup
WIN/MGT Station snmpperfmon
snmppoll
snmpquery
Macintosh snmproute
HyperMIB snmpsrc
snmpset
snmpstat
snmptrapd
snmpwatch
snmpxbar
snmpxconn
snmpxmon
snmpxperf
snmpxperfmon
snmpxrtmetric
TokenVIEW
Unisys NCC
WIN/MGT Station
xnetmon (I)
XNETMON (II)
xnetperfmon
IETF NOCTools Working Group [Page 13]
RFC 1147 FYI: Network Management Tool Catalog April 1990
map NMS
decaddrs CMU SNMP
etherhostprobe ConnectVIEW
EtherMeter decaddrs
LanProbe Dual Manager
map EtherMeter
NETMON (III) getone
Network Integrator LanProbe
NPRV map
Snmp Libraries Netlabs CMOT Agent
snmpxconn Netlabs SNMP Agent
snmpxmon NETMON (III)
Unisys NCC NMC
xnetmon (I) NNStat
XNETMON (II) OverVIEW
proxyd
SERAG
NFS SNMP Kit
etherfind Snmp Libraries
EtherView snmpask
nfswatch snmpd (I)
nhfsstone snmpd (II)
Sniffer snmplookup
tcpdump snmpperfmon
snmppoll
snmpquery
snmproute
snmpset
snmpsrc
snmpstat
snmptrapd
snmpwatch
snmpxbar
snmpxconn
snmpxmon
snmpxperf
snmpxperfmon
snmpxrtmetric
TokenVIEW
Unisys NCC
WIN/MGT Station
xnetmon (I)
XNETMON (II)
xnetperfmon
IETF NOCTools Working Group [Page 14]
RFC 1147 FYI: Network Management Tool Catalog April 1990
OSI ring
CMIP Library ConnectVIEW
Dual Manager LANWatch
LANWatch map
Netlabs CMOT Agent NETMON (III)
NETMON (III) netwatch
osilog proxyd
osimic Sniffer
osimon Snmp Libraries
OSITRACE snmpd (II)
sma TokenVIEW
Sniffer XNETMON (II)
Snmp Libraries xnetperfmon
SpiderMonitor
SPIMS
XNETMON (II) routing
xnetperfmon arp
ConnectVIEW
decaddrs
ping etherhostprobe
etherhostprobe getone
hopcheck hopcheck
Internet Rover NETMON (III)
map netstat
netmon (I) net_monitor
net_monitor NMC
NPRV NPRV
ping query
spray Snmp Libraries
traceroute snmproute
TTCP snmpsrc
Unisys NCC snmpxrtmetric
xup traceroute
WIN/MGT Station
XNETMON (II)
proprietary
ConnectVIEW
EtherMeter security
LanProbe Comp. Security Checklist
SERAG ConnectVIEW
TokenVIEW Dual Manager
LAN Patrol
SERAG
reference XNETMON (II)
HyperMIB
Unisys NCC
IETF NOCTools Working Group [Page 15]
RFC 1147 FYI: Network Management Tool Catalog April 1990
SMTP sourcelib
Internet Rover CMIP Library
LANWatch CMU SNMP
mconnect HyperMIB
Sniffer Internet Rover
LANWatch
map
SNMP NETMON (III)
CMU SNMP net_monitor
decaddrs proxyd
Dual Manager SNMP Kit
getone Snmp Libraries
map Snmpd (II)
Netlabs SNMP Agent SpiderMonitor
NETMON (III) XNETMON (II)
NMC xnetperfmon
OverVIEW
proxyd
SNMP Kit spoof
Snmp Libraries DiG
snmpask Internet Rover
snmpd (I) mconnect
snmpd (II) nhfsstone
snmplookup nslookup
snmpperfmon query
snmppoll SPIMS
snmpquery
snmproute
snmpset standalone
snmpsrc EtherMeter
snmpstat Sniffer
snmptrapd SpiderMonitor
snmpwatch
snmpxbar
snmpxconn star
snmpxmon LAN Patrol
snmpxperf LANWatch
snmpxperfmon map
snmpxrtmetric NETMON (III)
Unisys NCC proxyd
WIN/MGT Station Sniffer
xnetmon (I) Snmp Libraries
XNETMON (II) snmpd (II)
xnetperfmon XNETMON (II)
xnetperfmon
IETF NOCTools Working Group [Page 16]
RFC 1147 FYI: Network Management Tool Catalog April 1990
status traffic
CMIP Library ENTM
CMU SNMP etherfind
ConnectVIEW EtherMeter
DiG EtherView
Dual Manager LAN Patrol
getone LanProbe
Internet Rover LANWatch
LanProbe NETMON (II)
mconnect netwatch
Netlabs CMOT Agent Network Integrator
Netlabs SNMP Agent nfswatch
netmon (I) NMC
net_monitor NNStat
NMC osimon
NNStat OSITRACE
NPRV Sniffer
nslookup snmpxperfmon
osimic SpiderMonitor
osimon tcpdump
OverVIEW tcplogger
ping TRPT
proxyd Unisys NCC
sma WIN/MGT Station
SNMP Kit
Snmp Libraries
snmpask
snmpd (I)
snmpd (II)
snmplookup
snmpperfmon
snmppoll
snmpquery
snmpstat
snmpwatch
snmpxbar
snmpxconn
snmpxmon
snmpxperf
snmpxperfmon
TokenVIEW
Unisys NCC
WIN/MGT Station
xnetmon (I)
XNETMON (II)
xnetperfmon
xup
IETF NOCTools Working Group [Page 17]
RFC 1147 FYI: Network Management Tool Catalog April 1990
snmpxbar
UNIX snmpxconn
arp snmpxmon
CMIP Library snmpxperf
CMU SNMP snmpxperfmon
decaddrs snmpxrtmetric
DiG SPIMS
Dual Manager spray
etherfind tcpdump
etherhostprobe tcplogger
EtherView traceroute
getone TRPT
Internet Rover TTCP
map Unisys NCC
mconnect WIN/MGT Station
NETMON (II) xnetmon (I)
netstat XNETMON (II)
Network Integrator xnetperfmon
net_monitor
nfswatch
nhfsstone VMS
NMC arp
NNStat ENTM
nslookup netstat
osilog net_monitor
osimic NPRV
osimon nslookup
OSITRACE ping
ping Snmp Libraries
proxyd tcpdump
query traceroute
SERAG TTCP
sma XNETMON (II)
SNMP Kit xnetperfmon
Snmp Libraries
snmpask
snmpd (I)
snmpd (II)
snmplookup
snmpperfmon
snmppoll
snmpquery
snmproute
snmpset
snmpsrc
snmpstat
snmptrapd
snmpwatch
IETF NOCTools Working Group [Page 18]
RFC 1147 FYI: Network Management Tool Catalog April 1990
X
Dual Manager
map
snmpxbar
snmpxconn
snmpxmon
snmpxperf
snmpxperfmon
snmpxrtmetric
WIN/MGT Station
XNETMON (II)
xnetperfmon
xup
IETF NOCTools Working Group [Page 19]
RFC 1147 FYI: Network Management Tool Catalog April 1990
3. Tool Descriptions
This section is a collection of brief descriptions of tools
for managing TCP/IP internets. These entries are in alpha-
betical order, by tool name.
The entries all follow a standard format. Immediately after
the NAME of a tool are its associated KEYWORDS. Keywords
are terse descriptions of the purposes or attributes of a
tool. A more detailed description of a tool's purpose and
characteristics is given in the ABSTRACT section. The
MECHANISM section describes how a tool works. In CAVEATS,
warnings about tool use are given. In BUGS, known bugs or
bug-report procedures are given. LIMITATIONS describes the
boundaries of a tool's capabilities. HARDWARE REQUIRED and
SOFTWARE REQUIRED relate the operational environment a tool
needs. Finally, in AVAILABILITY, pointers to vendors,
online repositories, or other sources for a tool are given.
We deal with the problem of tool-name clashes -- different
tools that have the same name -- by appending parenthetical
roman numerals to the names. For example, BYU, MITRE, and
SNMP Research each submitted a description of a tool called
"NETMON." These tools were independently developed, are
functionally different, run in different environments, and
are no more related than Richard Burton the 19th century
explorer and Richard Burton the 20th century actor. BYU's
tool "NETMON" is listed as "NETMON (I)," MITRE's as "NETMON
(II)," and the tool from SNMP Research as "NETMON (III)."
The parenthetical roman numerals reveal only the order in
which the catalog editor received the tool descriptions.
They should not be construed to indicate any sort of prefer-
ence, priority, or rights to a tool name.
IETF NOCTools Working Group [Page 20]
Internet Tool Catalog ARP
NAME
arp
KEYWORDS
routing; ethernet, IP; UNIX, VMS; free.
ABSTRACT
Arp displays and can modify the internet-to-ethernet
address translations tables used by ARP, the address
resolution protocol.
MECHANISM
The arp program accesses operating system memory to
read the ARP data structures.
CAVEATS
None.
BUGS
None known.
LIMITATIONS
Only the super user can modify ARP entries.
HARDWARE REQUIRED
No restrictions.
SOFTWARE REQUIRED
BSD UNIX or related OS, or VMS.
AVAILABILITY
Available via anonymous FTP from uunet.uu.net, in
directory bsd-sources/src/etc. Available with 4.xBSD
UNIX and related operating systems. For VMS, available
as part of TGV MultiNet IP software package, as well as
Wollongong's WIN/TCP.
IETF NOCTools Working Group [Page 21]
Internet Tool Catalog CMIP LIBRARY
NAME
CMIP Library
KEYWORDS
alarm, control, manager, status; OSI; UNIX; free,
library, sourcelib.
ABSTRACT
The CMIP Library implements the functionality of the
Common Management Information Service/Protocol as in
the documents ISO DP 9595-2/9596-2 of March 1988. It
can act as a building block for the construction of
CMIP-based agent and manager applications.
MECHANISM
The CMIP library uses ISO ROS, ACSE and ASN.1 presenta-
tion, as implemented in ISODE, to provide its service.
CAVEATS
None.
BUGS
None known.
LIMITATIONS
The M-CREATE, M-DELETE and M-ACTION protocol primitives
are not implemented in this version.
HARDWARE REQUIRED
Developed on Sun3, tested on Sun3 and VAXStation.
SOFTWARE REQUIRED
The ISODE protocol suite, BSD UNIX.
AVAILABILITY
The CMIP library and related management tools built
upon it, known as OSIMIS (OSI Management Information
Service), are publicly available from University Col-
lege London, England via FTP and FTAM. To obtain
information regarding a copy send email to
gknight@ac.ucl.cs.uk or call +44 1 380 7366.
IETF NOCTools Working Group [Page 22]
Internet Tool Catalog CMU SNMP
NAME
The CMU SNMP Distribution
KEYWORDS
manager, status; IP; NMS, SNMP; UNIX; free, sourcelib.
ABSTRACT
The CMU SNMP Distribution includes source code for an
SNMP agent, several SNMP client applications, an ASN.1
library, and supporting documentation.
The agent compiles into about 10 KB of 68000 code. The
distribution includes a full agent that runs on a
Kinetics FastPath2/3/4, and is built into the KIP
appletalk/ethernet gateway. The machine independent
portions of this agent also run on CMU's IBM PC/AT
based router.
The applications are designed to be useful in the real
world. Information is collected and presented in a
useful format and is suitable for everyday status moni-
toring. Input and output are interpreted symbolically.
The tools can be used without referencing the RFCs.
MECHANISM
SNMP.
CAVEATS
None.
BUGS
None reported. Send bug reports to
sw0l+snmp@andrew.cmu.edu. ("sw0l" is "ess double-you
zero ell.")
LIMITATIONS
None reported.
HARDWARE REQUIRED
The KIP gateway agent runs on a Kinetics FastPath2/3/4.
Otherwise, no restrictions.
SOFTWARE REQUIRED
The code was written with efficiency and portability in
mind. The applications compile and run on the follow-
ing systems: IBM PC/RT running ACIS Release 3, Sun3/50
running SUNOS 3.5, and the DEC microVax running Ultrix
2.2. They are expected to run on any system with a
IETF NOCTools Working Group [Page 23]
Internet Tool Catalog CMU SNMP
Berkeley socket interface.
AVAILABILITY
This distribution is copyrighted by CMU, but may be
used and sold without permission. Consult the copy-
right notices for further information. The distribu-
tion is available by anonymous FTP from the host
lancaster.andrew.cmu.edu (128.2.13.21) as the files
pub/cmu-snmp.9.tar, and pub/kip-snmp.9.tar. The former
includes the libraries and the applications, and the
latter is the KIP SNMP agent.
Please direct questions, comments, and bug reports to
sw0l+snmp@andrew.cmu.edu. ("sw0l" is "ess double-you
zero ell.") If you pick up this package, please send a
note to the above address, so that you may be notified
of future enhancements/changes and additions to the set
of applications (several are planned).
IETF NOCTools Working Group [Page 24]
Internet Tool Catalog COMPUTER SECURITY CHECKLIST
NAME
Computer Security Checklist
KEYWORDS
security; DOS.
ABSTRACT
This program consists of 858 computer security ques-
tions divided up in thirteen sections. The program
presents the questions to the user and records their
responses. After answering the questions in one of the
thirteen sections, the user can generate a report from
the questions and the user's answers. The thirteen
sections are: telecommunications security, physical
access security, personnel security, systems develop-
ment security, security awareness and training prac-
tices, organizational and management security, data and
program security, processing and operations security,
ergonomics and error prevention, environmental secu-
rity, and backup and recovery security.
The questions are weighted as to their importance, and
the report generator can sort the questions by weight.
This way the most important issues can be tackled
first.
MECHANISM
The questions are displayed on the screen and the user
is prompted for a single keystroke reply. When the end
of one of the thirteen sections is reached, the answers
are written to a disk file. The question file and the
answer file are merged to create the report file.
CAVEATS
None.
BUGS
None known.
LIMITATIONS
None reported.
HARDWARE REQUIRED
No restrictions.
SOFTWARE REQUIRED
DOS operating system.
IETF NOCTools Working Group [Page 25]
Internet Tool Catalog COMPUTER SECURITY CHECKLIST
AVAILABILITY
A commercial product available from:
C.D., Ltd.
P.O. Box 58363
Seattle, WA 98138
(206) 243-8700
IETF NOCTools Working Group [Page 26]
Internet Tool Catalog CONNECTVIEW
NAME
ConnectVIEW
KEYWORDS
control, manager, routing, security, status; bridge,
ethernet, ring; NMS, proprietary; DOS.
ABSTRACT
The ConnectVIEW Network Management System consists of
various software managers that control and manage Hal-
ley System's internets made of of ConnectLAN 100 ether-
net and ConnectLAN 200 Token Ring Brouters. The
management software provides an icon-based graphical
network display with real-time monitoring and report-
ing, along with configuration, fault, performance and
security management functions for managing ConnectLAN
brouters. A Planning function is also provided that
allows users to draw their networks.
MECHANISM
Proprietary.
CAVEATS
The ConnectVIEW software must be running under Micro-
soft Windows, preferably on a dedicated management sta-
tion. There is, however, no degradation of LAN
throughput.
BUGS
None known.
LIMITATIONS
Currently works only with Halley System's products.
HARDWARE REQUIRED
Requires a PC/AT compatible, with 640KB RAM, EGA
adapter and monitor, keyboard, mouse, and ethernet
adapter.
SOFTWARE REQUIRED
MSDOS 3.3 or higher. Microsoft Windows/286 version
2.1.
AVAILABILITY
Commercially available from:
Halley Systems, Inc.
2730 Orchard Parkway
San Jose, CA 95134
IETF NOCTools Working Group [Page 27]
Internet Tool Catalog CONNECTVIEW
NAME
decaddrs, decaroute, decnroute, xnsroutes, bridgetab
KEYWORDS
manager, map, routing; bridge, DECnet; NMS, SNMP; UNIX.
ABSTRACT
These commands display private MIB information from
Wellfleet systems. They retrieve and format for
display values of one or several MIB variables from the
Wellfleet Communications private enterprise MIB, using
the SNMP (RFC1098). In particular these tools are used
to examine the non-IP modules (DECnet, XNS, and Bridg-
ing) of a Wellfleet system.
Decaddrs displays the DECnet configuration of a
Wellfleet system acting as a DECnet router, showing the
static parameters associated with each DECnet inter-
face. Decaroute and decnroute display the DECnet
inter-area and intra-area routing tables (that is area
routes and node routes). Xnsroutes displays routes
known to a Wellfleet system acting as an XNS router.
Bridgetab displays the bridge forwarding table with the
disposition of traffic arriving from or directed to
each station known to the Wellfleet bridge module. All
these commands take an IP address as the argument and
can specify an SNMP community for the retrieval. One
SNMP query is performed for each row of the table.
Note that the Wellfleet system must be operating as an
IP router for the SNMP to be accessible.
MECHANISM
Management information is exchanged by use of SNMP.
CAVEATS
None.
BUGS
None known.
LIMITATIONS
None reported.
HARDWARE REQUIRED
Distributed and supported for Sun 3 systems.
SOFTWARE REQUIRED
Distributed and supported for SunOS 3.5 and 4.x.
IETF NOCTools Working Group [Page 28]
Internet Tool Catalog DECADDRS, DECAROUTE, et al.
AVAILABILITY
Commercial product of:
Wellfleet Communications, Inc.
12 DeAngelo Drive
Bedford, MA 01730-2204
(617) 275-2400
IETF NOCTools Working Group [Page 29]
Internet Tool Catalog DIG
NAME
DiG
KEYWORDS
status; DNS; spoof; UNIX; free.
ABSTRACT
DiG (domain information groper), is a command line tool
which queries DNS servers in either an interactive or a
batch mode. It was developed to be more
convenient/flexible than nslookup for gathering perfor-
mance data and testing DNS servers.
MECHANISM
Dig is built on a slightly modified version of the bind
resolver (release 4.8).
CAVEATS
none.
BUGS
None known.
LIMITATIONS
None reported.
HARDWARE REQUIRED
No restrictions.
SOFTWARE REQUIRED
BSD UNIX.
AVAILABILITY
DiG is available via anonymous FTP from venera.isi.edu
in pub/dig.1.0.tar.Z.
IETF NOCTools Working Group [Page 30]
Internet Tool Catalog DUAL MANAGER
NAME
Dual Manager
KEYWORDS
alarm, control, manager, map, security, status; IP,
OSI; NMS, SNMP, X; UNIX; library.
ABSTRACT
Netlabs' Dual Manager provides management of TCP/IP
networks using both SNMP and CMOT protocols. Such
management can be initiated either through the X-
Windows user interface (both Motif and Openlook), or
through OSI Network Management (CMIP) commands. The
Dual Manager provides for configuration, fault, secu-
rity and performance management. It provides extensive
map management features, including scanned maps in the
background. It provides simple mechanisms to extend
the MIB and assign specific lists of objects to
specific network elements, thereby providing for the
management of all vendors' specific MIB extensions. It
provides an optional relational DBMS for storing and
retrieving MIB and alarm information. Finally, the
Dual Manager is an open platform, in that it provides
several Application Programming Interfaces (APIs) for
users to extend the functionality of the Dual Manager.
The Dual Manager is expected to work as a TCP/IP
"branch manager" under DEC's EMA, AT&T's UNMA and other
OSI-conformant enterprise management architectures.
MECHANISM
The Netlabs Dual Manager supports the control and moni-
toring of network resources by use of both CMOT and
SNMP message exchanges.
CAVEATS
None.
BUGS
None known.
LIMITATIONS
None reported.
HARDWARE REQUIRED
Runs on Sun/3 and Sun/4s.
IETF NOCTools Working Group [Page 31]
Internet Tool Catalog DUAL MANAGER
SOFTWARE REQUIRED
Available on System V or SCO Open Desktop environments.
Uses X-Windows for the user interface.
AVAILABILITY
Commercially available from:
Netlabs Inc
11693 Chenault Street Ste 348
Los Angeles CA 90049
(213) 476-4070
lam@netlabs.com (Anne Lam)
IETF NOCTools Working Group [Page 32]
Internet Tool Catalog ENTM
NAME
ENTM -- Ethernet Traffic Monitor
KEYWORDS
traffic; ethernet, IP; eavesdrop; VMS; free.
ABSTRACT
ENTM is a screen-oriented utility that runs under
VAX/VMS. It monitors local ethernet traffic and
displays either a real time or cumulative, histogram
showing a percent breakdown of traffic by ethernet pro-
tocol type. The information in the display can be
reported based on packet count or byte count. The per-
cent of broadcast, multicast and approximate lost pack-
ets is reported as well. The screen display is updated
every three seconds. Additionally, a real time, slid-
ing history window may be displayed showing ethernet
traffic patterns for the last five minutes.
ENTM can also report IP traffic statistics by packet
count or byte count. The IP histograms reflect infor-
mation collected at the TCP and UDP port level, includ-
ing ICMP type/code combinations. Both the ethernet and
IP histograms may be sorted by ASCII protocol/port name
or by percent-value. All screen displays can be saved
in a file for printing later.
MECHANISM
This utility simply places the ethernet controller in
promiscuous mode and monitors the local area network
traffic. It preallocates 10 receive buffers and
attempts to keep 22 reads pending on the ethernet dev-
ice.
CAVEATS
Placing the ethernet controller in promiscuous mode may
severly slow down a VAX system. Depending on the speed
of the VAX system and the amount of traffic on the lo-
cal ethernet, a large amount of CPU time may be spent
on the Interrupt Stack. Running this code on any pro-
duction system during operational hours is discouraged.
IETF NOCTools Working Group [Page 33]
Internet Tool Catalog ENTM
BUGS
Due to a bug in the VAX/VMS ethernet/802 device driver,
IEEE 802 format packets may not always be detected. A
simple test is performed to "guess" which packets are
in IEEE 802 format (DSAP equal to SSAP). Thus, some
DSAP/SSAP pairs may be reported as an ethernet type,
while valid ethernet types may be reported as IEEE 802
packets.
In some hardware configurations, placing an ethernet
controller in promiscuous mode with automatic-restart
enabled will hang the controller. Our VAX 8650 hangs
running this code, while our uVAX IIs and uVAX IIIs do
not.
Please report any additional bugs to the author at:
Allen Sturtevant
National Magnetic Fusion Energy Computer Center
Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory
P.O. Box 808; L-561
Livermore, CA 94550
Phone : (415) 422-8266
E-Mail: sturtevant@ccc.nmfecc.gov
LIMITATIONS
The user is required to have PHY_IO, TMPMBX and NETMBX
privileges. When activated, the program first checks
that the user process as enough quotas remaining
(BYTLM, BIOLM, ASTLM and PAGFLQUO) to successfully run
the program without entering into an involuntary wait
state. Some quotas require a fairly generous setting.
The contents of IEEE 802 packets are not examined.
Only the presence of IEEE 802 packets on the wire is
reported.
The count of lost packets is approximated. If, after
each read completes on the ethernet device, the utility
detects that it has no reads pending on that device,
the lost packet counter is incremented by one.
When the total number of bytes processed exceeds
7fffffff hex, all counters are automatically reset to
zero.
HARDWARE REQUIRED
A DEC ethernet controller.
IETF NOCTools Working Group [Page 34]
Internet Tool Catalog ENTM
SOFTWARE REQUIRED
VAX/VMS version V5.1+.
AVAILABILITY
For executables only, FTP to the ANONYMOUS account
(password GUEST) on CCC.NMFECC.GOV and GET the follow-
ing files:
[ANONYMOUS.PROGRAMS.ENTM]ENTM.DOC (ASCII text)
[ANONYMOUS.PROGRAMS.ENTM]ENTM.EXE (binary)
[ANONYMOUS.PROGRAMS.ENTM]EN_TYPES.DAT (ASCII text)
[ANONYMOUS.PROGRAMS.ENTM]IP_TYPES.DAT (ASCII text)
IETF NOCTools Working Group [Page 35]
Internet Tool Catalog ETHERFIND
NAME
etherfind
KEYWORDS
traffic; ethernet, IP, NFS; eavesdrop; UNIX.
ABSTRACT
Etherfind examines the packets that traverse a network
interface, and outputs a text file describing the
traffic. In the file, a single line of text describes
a single packet: it contains values such as protocol
type, length, source, and destination. Etherfind can
print out all packet traffic on the ethernet, or
traffic for the local host. Further packet filtering
can be done on the basis of protocol: IP, ARP, RARP,
ICMP, UDP, ND, TCP, and filtering can also be done
based on the source, destination addresses as well as
TCP and UDP port numbers.
MECHANISM
In usual operations, and by default, etherfind puts the
interface in promiscuous mode. In 4.3BSD UNIX and
related OSs, it uses a Network Interface Tap (NIT) to
obtain a copy of traffic on an ethernet interface.
CAVEATS
None.
BUGS
None known.
LIMITATIONS
Minimal protocol information is printed. Can only be
run by the super user. The syntax is painful.
HARDWARE REQUIRED
Ethernet.
SOFTWARE REQUIRED
SunOS.
AVAILABILITY
Executable included in Sun OS "Networking Tools and
Programs" software installation option.
IETF NOCTools Working Group [Page 36]
Internet Tool Catalog ETHERHOSTPROBE
NAME
etherhostprobe
KEYWORDS
map, routing; ethernet, IP; ping; UNIX; free.
ABSTRACT
Output list of hosts on an ethernet that respond to IP
ARP. Produces a list in the following format:
08:00:20:01:96:62 128.18.4.114 apptek4
08:00:20:00:02:fe 128.18.4.115 apptek5
08:00:20:00:57:6a 128.18.4.116 apptek6
08:00:20:00:65:34 128.18.4.117 apptek7
08:00:20:06:58:6f 128.18.4.118 apptek8
08:00:20:00:03:4f 128.18.4.119 apptek9
The first column is the ethernet address, the second
the IP address, and the third is the hostname (which is
omitted if the name could not be found via gethost-
byaddr). A starting and ending IP address may be
specified on the command line, which will limit the
search.
MECHANISM
Etherhostprobe sends a UDP packet to the ``echo'' port,
then looks in the kernel's ARP cache for the
corresponding address entry. Explicit response (or
lack of same) to the UDP packet is ignored. The cache
will be checked up to four times at one-quarter-second
intervals. Note that this allows the program to be run
by a user with no special privileges.
CAVEATS
Etherhostprobe will fill the kernel's ARP cache with
possibly useless entries, possibly causing delays to
programs foolishly attempting to accomplish real work.
Etherhostprobe causes -lots- of ARPs to be generated,
possibly fooling network monitoring software (or peo-
ple) into concluding that something is horribly broken.
Etherhostprobe spends up to one second looking for each
possible address. Thus, exhaustively searching a
class-C network will take about four minutes, and
exhaustively searching a class-B network will take
about 18 hours. Exhaustively searching a class-A net-
work will take the better part of a year, so don't even
IETF NOCTools Working Group [Page 37]
Internet Tool Catalog ETHERHOSTPROBE
think about it.
Etherhostprobe will be fooled by gateways that imple-
ment proxy ARP; every possible address on the proxy-
ARPed subnet will be listed with the gateway's ethernet
address.
BUGS
None known.
LIMITATIONS
If a given machine is not running IP ARP at the time
that it is probed, it will be considered nonexistent.
In particular, if a given machine is down at the time
that it is probed . . .
All hosts being probed must be on the same (possibly
bridged) ethernet.
HARDWARE REQUIRED
No restrictions, but see below.
SOFTWARE REQUIRED
Runs on SunOS 3.5, and possibly elsewhere. The major
non-standard portion of code is ``tx_arp.c'', which
reads the kernel's ARP cache.
AVAILABILITY
Copyrighted, but freely distributed. Available via
anonymous FTP from spam.itstd.sri.com (128.18.10.1).
From pub directory, file EHP.1 for etherhostprobe, and
files IPF.1 and IPF.2 for ipForwarding.
IETF NOCTools Working Group [Page 38]
Internet Tool Catalog ETHERMETER
NAME
EtherMeter (tm), model LANB/150
KEYWORDS
alarm, map, traffic; ethernet; NMS, proprietary; stan-
dalone.
ABSTRACT
The Network Applications Technology (NAT) EtherMeter
product is a dedicated ethernet traffic monitor that
provides statistics on the ethernet segment to which it
is attached. The EtherMeter reports three major kinds
of statistics. For good packets, it reports the total
number of good packets seen on the segment, the number
of multicast and broadcast packets, and the total
number of bytes in all packets seen. For packets with
errors, it reports the number of CRC errors, short
packets, oversize packets, and alignment errors. It
also reports the distribution of packet by type, and
the number of protocols seen on the segment. A count
of transmit collisions is reported. Peak and current
ethernet utilization rates are also reported, etc.
Alarms can be set for utilization rate, packet rate,
total error count, and delta error.
The EtherMeter reports the statistics to a Network
Management Station (NMS), also available from NAT, via
IP/UDP datagrams, so that the meters can be monitored
through routers. The NMS displays graphical and/or
textual information, and EtherMeter icons turn colors
to indicate status. Alarms can be set, and if the lev-
els are exceeded an audible alarm is generated on the
NMS, and the EtherMeter icon changes from green to yel-
low on the network map.
MECHANISM
The EtherMeter is a self-contained board that can
either be plugged into a PC/AT bus for power or
installed in a small stand-alone enclosure. The board
can be obtained with either a 10BASE5 thick ethernet
transceiver cable connector, or a 10BASE2 thin ethernet
BNC connector.
CAVEATS
The EtherMeter is primarily a passive device whose only
impact on the network will come from the monitoring
packets sent to the NMS. The EtherMeter is assigned an
IP address for communication with the NMS.
IETF NOCTools Working Group [Page 39]
Internet Tool Catalog ETHERMETER
BUGS
None known.
LIMITATIONS
Proprietary protocol currently in use. The company has
stated its intention to develop SNMP for the EtherMeter
product in the first half of 1990. Currently the NMS
does not keep log files. This limitation is ack-
nowledged, and plans are underway to add ASCII log file
capability to the NMS.
HARDWARE REQUIRED
An EtherMeter board and a PC/AT bus to plug it into, or
a stand-alone enclosure with power supply (available
from NAT). A Network Management Station and its
software is required as well, to fully interact with
the EtherMeter devices.
SOFTWARE REQUIRED
The EtherMeter software is included in ROM on the dev-
ice. The NMS software is bundled in with the NMS
hardware.
AVAILABILITY
The EtherMeter device, stand-alone enclosure, and Net-
work Management Station, are available commercially
from:
Network Application Technology, Inc.
21040 Homestead Road
Cupertino, California 95014
Phone: (408) 733-4530
Fax: (408) 733-6478
IETF NOCTools Working Group [Page 40]
Internet Tool Catalog ETHERVIEW
NAME
EtherView(tm)
KEYWORDS
traffic; ethernet, IP, NFS; eavesdrop; UNIX.
ABSTRACT
EtherView is a network monitoring tool which runs on
Sun workstations and allows you to monitor your hetero-
geneous internet network. It monitors all systems on
the ethernet. It has three primary functions:
Load Profile: It allows users to monitor the load on
the ethernet over extended periods of time. The net-
work administrator can use it to characterize load gen-
erated by a node on the network, determine which sys-
tems and applications generate how much of the load and
how that load fluctuates over long periods of time.
NFS Profile: It allows the network administrator to
determine the load on NFS servers, the average response
time NFS servers and the mix of NFS load on each of the
servers. Users can use the data to benchmark different
NFS servers, determine which servers are overloaded,
deduce the number of clients that each server can sup-
port and evaluate the effectiveness of NFS accelera-
tors.
Protocol Analyzer: Users can capture packets based on
source, destination, application, protocol, bit pat-
tern, packet size or a boolean filtering expression.
It provides all standard features such as configurable
buffer size, packet slicing and bit pattern based
triggering criterion. It does automatic disassembly of
NFS, TCP, UDP, IP, ICMP, ARP and RARP packets. Packets
can be examined in any combination of summary, hex or
detail format.
MECHANISM
EtherView uses the Sun's NIT interface to turn the eth-
ernet interface into promiscuous mode to capture pack-
ets. A high level process manages the interface and a
low level process does the actual capturing and filter-
ing. Shared memory is used to communicate between the
two processes.
BUGS
None known.
IETF NOCTools Working Group [Page 41]
Internet Tool Catalog ETHERVIEW
LIMITATIONS
Because of limitations in Sun's NIT interface, Ether-
View will not capture packets originating from the sys-
tem where it is run.
EtherView requires super-user privileges on the system
where it is run.
HARDWARE REQUIRED
EtherView runs on all models of Sun-3, Sun-4 and Sun-
386i.
SOFTWARE REQUIRED
Sun-3 - SunOS 4.0.3. (SunOS 4.0 with NIT fixes).
Sun-4 - SunOS 4.0.
Sun-386i - SunOS 4.0.
Runs under SunView.
Will run under X Windows in future.
AVAILABILITY
EtherView is copyrighted, commercial product of:
Matrix Computer Systems, Inc.
7 1/2 Harris Road
Nashua, NH 03062
Tel: (603) 888-7790
email: ...uunet!matrix!eview
IETF NOCTools Working Group [Page 42]
Internet Tool Catalog GETONE, GETMANY, et al.
NAME
getone, getmany, getroute, getarp, getaddr, getif,
getid.
KEYWORDS
manager, routing, status; IP; NMS, SNMP; UNIX.
ABSTRACT
These commands retrieve and format for display values
of one or several MIB variables (RFC1066) using the
SNMP (RFC1098). Getone and getmany retrieve arbitrary
MIB variables; getroute, getarp, getaddr, and getif
retrieve and display tabular information (routing
tables, ARP table, interface configuration, etc.), and
getid retrieves and displays system name, identifica-
tion and boot time.
Getone <target> <mibvariable> retrieves and displays
the value of the designated MIB variable from the
specified target system. The SNMP community name to be
used for the retrieval can also be specified. Getmany
works similarly for groups of MIB variables rather than
individual values. The name of each variable, its
value and its data type is displayed. Getroute returns
information from the ipRoutingTable MIB structure,
displaying the retrieved information in an accessible
format. Getarp behaves similarly for the address
translation table; getaddr for the ipAddressTable; and
getif displays information from the interfaces table,
supplemented with information from the ipAddressTable.
Getid displays the system name, identification, ipFor-
warding state, and the boot time and date. All take a
system name or IP address as an argument and can
specify an SNMP community for the retrieval. One SNMP
query is performed for each row of the table.
MECHANISM
Queries SNMP agent(s).
CAVEATS
None.
BUGS
None known.
LIMITATIONS
None reported.
IETF NOCTools Working Group [Page 43]
Internet Tool Catalog GETONE, GETMANY, et al.
HARDWARE REQUIRED
Distributed and supported for Sun 3 systems.
SOFTWARE REQUIRED
Distributed and supported for SunOS 3.5 and 4.x.
AVAILABILITY
Commercial product of:
Wellfleet Communications, Inc.
12 DeAngelo Drive
Bedford, MA 01730-2204
(617) 275-2400
IETF NOCTools Working Group [Page 44]
Internet Tool Catalog HAMMER & ANVIL
NAME
hammer & anvil
KEYWORDS
benchmark, generator; IP; DOS; free.
ABSTRACT
Hammer and anvil are the benchmarking programs for IP
routers. Using these tools, gateways have been tested
for per-packet delay, router-generated traffic over-
head, maximum sustained throughput, etc.
MECHANISM
Tests are performed on a gateway in an isolated
testbed. Hammer generates packets at controlled rates.
It can set the length and interpacket interval of a
packet stream. Anvil counts packet arrivals.
CAVEATS
Hammer should not be run on a live network.
BUGS
None reported.
LIMITATIONS
Early versions of hammer could not produce inter-packet
intervals shorter than 55 usec.
HARDWARE REQUIRED
Hammer runs on a PC/AT or compatible, and anvil
requires a PC or clone. Both use a Micom Interlan
NI5210 for LAN interface.
SOFTWARE REQUIRED
MS-DOS.
AVAILABILITY
Hammer and anvil are copyrighted, though free. Copies
are available from pub/eutil on husc6.harvard.edu.
IETF NOCTools Working Group [Page 45]
Internet Tool Catalog HOPCHECK
NAME
hopcheck
KEYWORDS
routing; IP; ping; DOS; free.
ABSTRACT
Hopcheck is a tool that lists the gateways traversed by
packets sent from the hopcheck-resident PC to a desti-
nation. Hopcheck uses the same mechanism as traceroute
but is for use on IBM PC compatibles that have ethernet
connections. Hopcheck is part of a larger TCP/IP pack-
age that is known as ka9q that is for use with packet
radio. Ka9q can coexist on a PC with other TCP/IP
packages such as FTP Inc's PC/TCP, but must be used
independently of other packages. Ka9q was written by
Phil Karn. Hopcheck was added by Katie Stevens,
dkstevens@ucdavis.edu. Unlike traceroute, which
requires a UNIX kernel mod, hopcheck will run on the
standard, unmodified ka9q release.
MECHANISM
See the description in traceroute.
CAVEATS
See the description in traceroute.
BUGS
None known.
LIMITATIONS
Host table required. Does not work with domain name
server or with IP address as the argument. This is
mainly an inconvenience.
HARDWARE REQUIRED
IBM PC compatible with ethernet network interface card,
though does not work with 3Com 505 board.
SOFTWARE REQUIRED
DOS.
IETF NOCTools Working Group [Page 46]
Internet Tool Catalog HOPCHECK
AVAILABILITY
Free. On deposit at the National Center for Atmospher-
ic Research. For access from UNIX, available via
anonymous FTP from windom.ucar.edu, in directory "etc,"
as hopcheck.tar.Z. For access directly from a PC,
fetch nethop.exe and readme.hop; nethop.exe is execut-
able. Also available via anonymous FTP at ucdavis.edu,
in the nethopexe or nethopsrc suite of files in direc-
tory "dist."
IETF NOCTools Working Group [Page 47]
Internet Tool Catalog HYPERMIB
NAME
HyperMIB
KEYWORDS
reference; Macintosh; free, sourcelib.
ABSTRACT
HyperMIB is a hypertext presentation of the MIB
(RFC1066). The tree structure of the MIB is presented
graphically, and the user traverses the tree by select-
ing branches of the tree. When the MIB variables are
displayed, selecting them causes a text window to
appear and show the definition of that variable (using
the actual text of the MIB document).
MECHANISM
The Apple Macintosh HyperCard utility is used. The
actual text of the MIB document is read into scrollable
text windows, and a string search is done on the vari-
able selected. A person familiar with HyperCard pro-
gramming could modify the program to suit their needs
(such as to add the definitions for their company's
private space).
CAVEATS
None.
BUGS
None known.
LIMITATIONS
This program only gives the definition of the MIB vari-
ables. It cannot poll a node to find the value of the
variables.
HARDWARE REQUIRED
Apple Macintosh computer with at least 1MByte of RAM.
SOFTWARE REQUIRED
Apple Macintosh operating system and HyperCard.
AVAILABILITY
This software may be copied and given away without
charge. The files are available by anonymous FTP on
CCC.NMFECC.GOV. The files are:
[Anonymous.programs.HyperMIB]Hyper_MIB.help (ASCII text)
[Anonymous.programs.HyperMIB]Hyper.MIB (binary)
IETF NOCTools Working Group [Page 48]
Internet Tool Catalog HYPERMIB
[Anonymous.programs.HyperMIB]MIB.tree (binary)
The software is also available for a nominal fee from:
National Energy Software Center
Argonne National Laboratory
9700 South Cass Avenue
Argonne, Illinois 60439
(312) 972-7250
IETF NOCTools Working Group [Page 49]
Internet Tool Catalog INTERNET ROVER
NAME
Internet Rover
KEYWORDS
status; IP, SMTP; curses, ping, spoof; UNIX; free,
sourcelib.
ABSTRACT
Internet Rover is a prototype network monitor that uses
multiple protocol "modules" to test network functional-
ity. This package consists of two primary pieces of
code: the data collector and the problem display.
There is one data collector that performs a series of
network tests, and maintains a list of problems with
the network. There can be many display processes all
displaying the current list of problems which is useful
in a multi-operator NOC.
The display task uses curses, allowing many terminal
types to display the problem file either locally or
from a remote site. Full source is provided. The data
collector is easily configured and extensible. Contri-
butions such as additional protocol modules, and shell
script extensions are welcome.
MECHANISM
A configuration file contains a list of nodes,
addresses, NodeUp? protocol test (ping in most cases),
and a list of further tests to be performed if the node
is in fact up. Modules are included to test TELNET,
FTP, and SMTP. If the configuration contains a test
that isn't recognized, a generic test is assumed, and a
filename is checked for existence. This way users can
create scripts that create a file if there is a prob-
lem, and the data collector simply checks the existence
of that file to determine if there is problem.
CAVEATS
None.
BUGS
None known.
IETF NOCTools Working Group [Page 50]
Internet Tool Catalog INTERNET ROVER
LIMITATIONS
This tools does not yet have the capability to perform
actions based on the result of the test. Rather, it is
intended for a multi-operator environment, and simply
displays a list of what is wrong with the net.
HARDWARE REQUIRED
This software is known to run on Suns and IBM RTs.
SOFTWARE REQUIRED
Curses, 4.xBSD UNIX socket programming libraries, BSD
ping.
AVAILABILITY
Full source available via anonymous FTP from merit.edu
(35.1.1.42) in the ~ftp/pub/inetrover directory.
Source and executables are public domain and can be
freely distributed for non-commercial use. This pack-
age is unsupported, but bug reports and fixes may be
sent to: wbn@merit.edu.
IETF NOCTools Working Group [Page 51]
Internet Tool Catalog LAN PATROL
NAME
LAN Patrol
KEYWORDS
security, traffic; ethernet, star; eavesdrop; DOS.
ABSTRACT
LAN Patrol is a full-featured network analyzer that
provides essential information for effective fault and
performance management. It allows network managers to
easily monitor user activity, find traffic overloads,
plan for growth, test cable, uncover intruders, balance
network services, and so on. LAN Patrol uses state of
the art data collection techniques to monitor all
activity on a network, giving an accurate picture of
how it is performing.
LAN Patrol's reports can be saved as ASCII files to
disk, and imported into spreadsheet or database pro-
grams for further analysis.
MECHANISM
The LAN Patrol interface driver programs a standard
interface card to capture all traffic on a network seg-
ment. The driver operates from the background of a
standard PC, maintaining statistics for each station on
the network. The information can be viewed on the PC's
screen, or as a user-defined report output either to
file or printer.
CAVEATS
None. Normal operation is completely passive, making
LAN Patrol transparent to the network.
BUGS
None known.
LIMITATIONS
LAN Patrol can monitor up to 10,000 packets/sec on an
AT class PC, and is limited to monitoring a maximum of
1024 stations for intervals of up to 30 days.
Because LAN Patrol operates at the physical level, it
will only see traffic for the segment on which it is
installed; it cannot see traffic across bridges.
IETF NOCTools Working Group [Page 52]
Internet Tool Catalog LAN PATROL
HARDWARE REQUIRED
Computer: IBM PC/XT/AT, PS/2 Model 30, or compatible.
Requires 512K memory and a hard drive or double-sided
disk drive.
Display: Color or monochrome text. Color display
allows color-coding of traffic information.
Ethernet, StarLAN, LattisNet, or StarLAN 10 network
interface card.
SOFTWARE REQUIRED
PC DOS, MS-DOS version 3.1 or greater.
AVAILABILITY
LAN Patrol many be purchased through network dealers,
or directly from:
Legend Software, Inc.
Phone: (201) 227-8771
FAX: (201) 906-1151
IETF NOCTools Working Group [Page 53]
Internet Tool Catalog LANPROBE
NAME
LanProbe -- the HP 4990S LanProbe Distributed Analysis
System.
KEYWORDS
alarm, manager, map, status, traffic; ethernet; eaves-
drop, NMS; proprietary.
ABSTRACT
The LanProbe distributed monitoring system performs
remote and local monitoring of ethernet LANs in a pro-
tocol and vendor independent manner.
LanProbe discovers each active node on a segment and
displays it on a map with its adapter card vendor name,
ethernet address, and IP address. Additional informa-
tion about the nodes, such as equipment type and physi-
cal location can be entered in to the data base by the
user.
When the NodeLocator option is used, data on the actual
location of nodes is automatically entered and the map
becomes an accurate representation of the physical lay-
out of the segment. Thereafter when a new node is
installed and becomes active, or when a node is moved
or becomes inactive, the change is detected and shown
on the map in real time. The system also provides the
network manager with precise cable fault information
displayed on the map.
Traffic statistics are gathered and displayed and can
be exported in (comma delimited) CSV format for further
analysis. Alerts can be set on user defined thres-
holds.
Trace provides a remote protocol analyzer capability
with decodes for common protocols.
Significant events (like power failure, cable breaks,
new node on network, broadcast IP source address seen,
etc.) are tracked in a log that is uploaded to Pro-
beView periodically.
ProbeView generates reports that can be manipulated by
MSDOS based word processors, spreadsheets, and DBMS.
IETF NOCTools Working Group [Page 54]
Internet Tool Catalog LANPROBE
MECHANISM
The system consists of one or more LanProbe segment
monitors and ProbeView software running under Microsoft
Windows. The LanProbe segment monitor attaches to the
end of an ethernet segment and monitors all traffic.
Attachment can be direct to a thin or thick coax cable,
or via an external transceiver to fiber optic or twist-
ed pair cabling. Network data relating to the segment
is transferred to a workstation running ProbeView via
RS-232, ethernet, or a modem connection.
ProbeView software, which runs on a PC/AT class works-
tation, presents network information in graphical
displays.
The HP4992A NodeLocator option attaches to the opposite
end of the cable from the HP4991A LanProbe segment mon-
itor. It automatically locates the position of nodes
on the ethernet networks using coaxial cabling schemes.
CAVEATS
None.
BUGS
None known.
LIMITATIONS
None reported.
HARDWARE REQUIRED
HP 4991A LanProbe segment monitor
HP 4992A NodeLocator (for optional capabilities)
80386 based PC capable of running MS-Windows
SOFTWARE REQUIRED
HP 4990A ProbeView
MSDOS 3.0 or higher and Microsoft Windows/286 2.1.
AVAILABILITY
A commercial product available from:
Hewlett-Packard Company
P.O. Box 10301,
Palo Alto, CA 94303-0890
IETF NOCTools Working Group [Page 55]
Internet Tool Catalog LANWATCH
NAME
LANWatch
KEYWORDS
alarm, analyzer, traffic; CHAOS, DECnet, DNS, ethernet,
IP, OSI, ring, SMTP, star; eavesdrop; DOS; library,
sourcelib.
ABSTRACT
LANWatch 2.0 is an inexpensive, powerful and flexible
network analyzer that runs under DOS on personal com-
puters and requires no hardware modifications to either
the host or the network. LANWatch is an invaluable
tool for installing, troubleshooting, and monitoring
local area networks, and for developing and debugging
new protocols. Network managers using LANWatch can
inspect network traffic patterns and packet errors to
isolate performance problems and bottlenecks. Protocol
developers can use LANWatch to inspect and verify
proper protocol handling. Since LANWatch is a
software-only package which installs easily in existing
PCs, network technicians and field service engineers
can carry LANWatch in their briefcase for convenient
network analysis at remote sites.
LANWatch has two operating modes: Display and Examine.
In Display Mode, LANWatch traces network traffic by
displaying captured packets in real time. Examine Mode
allows you to scroll back through stored packets to
inspect them in detail. To select a subset of packets
for display, storage or retrieval, there is an exten-
sive set of built-in filters. Using filters, LANWatch
collects only packets of interest, saving the user from
having to sort through all network traffic to isolate
specific packets. The built-in filters include alarm,
trigger, capture, load, save and search. They can be
controlled separately to match on source or destination
address, protocol, or packet contents at the hardware
and transport layers. LANWatch also includes suffi-
cient source code so users can modify the existing
filters and parsers or add new ones.
The LANWatch distribution includes executables and
source for several post-processors: a TCP protocol
analyzer, a node-by-node traffic analyzer and a dump
file listing tool.
MECHANISM
IETF NOCTools Working Group [Page 56]
Internet Tool Catalog LANWATCH
Uses many common PC network interfaces by placing them
in promiscuous mode and capturing traffic.
CAVEATS
Most PC network interfaces will not capture 100% of the
traffic on a fully-loaded network (primarily missing
back-to-back packets).
BUGS
None known.
LIMITATIONS
LANWatch can't analyze what it doesn't see (see
Caveats).
HARDWARE REQUIRED
LANWatch requires a PC or PS/2 with a supported network
interface card.
SOFTWARE REQUIRED
LANWatch runs in DOS. Modification of the supplied
source code or creation of additional filters and
parsers requires Microsoft C 5.1
AVAILABILITY
LANWatch is commercially available from FTP Software,
Incorporated, 26 Princess Street, Wakefield, MA, 01880
(617 246-0900).
IETF NOCTools Working Group [Page 57]
Internet Tool Catalog MAP
NAME
map -- Interactive Network Map
KEYWORDS
manager, map; CHAOS, ethernet, IP, ring, star; NMS,
ping, SNMP, X; UNIX; free, sourcelib.
ABSTRACT
Map draws a map of network connectivity and allows
interactive examination of information about various
components including whether hosts can be reached over
the network.
The program is supplied with complete source and is
written in a modular fashion to make addition of dif-
ferent protocols stacks, displays, or hardcopy devices
relatively easy. This is one of the reasons why the
initial version supports at least two of each. Contri-
butions of additional drivers in any of these areas
will be welcome as well as porting to additional plat-
forms.
MECHANISM
Net components are pinged by use of ICMP echo and,
optionally, CHAOS status requests and SNMP "gets." The
program initializes itself from static data stored in
the file system and therefore does not need to access
the network in order to get running (unless the static
files are network mounted).
CAVEATS
As of publication, the tool is in beta release.
BUGS
Several minor nits, documented in distribution files.
Bug discoveries should be reported by email to Bug-
Map@LCS.MIT.Edu.
LIMITATIONS
See distribution file for an indepth discussion of sys-
tem capabilities and potential.
HARDWARE REQUIRED
An X display is needed for interactive display of the
map, non-graphical interaction is available in non-
display mode. For hardcopy output a PostScript or Tek-
tronix 4692 printer is required.
IETF NOCTools Working Group [Page 58]
Internet Tool Catalog MAP
SOFTWARE REQUIRED
BSD UNIX or related OS. IP/ICMP is required;
CHAOS/STATUS and SNMP can be used but are optional.
X-Windows is required for interactive display of the
map.
AVAILABILITY
As of publication, map is in beta release. To be added
to the email forum that discusses the software, or to
obtain individual files or instructions on getting the
full current release, send a request to:
MAP-Request@LCS.MIT.Edu.
The program is Copyright MIT. It is available via
anonymous FTP with a license making it free to use and
distribute for non-commercial purposes.
IETF NOCTools Working Group [Page 59]
Internet Tool Catalog MCONNECT
NAME
mconnect
KEYWORDS
status; SMTP; spoof; UNIX.
ABSTRACT
Mconnect allows an interactive session with a remote
mailer. Mail delivery problems can be diagnosed by
connecting to the remote mailer and issuing SMTP com-
mands directly.
MECHANISM
Opens a TCP connection to remote SMTP on port 25. Pro-
vides local line buffering and editing, which is the
distinction between mconnect and a TELNET to port 25.
CAVEATS
None.
BUGS
None known.
LIMITATIONS
Mconnect is not a large improvement over using a TELNET
connection to port 25.
HARDWARE REQUIRED
No restrictions.
SOFTWARE REQUIRED
BSD UNIX or related OS.
AVAILABILITY
Available with 4.xBSD UNIX and related operating sys-
tems.
IETF NOCTools Working Group [Page 60]
Internet Tool Catalog NETLABS CMOT AGENT
NAME
Netlabs CMOT Agent
KEYWORDS
manager, status; IP, OSI; NMS.
ABSTRACT
Netlabs' CMOT code debuted in Interop 89. The CMOT
code comes with an Extensible MIB, which allows users
to add new MIB variables. The code currently supports
all the MIB variables in RFC 1095 via the data types in
RFC 1065, as well as the emerging MIB-II, which is
currently in experimental stage. The CMOT has been
benchmarked at 100 Management Operations per Second
(MOPS) for a 1-MIPS machine.
MECHANISM
The Netlabs CMOT agent supports the control and moni-
toring of network resources by use of CMOT message
exchanges.
CAVEATS
None.
BUGS
None known.
LIMITATIONS
None reported.
HARDWARE REQUIRED
Portable to most hardware.
SOFTWARE REQUIRED
Portable to most operating systems.
AVAILABILITY
Commercially available from:
Netlabs Inc
11693 Chenault Street Ste 348
Los Angeles CA 90049
(213) 476-4070
lam@netlabs.com (Anne Lam)
IETF NOCTools Working Group [Page 61]
Internet Tool Catalog NETLABS SNMP AGENT
NAME
Netlabs SNMP Agent.
KEYWORDS
manager, status; IP; NMS, SNMP.
ABSTRACT
Netlabs' SNMP code debuted in Interop 89, where it
showed interoperation of the code with several imple-
mentations on the show floor. The SNMP code comes with
an Extensible MIB, which allows users to add new MIB
variables. The code currently supports all the MIB
variables in RFC 1066 via the data types in RFC 1065,
as well as the emerging MIB-II, which is currently in
experimental stage. The SNMP has been benchmarked at
200 Management Operations per Second (MOPS) for a 1-
MIPS machine.
MECHANISM
The Netlabs SNMP agent supports the control and moni-
toring of network resources by use of SNMP message
exchanges.
CAVEATS
None.
BUGS
None known.
LIMITATIONS
None reported.
HARDWARE REQUIRED
Portable to most hardware.
SOFTWARE REQUIRED
Portable to most operating systems.
AVAILABILITY
Commercially available from:
Netlabs Inc
11693 Chenault Street Ste 348
Los Angeles CA 90049
(213) 476-4070
lam@netlabs.com (Anne Lam)
IETF NOCTools Working Group [Page 62]
Internet Tool Catalog NETMON (I)
NAME
netmon
KEYWORDS
status; DNS, IP; ping; DOS; free.
ABSTRACT
Netmon is a DOS-based program that pings hosts on a
monitored list at user-specified intervals. In addi-
tion, a user may optionally ping hosts not on the list.
Netmon also performs domain lookups. Furthermore, a
user may build and send a domain query to any desired
DNS server.
MECHANISM
The tool works by using the echo service feature of
ICMP. It reports if it receives an incorrect response
or no response.
CAVEATS
Depending on the frequency of pinging and the number of
hosts pinged, netmon could create a high volume of
traffic.
BUGS
None known.
LIMITATIONS
None reported.
HARDWARE REQUIRED
A PC, and a Western Digital WD8003 interface card (or
any other card for which there is a packet driver for
FTP Software Inc.'s PC/TCP kernel). Both monochrome
and color displays are supported, though color is
recommended.
SOFTWARE REQUIRED
DOS operating system, and the PC/TCP Kernel by FTP
Software, Inc.
AVAILABILITY
The BYU modified version is available for anonymous FTP
from Dcsprod.byu.edu, in directory "programs." It can
be freely distributed for non-commercial use.
IETF NOCTools Working Group [Page 63]
Internet Tool Catalog NETMON (II)
NAME
NETMON and iptrace
KEYWORDS
traffic; IP; eavesdrop; UNIX; free.
ABSTRACT
NETMON is a facility to enable communication of net-
working events from the BSD UNIX operating system to a
user-level network monitoring or management program.
Iptrace is a program interfacing to NETMON which logs
TCP-IP traffic for performance measurement and gateway
monitoring. It is easy to build other NETMON-based
tools using iptrace as a model.
NETMON resides in the 4.3BSD UNIX kernel. It is
independent of hardware-specific code in UNIX. It is
transparent to protocol and network type, having no
internal assumptions about the network protocols being
recorded. It is installed in BSD-like kernels by
adding a standard function call (probe) to a few points
in the input and output routines of the protocols to be
logged.
NETMON is analogous to Sun Microsystems' NIT, but the
interface tap function is extended by recording more
context information. Aside from the timestamp, the
choice of information recorded is up to the installer
of the probes. The NETMON probes added to the BSD IP
code supplied with the distribution include as context:
input and output queue lengths, identification of the
network interface, and event codes labeling packet dis-
cards. (The NETMON distribution is geared towards
measuring the performance of BSD networking protocols
in an IP gateway).
NETMON is designed so that it can reside within the
monitored system with minimal interference to the net-
work processing. The estimated and measured overhead
is around five percent of packet processing.
The user-level tool "iptrace" is provided with NETMON.
This program logs IP traffic, either at IP-level only,
or as it passes through the network interface drivers
as well. As a separate function, iptrace produces a
host traffic matrix output. Its third type of output
is abbreviated sampling, in which only a pre-set number
of packets from each new host pair is logged. The
IETF NOCTools Working Group [Page 64]
Internet Tool Catalog NETMON (II)
three output types are configured dynamically, in any
combination.
OSITRACE, another logging tool with a NETMON interface,
is available separately (and documented in a separate
entry in this catalog).
MECHANISM
Access to the information logged by NETMON is through a
UNIX special file, /dev/netmon. User reads are blocked
until the buffer reaches a configurable level of full-
ness.
Several other parameters of NETMON can be tuned at com-
pile time. A diagnostic program, netmonstat, is
included in the distribution.
CAVEATS
None.
BUGS
Bug reports and questions should be addressed to:
ie-tools@gateway.mitre.org
Requests to join this mailing list:
ie-tools-request@gateway.mitre.org
Questions and suggestions can also be directed to:
Allison Mankin (703)883-7907
mankin@gateway.mitre.org
LIMITATIONS
A NETMON interface for tcpdump and other UNIX protocol
analyzers is not included, but it is simple to write.
NETMON probes for a promiscuous ethernet interface are
similarly not included.
HARDWARE REQUIRED
No restrictions.
SOFTWARE REQUIRED
BSD UNIX-like network protocols or the ability to
install the BSD publicly available network protocols in
the system to be monitored.
IETF NOCTools Working Group [Page 65]
Internet Tool Catalog NETMON (II)
AVAILABILITY
The NETMON distribution is available by anonymous FTP
in pub/netmon.tar or pub/netmon.tar.Z from aelred-
3.ie.org. A short user's and installation guide,
NETMON.doc, is available in the same location. The
NETMON distribution is provided "as is" and requires
retention of a copyright text in code derived from it.
It is copyrighted by the MITRE-Washington Networking
Center.
IETF NOCTools Working Group [Page 66]
Internet Tool Catalog NETMON (III)
NAME
NETMON -- an SNMP-based network management tool from
SNMP Research.
KEYWORDS
alarm, control, manager, map, routing; DECnet, ether-
net, IP, OSI, ring, star; NMS, SNMP; DOS; sourcelib.
ABSTRACT
The NETMON application implements a network management
station based on a low-cost DOS-based platform. It can
be successfully used with many types of networks,
including both wide area networks and those based on
various LAN media. NETMON has been used with multipro-
tocol devices including those which support TCP/IP,
DECnet, and OSI protocols. The fault management tool
displays the map of the network configuration with
current node and link state indicated in one of several
colors. Alarms may be enabled to alert the operator of
events occurring in the network. Events are logged to
disk. The NETMON application comes complete with
source code including a powerful set of portable
libraries for generating and parsing SNMP messages.
Output data from NETMON may be transferred via flat
files for additional report generation by a variety of
statistical packages.
MECHANISM
The NETMON application is based on the Simple Network
Management Protocol (SNMP). Polling is performed via
the powerful SNMP get-next operator and the SNMP get
operator. Trap directed polling is used to regulate
the focus and intensity of the polling.
CAVEATS
None.
BUGS
None known.
LIMITATIONS
The monitored and managed nodes must implement the SNMP
over UDP per RFC 1098 or must be reachable via a proxy
agent.
HARDWARE REQUIRED
The minimum system is a IBM Personal Computer (4.77
MHz) with DOS 3.0 or later, an Enhanced Graphics
IETF NOCTools Working Group [Page 67]
Internet Tool Catalog NETMON (III)
Adapter, Enhanced Graphics Monitor, a single 360 Kbyte
floppy drive, and an ethernet adapter. However, most
users will find a hard disk to be helpful for storing
network history and will be less impatient with a fas-
ter CPU.
SOFTWARE REQUIRED
DOS 3.0 or later and TCP/IP software from one of
several sources.
AVAILABILITY
This is a commercial product available under license
from:
SNMP Research
P.O. Box 8593
Knoxville, TN 37996-4800
(615) 573-1434 (Voice)
(615) 573-9197 (FAX)
Attn: Dr. Jeff Case
IETF NOCTools Working Group [Page 68]
Internet Tool Catalog NETSTAT
NAME
netstat
KEYWORDS
routing; IP; UNIX, VMS; free.
ABSTRACT
Netstat is a program that accesses network related data
structures within the kernel, then provides an ASCII
format at the terminal. Netstat can provide reports on
the routing table, TCP connections, TCP and UDP
"listens", and protocol memory management.
MECHANISM
Netstat accesses operating system memory to read the
kernel routing tables.
CAVEATS
Kernel data structures can change while netstat is run-
ning.
BUGS
None known.
LIMITATIONS
None reported.
HARDWARE REQUIRED
No restrictions.
SOFTWARE REQUIRED
BSD UNIX or related OS, or VMS.
AVAILABILITY
Available via anonymous FTP from uunet.uu.net, in
directory bsd-sources/src/ucb. Available with 4.xBSD
UNIX and related operating systems. For VMS, available
as part of TGV MultiNet IP software package, as well as
Wollongong's WIN/TCP.
IETF NOCTools Working Group [Page 69]
Internet Tool Catalog NETWATCH
NAME
netwatch
KEYWORDS
traffic; ethernet, IP, ring; eavesdrop; DOS; free.
ABSTRACT
PC/netwatch listens to an attached local broadcast net-
work and displays one line of information for every
packet that goes by. This information consists of the
"to" and "from" local network addresses, the packet
length, the value of the protocol type field, and 8
selected contiguous bytes of the packet contents.
While netwatch is running it will respond to commands
to display collected information, change its operating
mode, or to filter for specific types of packets.
MECHANISM
Puts controller in promiscuous mode.
CAVEATS
None.
BUGS
None known.
LIMITATIONS
The monitor can handle a burst rate of about 200 pack-
ets per second. Packets arriving faster than that are
missed (but counted in the statistics of the network
driver). The display rate is about 25 packets per
second and there is a buffer that can hold 512
undisplayed packets. The monitor discards overflow
packets.
HARDWARE REQUIRED
IBM PC compatible with CGA and network interface (3com
3C501, Interlan NI5010, or proNet p1300).
SOFTWARE REQUIRED
DOS 2.0 or higher, MicroSoft C (to generate custom exe-
cutables)
IETF NOCTools Working Group [Page 70]
Internet Tool Catalog NETWATCH
AVAILABILITY
Available as a utility program in the pcip distribution
from host husc6.harvard.edu, in directory pub/pcip.
Available in a standalone package via anonymous FTP
from windom.ucar.edu, in file pc/network/netwatch.arc;
a binary "dearc" program is also available from
windom.ucar.edu.
IETF NOCTools Working Group [Page 71]
Internet Tool Catalog NETWORK INTEGRATOR I
NAME
Network Integrator I
KEYWORDS
map, traffic; ethernet; UNIX.
ABSTRACT
This tool monitors traffic on network segments. All
information is dumped to either a log file or, for
real-time viewing, to a command tool window. Data is
time-stamped according to date and time. Logging can
continue for up to 24 hours.
The tool is flexible in data collection and presenta-
tion. Traffic filters can be specified according to
header values of numerous protocols, including those
used by Apple, DEC, Sun, HP, and Apollo. Bandwidth
utilization can be monitored, as well as actual load
and peak throughput. Additionally, the Network
Integrator can analyze a network's topology, and record
the location of all operational nodes on a network.
Data can be displayed in six separate formats of bar
graphs. In addition, there are several routines for
producing statistical summaries of the data collected.
MECHANISM
The tools work through RPC and XDR calls.
CAVEATS
Although the tool adds only little traffic to a net-
work, generation of statistics from captured files
requires a significant portion of a workstation's CPU.
BUGS
None known.
LIMITATIONS
Must be root to run monitor. There does not seem to be
a limit to the number of nodes, since it monitors by
segments. The only major limitation is the amount of
disk space that a user can commit to the log files.
The size of the log files, however, can be controlled
through the tool's parameters.
HARDWARE REQUIRED
Sun3 or Sun4.
IETF NOCTools Working Group [Page 72]
Internet Tool Catalog NETWORK INTEGRATOR I
SOFTWARE REQUIRED
4.0BSD UNIX or greater, or related OS.
AVAILABILITY
Copyrighted, commercially available from
Network Integrators,
(408) 927-0412.
IETF NOCTools Working Group [Page 73]
Internet Tool Catalog NET_MONITOR
NAME
net_monitor
KEYWORDS
routing, status; DECnet, IP; curses, ping; UNIX, VMS;
free, sourcelib.
ABSTRACT
Net_monitor uses ICMP echo (and DECnet reachability
information on VAX/VMS) to monitor a network. The mon-
itoring is very simplistic, but has proved useful. It
periodically tests whether hosts are reachable and
reports the results in a full-screen display. It
groups hosts together in common sets. If all hosts in
a set become unreachable, it makes a lot of racket with
bells, since it assumes that this means that some com-
mon piece of hardware that supports that set has
failed. The periodicity of the tests, hosts to test,
and groupings of hosts are controlled with a single
configuration file.
The idea for this program came from the PC/IP monitor
facility, but is an entirely different program with
different functionality.
MECHANISM
Reachability is tested using ICMP echo facilities for
TCP/IP hosts (and DECnet reachability information on
VAX/VMS). A DECnet node is considered reachable if it
appears in the list of hosts in a "show network" com-
mand issued on a routing node.
CAVEATS
This facility has been found to be most useful when run
in a window on a workstation rather than on a terminal
connected to a host. It could be useful if ported to a
PC (looks easy using FTP Software's programming
libraries), but this has not been done. Curses is very
slow and cpu intensive on VMS, but the tool has been
run in a window on a VAXstation 2000. Just don't try
to run it on a terminal connected to a 11/750.
BUGS
None known.
IETF NOCTools Working Group [Page 74]
Internet Tool Catalog NET_MONITOR
LIMITATIONS
This tool is not meant to be a replacement for a more
comprehensive network management facility such as is
provided with SNMP.
HARDWARE REQUIRED
A host with a network connection.
SOFTWARE REQUIRED
Curses, 4.xBSD UNIX socket programming libraries (lim-
ited set) and some flavor of TCP/IP that supports ICMP
echo request (ping). It has been run on VAX/VMS run-
ning WIN/TCP and several flavors of 4BSD UNIX (includ-
ing SunOS 3.2, 4.0, and 4.3BSD). It could be ported to
any platform that provides a BSD-style programming li-
brary with an ICMP echo request facility and curses.
AVAILABILITY
Requests should be sent to the author:
Dale Smith
Asst Dir of Network Services
University of Oregon
Computing Center
Eugene, OR 97403-1211
Internet: dsmith@oregon.uoregon.edu.
BITNET: dsmith@oregon.bitnet
UUCP: ...hp-pcd!uoregon!dsmith
Voice: (503)686-4394
With the source code, a makefile is provided for most
any UNIX box and a VMS makefile compatible with the
make distributed with PMDF. A VMS DCL command file is
also provided, for use by those VMS sites without
"make."
The author will attempt to fix bugs, but no support is
promised. The tool is copyrighted, but free (for now).
IETF NOCTools Working Group [Page 75]
Internet Tool Catalog NFSWATCH
NAME
nfswatch
KEYWORDS
traffic; ethernet, IP, NFS; curses, eavesdrop; UNIX;
free.
ABSTRACT
Nfswatch monitors all incoming ethernet traffic to an
NFS file server and divides it into several categories.
The number and percentage of packets received in each
category is displayed on the screen in a continuously
updated display.
All exported file systems are monitored by default.
Other files may optionally be monitored. Options also
allow monitoring of traffic destined for a remote host
instead of the local host, or monitoring traffic sent
by a single host. Items such as the sample interval
length can be adjusted either on the command line or
interactively. Facilities for taking screen
"snapshots," saving all data to a log file, and summar-
izing the log file are included. Nfslogsum, a program
that summarizes the log file, is included in the dis-
tribution.
MECHANISM
Nfswatch uses the Network Interface Tap in promiscuous
mode to monitor the ethernet. It filters out NFS pack-
ets destined for the local (or remote) host, and then
decodes the file handles in order to determine which
file or file system a request pertains to.
CAVEATS
Because the NFS file handle is a non-standard (server
private) piece of data, the file system monitoring part
of the program will break whenever the format of a file
handle is not what it expects to see. This is easily
fixed in the code, however. The code presently under-
stands SunOS 4.0 file handles.
BUGS
None known.
IETF NOCTools Working Group [Page 76]
Internet Tool Catalog NFSWATCH
LIMITATIONS
Up to 256 exported file systems and 256 individual
files can be monitored, but only (2 * (DisplayLines -
16)) will be displayed on the screen (all data will be
written to the log file).
Only NFS requests made by client machines are counted;
the NFS traffic generated by the server in response to
these requests is not counted.
HARDWARE REQUIRED
Has been tested on Sun-3 and Sun-4 systems. No
hardware dependencies, but see below.
SOFTWARE REQUIRED
SunOS 4.0 or higher. The STREAMS NIT device is used.
Fairly easy code modifications should be able to make
it run under older SunOS releases, or other versions of
BSD UNIX with a NIT-like device.
AVAILABILITY
Copyrighted, but freely distributable. Available via
anonymous FTP from hosts icarus.riacs.edu and
spam.itstd.sri.com in pub/nfswatch.tar.Z. There should
also be a copy on the 1989 Sun User's Group tape.
IETF NOCTools Working Group [Page 77]
Internet Tool Catalog NHFSSTONE
NAME
nhfsstone
KEYWORDS
benchmark, generator; NFS; spoof; UNIX; free.
ABSTRACT
Nhfsstone (pronounced n-f-s-stone, the "h" is silent)
is an NFS benchmarking program. It is used on an NFS
client to generate an artificial load with a particular
mix of NFS operations. It reports the average response
time of the server in milliseconds per call and the
load in calls per second. The nhfsstone distribution
includes a script, "nhfsnums" that converts test
results into plot(5) format so that they can be graphed
using graph(1) and other tools.
MECHANISM
Nhfsstone is an NFS traffic generator. It adjusts its
calling patterns based on the client's kernel NFS
statistics and the elapsed time. Load can be generated
over a given time or number of NFS calls.
CAVEATS
Nhfsstone will compete for system resources with other
applications.
BUGS
None known.
LIMITATIONS
None reported.
HARDWARE REQUIRED
No restrictions.
SOFTWARE REQUIRED
4.xBSD-based UNIX
AVAILABILITY
Available via anonymous FTP from bugs.cs.wisc.edu.
Alternatively, Legato Systems will provide the program
free of charge, if certain conditions are met. Send
name and both email and U.S. mail addresses to:
Legato Systems, Inc.
Nhfsstone
260 Sheridan Avenue
Palo Alto, California 94306
IETF NOCTools Working Group [Page 78]
Internet Tool Catalog NHFSSTONE
A mailing list is maintained for regular information
and bug fixes: nhfsstone@legato.com or
uunet!legato.com!nhfsstone. To join the list:
nhfsstone-request@legato.com or
uunet!legato.com!nhfsstone-request.
IETF NOCTools Working Group [Page 79]
Internet Tool Catalog NMC
NAME
NMC -- the Hughes LAN Systems 9100 Network Management
Center
KEYWORDS
control, manager, routing, status, traffic; bridge,
DECnet, ethernet, IP; NMS, SNMP; UNIX.
ABSTRACT
The 9100 Network Management Center provides the capa-
bility to manage and control standards-based networking
products from Hughes LAN Systems' and other vendors.
This management extends to all network products that
are equipped with the industry standard SNMP (Simple
Network Management Protocol). A comprehensive rela-
tional database manages the data and ensures easy
access and control of resources throughout the network.
9100 NMC software provides the following functions:
Database Management
Stores and retrieves the information required to
administer and configure the network. It can be
used to:
Store and recall configuration data for all
devices.
Provide availability history for devices.
Provides full-function SQL interface.
Assign new internet addresses.
Provide administrative information such as
physical location of devices, person respon-
sible, maintenance history, asset data,
hardware/software versions, etc.
Configuration Management
A comprehensive configuration model that enables
you to:
Retrieve configuration information from SNMP
devices.
Configure HLS devices using SNMP.
Configures attributes relating to TCP/IP,
DECnet and other protocols in HLS devices
using SNMP.
Poll devices to compare their current attri-
bute values with those in the database and
produce reports of the discrepancies.
Collect data about the state of the network.
IETF NOCTools Working Group [Page 80]
Internet Tool Catalog NMC
Performance Management
Displays local network traffic graphically, by
packet size, protocol, network utilization,
sources and destinations of packets, etc.
Fault Management
Provides availability monitoring and indicates
potential problems.
Scheduled availability monitoring of devices.
SNMP traps (alarms) are recorded in an alarm
log.
New alarms are indicated by a flashing icon
and optional audio alert.
Possible causes and suggested actions for the
alarms are listed.
Cumulative reports can be produced.
Utilities Function
Allows you to view and/or stop existing NMC
processes, and to define schedules for invoking
NMC applications and database maintenance utili-
ties.
MECHANISM
SNMP.
CAVEATS
None reported.
BUGS
None known.
LIMITATIONS
Maximum number of nodes that can be monitored is
18,000. This can include Hosts, Terminal Servers, PCs,
and Bridges.
HARDWARE REQUIRED
The host for the NMC software is a Sun 3 desktop works-
tation. Recommended minimum hardware is the Sun 3/80
Color with a 1/4" SCSI tape drive.
SOFTWARE REQUIRED
The NMC, which is provided on 1/4" tape format, runs on
the Sun 4.0 Operating System.
IETF NOCTools Working Group [Page 81]
Internet Tool Catalog NMC
AVAILABILITY
A commercial product of:
Hughes LAN Systems Inc.
1225 Charleston Road
Mountain View, CA 94043
Phone: (415) 966-7300
Fax: (415) 960-3738
RCA Telex: 276572
IETF NOCTools Working Group [Page 82]
Internet Tool Catalog NNSTAT
NAME
NNStat
KEYWORDS
manager, status, traffic; ethernet, IP; eavesdrop, NMS;
UNIX; free.
ABSTRACT
NNStat is a collection of programs that provides an
internet statistic collecting capability. The NNStat
strategy for statistic collection is to collect traffic
statistics via a promiscuous ethernet tap on the local
networks, versus instrumenting the gateways. If all
traffic entering or leaving a network or set of net-
works traverses a local ethernet, then by stationing a
statistic gathering agent on each local network a pro-
file of network traffic can be gathered. Statistical
data is retrieved from the local agents by a global
manager.
A program called "statspy" performs the data gathering
function. Essentially, statspy reads all packets on an
ethernet interface and records all information of
interest. Information of interest is gathered by exa-
mining each packet and determining if the source or
destination IP address is one that is being monitored,
typically a gateway address. If so then the contents
of the packet are examined to see if they match further
criteria.
A program called "collect" performs global data collec-
tion. It periodically polls various statspy processes
in the domain of interest to retrieve locally logged
statistical data.
The NNSTAT distribution comes with several sample awk
programs which process the logged output of the collect
program.
MECHANISM
Local agents (statspy processes) collect raw traffic
data via a promiscuous ethernet tap. Statistical, fil-
tered or otherwise reduced data is retrieved from the
local agents by a global manager (the "collect" pro-
cess).
CAVEATS
None.
IETF NOCTools Working Group [Page 83]
Internet Tool Catalog NNSTAT
BUGS
Bug fixes, extensions, and other pointers are discussed
in the electronic mail forum, bytecounters. To join,
send a request to bytecounters-request@venera.isi.edu.
Forum exchanges are archived in the file
bytecounters/bytecounters.mail, available via anonymous
FTP from venera.isi.edu.
LIMITATIONS
NNStat presumes a topology of one or more long haul
networks gatewayed to local ethernets.
A kernel mod required to run with SunOS4. These mods
are described in the bytecounters archive.
HARDWARE REQUIRED
Ethernet interface. Sun 3, Sun 4 (SPARC), or PC RT
workstation.
SOFTWARE REQUIRED
Distribution is for BSD UNIX, could easily be adapted
to any UNIX with promiscuous ethernet support.
AVAILABILITY
Distribution is available via anonymous FTP from
venera.isi.edu, in file pub/NNStat.tar.Z. Documenta-
tion is in pub/NNStat.userdoc.ms.Z.
IETF NOCTools Working Group [Page 84]
Internet Tool Catalog NPRV
NAME
NPRV -- IP Node/Protocol Reachability Verifier
KEYWORDS
map, routing, status; IP; ping; VMS; free.
ABSTRACT
NPRV is a full-screen, keypad-oriented utility that
runs under VAX/VMS. It allows the user to quickly scan
through a user-defined list of IP addresses (or domain
names) and verify a node's reachability. The node's
reachability is determined by performing an ICMP echo,
UDP echo and a TCP echo at alternating three second
intervals. The total number of packets sent and
received are displayed, as well as the minimum, average
and maximum round-trip times (in milliseconds) for each
type of echo. Additionally, a "trace route" function
is performed to determine the path from the local sys-
tem to the remote host. Once all of the trace route
information has filled the screen, a "snapshot" of the
screen can be written to a text file. Upon exiting the
utility, these text files can be used to generate a
logical network map showing host and gateway intercon-
nectivity.
MECHANISM
The ICMP echo is performed by sending ICMP ECHO REQUEST
packets. The UDP and TCP echoes are performed by con-
necting to the UDP/TCP echo ports (port number 7). The
trace route information is compiled by sending alter-
nating ICMP ECHO REQUEST packets and UDP packets with
very large destination UDP port numbers (in two
passes). Each packet is initially sent with a TTL
(time to live) of 1. This should cause an ICMP TIME
EXCEEDED error to be generated by the first routing
gateway. Then each packet is sent with a TTL of 2.
This should cause an ICMP TIME EXCEEDED error to be
generated by the second routing gateway. Then each
packet is sent with a TTL of 3, and so on. This pro-
cess continues until an ICMP ECHO REPLY or UDP PORT
UNREACHABLE is received. This indicates that the
remote host has been reached and that the trace route
information is complete.
CAVEATS
This utility sends one echo packet per second (ICMP,
UDP or TCP), as well as sending out one trace route
packet per second. If a transmitted trace route packet
IETF NOCTools Working Group [Page 85]
Internet Tool Catalog NPRV
is returned in less than one second, another trace
route packet is sent in 100 milliseconds. This could
cause a significant amount of contention on the local
network.
BUGS
None known. Please report any discovered bugs to the
author at:
Allen Sturtevant
National Magnetic Fusion Energy Computer Center
Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory
P.O. Box 808; L-561
Livermore, CA 94550
Phone : (415) 422-8266
E-Mail: sturtevant@ccc.nmfecc.gov
LIMITATIONS
The user is required to have SYSPRV privilege to per-
form the ICMP Echo and trace route functions. The
utility will still run with this privilege disabled,
but only the UDP Echo and TCP Echo information will be
displayed. This utility is written in C, but unfor-
tunately it cannot be easily ported over to UNIX since
many VMS system calls are used and all screen I/O is
done using the VMS Screen Management Routines.
HARDWARE REQUIRED
Any network interface supported by TGV Incorporated's
MultiNet software.
SOFTWARE REQUIRED
VAX/VMS V5.1+ and TGV Incorporated's MultiNet version
2.0.
AVAILABILITY
For executables only, FTP to the ANONYMOUS account
(password GUEST) on CCC.NMFECC.GOV (128.55.128.30) and
GET the following files:
[ANONYMOUS.PROGRAMS.NPRV]NPRV.DOC (ASCII text)
[ANONYMOUS.PROGRAMS.NPRV]NPRV.EXE (binary)
[ANONYMOUS.PROGRAMS.NPRV]SAMPLE.IPA (ASCII text)
IETF NOCTools Working Group [Page 86]
Internet Tool Catalog NSLOOKUP
NAME
nslookup
KEYWORDS
status; DNS; spoof; UNIX, VMS; free.
ABSTRACT
Nslookup is a program used for interactive query of
ARPA Internet domain servers. This program is useful
for diagnosing routing or mail delivery problems, where
often a local domain server is responding with an
incorrect internet address. It is essentially a data-
base front end which converts user queries into domain
name queries. By default nslookup queries the local
domain name server but you can specify additional
servers. Additional information beyond the mapping of
domain names to internet addresses is possible.
MECHANISM
Formats and sends domain name queries.
CAVEATS
None.
BUGS
None known.
LIMITATIONS
None known.
HARDWARE REQUIRED
No restrictions.
SOFTWARE REQUIRED
BSD UNIX or related OS, or VMS.
AVAILABILITY
Nslookup is part of the "named" distribution, available
via anonymous FTP from uunet.uu.net, in directories
bsd-sources/src/etc and bsd-sources/src/network, and
part of the "bind" distribution, available via
anonymous FTP from ucbarpa.berkeley.edu, in directory
4.3. Also available with 4.xBSD UNIX and related
operating systems. For VMS, available as part of TGV
MultiNet IP software package, as well as Wollongong's
WIN/TCP.
IETF NOCTools Working Group [Page 87]
Internet Tool Catalog OSILOG
NAME
osilog -- OSI event Logger
KEYWORDS
alarm, manager; OSI; UNIX; free.
ABSTRACT
The osilog program receives management event reports
for the operation of the ISODE Transport layer (ISO
Transport Protocol class 0) on one or more managed sys-
tems, formats them suitably to facilitate post-
processing and records them for future analysis.
MECHANISM
It communicates with the System Management Agents
(SMAs) on the selected systems via CMIP.
CAVEATS
The System Management Agent (SMA) must be running on
the hosts selected to provide management reports.
BUGS
None known.
LIMITATIONS
ISODE Transport Layer only supported by the SMA at
present.
HARDWARE REQUIRED
Developed and tested on Sun3.
SOFTWARE REQUIRED
The ISODE protocol suite, BSD UNIX.
AVAILABILITY
The osilog and related tools, known as OSIMIS (OSI
Management Information Service), are publicly available
from University College London, England via FTP and
FTAM. To obtain information regarding a copy send
email to gknight@ac.ucl.cs.uk or call +44 1 380 7366.
IETF NOCTools Working Group [Page 88]
Internet Tool Catalog OSIMIC
NAME
osimic -- OSI Microscope
KEYWORDS
manager, status; OSI; UNIX; free.
ABSTRACT
The osimic program is a human user interface to the
management information base on the ISODE Transport
layer (ISO Transport Protocol class 0). It allows
browsing through the management information tree and
enables the manipulation of attribute values. It is
implemented using the SunView package of the SunTools
window system.
MECHANISM
It communicates with the System Management Agent (SMA)
on the selected system via CMIP.
CAVEATS
The System Management Agent (SMA) must be running on
the host where the mib is being examined.
BUGS
None known.
LIMITATIONS
ISODE Transport Layer only supported by the SMA at
present.
HARDWARE REQUIRED
Developed and tested on Sun3.
SOFTWARE REQUIRED
The ISODE protocol suite, BSD UNIX, SunView/SunTools.
AVAILABILITY
The osimic and related tools, known as OSIMIS (OSI
Management Information Service), are publicly available
from University College London, England via FTP and
FTAM. To obtain information regarding a copy send
email to gknight@ac.ucl.cs.uk or call +44 1 380 7366.
IETF NOCTools Working Group [Page 89]
Internet Tool Catalog OSIMON
NAME
osimon -- OSI Monitor
KEYWORDS
manager, status, traffic; OSI; curses; UNIX; free.
ABSTRACT
The osimon program monitors activity of the ISODE Tran-
sport layer (ISO Transport Protocol class 0), display-
ing entries for the active transport entities and con-
nections. The display is dynamically updated in the
case of significant events such as connection opening
and closing and packet traffic, as information is
received in the form of event reports from a SMA. It
uses the UNIX curses package for screen management.
MECHANISM
It communicates with the System Management Agent (SMA)
on the selected system via CMIP.
CAVEATS
The System Management Agent (SMA) must be running on
the host being monitored.
BUGS
For the terminal type Sun, there are some transient
problems with the display.
LIMITATIONS
ISODE Transport Layer only supported at present.
HARDWARE REQUIRED
Developed and tested on Sun3 for various terminal
types.
SOFTWARE REQUIRED
The ISODE protocol suite, BSD UNIX.
AVAILABILITY
The osimon and related tools, known as OSIMIS (OSI
Management Information Service), are publicly available
from University College London, England via FTP and
FTAM. To obtain information regarding a copy send
email to gknight@ac.ucl.cs.uk or call +44 1 380 7366.
IETF NOCTools Working Group [Page 90]
Internet Tool Catalog OSITRACE
NAME
OSITRACE
KEYWORDS
traffic; OSI; eavesdrop; UNIX; free.
ABSTRACT
OSITRACE is a network performance tool that displays
information about ISO TP4 connections. One line of
output is displayed for each packet indicating the
time, source, destination, length, packet type,
sequence number, credit, and any optional parameters
contained in the packet. Numerous options are avail-
able to control the output of OSITRACE.
To obtain packets to analyze, OSITRACE uses Sun
Microsystems' Network Interface Tap (NIT) in SunOS 3.4,
3.5, and 4.0.X. OSITRACE may also obtain data from the
NETMON utility which is described as another tool
entry.
In Sun systems, OSITRACE may be easily installed: OSI
kernel support is not needed, nor is any other form of
OSI software support.
MECHANISM
This tool has been designed in such a way that code to
process different protocol suites may be easily added.
As such, OSITRACE also has the ability to trace the DOD
TCP protocols.
CAVEATS
None.
BUGS
Bug reports and questions should be addressed to: ie-
tools@gateway.mitre.org
Requests to join this mailing list: ie-tools-
request@gateway.mitre.org
Questions and suggestions can also be directed to: Greg
Hollingsworth, gregh@gateway.mitre.org
LIMITATIONS
None reported.
IETF NOCTools Working Group [Page 91]
Internet Tool Catalog OSITRACE
HARDWARE REQUIRED
No restriction.
SOFTWARE REQUIRED
SunOS 3.4, 3.5, or 4.0.X, or BSD UNIX-like network pro-
tocols with NETMON installed.
AVAILABILITY
OSITRACE is copyrighted by the MITRE-Washington Net-
working Center, but freely distributed "as is." It re-
quires retention of a copyright text in code derived
from it. The distribution is available by anonymous
FTP in pub/pdutrace.tar or pub/pdutrace.tar.Z from
aelred-3.ie.org.
IETF NOCTools Working Group [Page 92]
Internet Tool Catalog OVERVIEW
NAME
OverVIEW
KEYWORDS
manager, status; IP; NMS, SNMP; DOS.
ABSTRACT
Network and internet monitor; Performance monitor;
Fully Graphic user interface; Event logging; TFTP boot
server
MECHANISM
OverVIEW uses SNMP to query routers, gateways and
hosts. Also supports SGMP, PING and is committed to
CMIP/CMOT. The SNMP queries allow dynamic determina-
tion of configuration and state. Sets of related
queries allows monitoring of congestion and faults.
The hardware and software are sold as an integrated
package.
CAVEATS
None.
BUGS
None known.
LIMITATIONS
256 nodes, 256 nets
HARDWARE REQUIRED
80286, 640K, EGA, mouse.
SOFTWARE REQUIRED
MS-DOS, OverVIEW, Network kernel, Mouse driver, SNMP
agents for monitored devices.
AVAILABILITY
Fully supported product of Proteon, Inc. For more
information, contact:
Proteon, Inc. Phone: (508) 898-2800
2 Technology Drive Fax: (508) 366-8901
Westborough, MA 01581 Telex: 928124
IETF NOCTools Working Group [Page 93]
Internet Tool Catalog PING
NAME
ping
KEYWORDS
generator, status; IP; ping; DOS, UNIX, VMS; free.
ABSTRACT
Ping is perhaps the most basic tool for internet
management. It verifies that a remote IP implementa-
tion and the intervening networks and interfaces are
functional. It can be used to measure round trip
delay. Numerous versions of the ping program exist.
MECHANISM
Ping is based on the ICMP ECHO_REQUEST message.
CAVEATS
If run repeatedly, ping could generate high system
loads.
BUGS
None known.
LIMITATIONS
PC/TCP's ping is the only implementation known support
both loose and strict source routing. Though some ping
implementations support the ICMP "record route"
feature, the usefulness of this option for debugging
routes is limited by the fact that many gateways do not
correctly implement it.
HARDWARE REQUIRED
No restrictions.
SOFTWARE REQUIRED
None.
AVAILABILITY
Ping is widely included in TCP/IP distributions. Pub-
lic domain versions of ping are available via anonymous
FTP from uunet.uu.net, in directory bsd-
sources/src/etc, and from venera.isi.edu, in directory
pub.
IETF NOCTools Working Group [Page 94]
Internet Tool Catalog PROXYD
NAME
proxyd -- SNMP proxy agent daemons from SNMP Research.
KEYWORDS
control, status; bridge, ethernet, IP, ring, star; NMS,
SNMP; UNIX; library, sourcelib.
ABSTRACT
SNMP proxy agents may be used to permit the monitoring
and controlling of network elements which are otherwise
not addressable using the SNMP management protocol
(e.g., a network bridge that implements a proprietary
management protocol). Similarly, SNMP proxy agents may
be used to protect SNMP agents from redundant network
management agents through the use of caches. Finally,
SNMP proxy agents may be used to implement elaborate
MIB access policies. The proxy agent daemon listens
for SNMP queries and commands from logically remote
network management stations, translates and retransmits
those as appropriate network management queries or
cache lookups, listens for and parses the responses,
translates the responses into SNMP responses, and
returns those responses as SNMP messages to the network
management station that originated the transaction.
The proxy agent daemon also emits SNMP traps to identi-
fied trap receivers. The proxy agent daemon is archi-
tected to make the addition of additional vendor-
specific variables a straight-forward task. The proxy
application comes complete with source code including a
powerful set of portable libraries for generating and
parsing SNMP messages and a set of command line utili-
ties.
MECHANISM
Network management variables are made available for
inspection and/or alteration by means of the Simple
Network Management Protocol (SNMP).
CAVEATS
None.
BUGS
None known.
LIMITATIONS
This application is a template for proxy application
writers.
IETF NOCTools Working Group [Page 95]
Internet Tool Catalog PROXYD
Only a few of the many LanBridge 100 variables are sup-
ported.
HARDWARE REQUIRED
System from Sun Microsystems, Incorporated.
SOFTWARE REQUIRED
Sun OS 3.5 or 4.x
AVAILABILITY
This is a commercial product available under license
from:
SNMP Research
P.O. Box 8593
Knoxville, TN 37996-4800
(615) 573-1434 (Voice)
(615) 573-9197 (FAX)
Attn: Dr. Jeff Case
IETF NOCTools Working Group [Page 96]
Internet Tool Catalog QUERY
NAME
query, ripquery
KEYWORDS
routing; IP; spoof; UNIX; free.
ABSTRACT
Query allows remote viewing of a gateway's routing
tables.
MECHANISM
Query formats and sends a RIP request or POLL command
to a destination gateway.
CAVEATS
Query is intended to be used a a tool for debugging
gateways, not for network management. SNMP is the pre-
ferred protocol for network management.
BUGS
None known.
LIMITATIONS
The polled gateway must run RIP.
HARDWARE REQUIRED
No restriction.
SOFTWARE REQUIRED
4.3BSD UNIX or related OS.
AVAILABILITY
Available with routed and gated distributions.
Routed may be obtained via anonymous FTP from
uunet.uu.net, in file bsd-
sources/src/network/routed.tar.Z.
Gated may be obtained via anonymous FTP from
devvax.tn.cornell.edu. Distribution files are in
directory pub/gated.
IETF NOCTools Working Group [Page 97]
Internet Tool Catalog SERAG
NAME
SERAG -- the Simple Event Reporting and Alarm Genera-
tion tool
KEYWORDS
alarm, security; ethernet, IP; NMS, proprietary; UNIX.
ABSTRACT
The Simple Event Reporting and Alarm Generation (SERAG)
collects error messages and other event reports from
servers on a LAN. Any node with UDP/IP can be the
source of such messages/reports. The logging of error
messages is integrated with the audit trail facility of
the Network Control Server (NCS) from 3COM. Alarms are
generated on the NCS based on predefined conditions.
Alarms may be sent to the console of the NCS, logged in
a file, or routed via WAN to a service center.
SERAG can automatically detect a predefined set of
errors in the servers and generate alarms. The break-
down of a server in the LAN may also result in alarm
generation.
SERAG creates an error log that can be used for post-
testing analysis.
MECHANISM
The tool searches through the audit trail (error log)
files for events specified by the user. The search may
be constrained to specific nodes in the network and to
a specific time frame. Events may be combined into
conditions which are logical expressions (e.g., look
for eventA and eventB and not eventC within time frame
so and so). This is an interactive query facility to
analyze the audit trail (error log).
The user may also ask for such conditions to be checked
at regular intervals, and specify routing of error mes-
sages in case the condition is satisfied. The checking
of such conditions is done by a daemon process running
in the background.
CAVEATS
May impact the performance of the NCS if error logs are
big, or if conditions are computationally complex.
BUGS
None known.
IETF NOCTools Working Group [Page 98]
Internet Tool Catalog SERAG
LIMITATIONS
None reported.
HARDWARE REQUIRED
A workstation running UNIX.
SOFTWARE REQUIRED
Implemented in C (using lex and yacc) on a Sun 3/50.
Also runs under Xenix. Should work with most versions
of UNIX.
AVAILABILITY
Developed jointly by ELAB-RUNIT and Norsk Data:
Tor Didriksen, Ole-Hjalmar Kristensen, Steinar
Haug,
Eldfrid Oefsti Oevstedal, Tor Staalhane
ELAB-RUNIT
N-7034 Trondheim
Norway
phone: +47 7 593000
fax : +47 7 532586
email: didrik@idt.unit.no
sthaug@idt.unit.no
kristensen@vax.runit.unit.no
Commercially available from:
Norsk Data A/S
P.O. Box 25, Bogerud
N-0621 Oslo 6
Norway
ref: network management/security management/fault
management
phone: +47 2 627500
fax : +47 2 296796
IETF NOCTools Working Group [Page 99]
Internet Tool Catalog SMA
NAME
sma -- OSI System Management Agent
KEYWORDS
alarm, manager, status; OSI; UNIX; free.
ABSTRACT
The sma is a CMIP agent which runs on BSD UNIX and pro-
vides access to management information on the operation
of the ISODE transport layer (ISO Transport Protocol
class 0). It also supports the sending of event
reports. Activity can be recorded in a log file.
MECHANISM
The sma communicates with the active ISODE transport
entities using UNIX UDP sockets in order to receive the
management information which is made available to other
manager processes via CMIP.
CAVEATS
None.
BUGS
None known.
LIMITATIONS
ISODE Transport Layer only supported at present.
HARDWARE REQUIRED
Developed on Sun3, tested on Sun3 and VAXStation.
SOFTWARE REQUIRED
The ISODE protocol suite, BSD UNIX.
AVAILABILITY
The sma and related tools, known as OSIMIS (OSI Manage-
ment Information Service), are publicly available from
University College London, England via FTP and FTAM.
To obtain information regarding a copy send email to
gknight@ac.ucl.cs.uk or call +44 1 380 7366.
IETF NOCTools Working Group [Page 100]
Internet Tool Catalog SNIFFER
NAME
Sniffer
KEYWORDS
analyzer, generator, traffic; DECnet, ethernet, IP,
NFS, OSI, ring, SMTP, star; eavesdrop; standalone.
ABSTRACT
The Network General Sniffer is a protocol analyzer for
performing LAN diagnostics, monitoring, traffic genera-
tion, and troubleshooting. The Sniffer protocol
analyzer has the capability of capturing every packet
on a network and of decoding all seven layers of the
OSI protocol model. Capture frame selection is based
on several different filters: protocol content at lower
levels; node addresses; pattern matching (up to 8
logically-related patterns of 32 bytes each); and des-
tination class. Users may extend the protocol
interpretation capability of the Sniffer by writing
their own customized protocol interpreters and linking
them to the Sniffer software.
The Sniffer displays network traffic information and
performance statistics in real time, in user-selectable
formats. Numeric station addresses are translated to
symbolic names or manufacturer ID names. Network
activities measured include frames accepted, Kbytes
accepted, and buffer use. Each network version has
additional counters for activities specific to that
network. Network activity is expressed as
frames/second, Kbytes/second, or per cent of network
bandwidth utilization.
Data collection by the Sniffer may be output to printer
or stored to disk in either print-file or spread-sheet
format.
Protocol suites understood by the Sniffer include:
Banyan Vines, IBM Token-Ring, Novell Netware, XNS/MS-
Net (3Com 3+), DECnet, TCP/IP (including SNMP and
applications-layer protocols such as FTP, SMTP, and
TELNET), X Windows (for X version 11), NFS, and several
SUN proprietary protocols (including mount, pmap, RPC,
and YP). Supported LANs include: ethernet, Token-ring
(4Mb and 16Mb versions), ARCNET, StarLAN, IBM PC Net-
work (Broadband), and Apple Localtalk Network.
MECHANISM
IETF NOCTools Working Group [Page 101]
Internet Tool Catalog SNIFFER
The Sniffer is a self-contained, portable protocol
analyzer that require only AC line power and connection
to a network to operate. Normally passive (except when
in Traffic Generator mode), it captures images of all
or of selected frames in a working buffer, ready for
immediate analysis and display.
The Sniffer is a standalone device. Two platforms are
available: one for use with single network topologies,
the other for use with multi-network topologies. Both
include Sniffer core software, a modified network
interface card (or multiple cards), and optional proto-
col interpreter suites.
All Sniffer functions may be remotely controlled from a
modem-connected PC. Output from the Sniffer can be
imported to database or spreadsheet packages.
CAVEATS
In normal use, the Sniffer is a passive device, and so
will not adversely effect network performance. Perfor-
mance degradation will be observed, of course, if the
Sniffer is set to Traffic Generator mode and connected
to an active network.
BUGS
None known.
LIMITATIONS
None reported.
HARDWARE REQUIRED
None. The Sniffer is a self-contained unit, and
includes its own interface card. It installs into a
network as would any normal workstation.
SOFTWARE REQUIRED
None.
AVAILABILITY
The Sniffer is available commercially. For information
on your local representative, call or write:
Network General Corporation 4200 Bohannon Drive
Menlo Park, CA 94025 Phone: (415) 688-2700 Fax:
415-321-0855
For acquisition by government agencies, the Sniffer is
IETF NOCTools Working Group [Page 102]
Internet Tool Catalog SNIFFER
included on the GSA schedule.
IETF NOCTools Working Group [Page 103]
Internet Tool Catalog SNMP DEVELOPMENT KIT
NAME
The SNMP Development Kit
KEYWORDS
manager, status; IP; NMS, SNMP; UNIX; free, sourcelib.
ABSTRACT
The SNMP Development Kit comprises C Language source
code for a programming library that facilitates access
to the management services of the SNMP (RFC 1098).
Sources are also included for a few simple client
applications whose main purpose is to illustrate the
use of the library. Example client applications query
remote SNMP agents in a variety of modes, and generate
or collect SNMP traps. Code for an example SNMP agent
that supports a subset of the Internet MIB (RFC 1066)
is also included.
MECHANISM
The Development Kit facilitates development of SNMP-
based management applications -- both clients and
agents. Example applications execute SNMP management
operations according to the values of command line
arguments.
CAVEATS
None.
BUGS
Fixed in the next release.
LIMITATIONS
None reported.
HARDWARE REQUIRED
The SNMP library source code is highly portable and
runs on a wide range of platforms.
SOFTWARE REQUIRED
The SNMP library source code has almost no operating
system dependencies and runs in a wide range of
environments. Certain portions of the example SNMP
agent code are specific to the 4.3BSD implementation of
the UNIX system for the DEC MicroVAX.
AVAILABILITY
The Development Kit is available via anonymous FTP from
host allspice.lcs.mit.edu. The copyright for the
IETF NOCTools Working Group [Page 104]
Internet Tool Catalog SNMP DEVELOPMENT KIT
Development Kit is held by the Massachusetts Institute
of Technology, and the Kit is distributed without
charge according to the terms set forth in its code and
documentation. The distribution takes the form of a
UNIX tar file.
Bug reports, questions, suggestions, or complaints may
be mailed electronically to snmp-dk@ptt.lcs.mit.edu,
although no response in any form is guaranteed. Dis-
tribution via UUCP mail may be arranged by contacting
the same address. Requests for hard-copy documentation
or copies of the distribution on magnetic media are
never honored.
IETF NOCTools Working Group [Page 105]
Internet Tool Catalog SNMP LIBRARIES
NAME
Snmp Libraries and Utilities from SNMP Research.
KEYWORDS
alarm, control, manager, map, routing, status; bridge,
DECnet, ethernet, IP, OSI, ring, star; NMS, SNMP; DOS,
UNIX, VMS; sourcelib.
ABSTRACT
The SNMP Libraries and Utilities serve two purposes:
1) to act as building blocks for the construction of
SNMP-based agent and manager applications; and
2) to act as network management tools for network
fire fighting and report generation.
The libraries perform ASN.1 parsing and generation
tasks for both network management station applications
and network management agent applications. These
libraries hide the details of ASN.1 parsing and genera-
tion from application writers and make it unnecessary
for them to be expert in these areas. The libraries
are very robust with considerable error checking
designed in. The several command line utilities
include applications for retrieving one or many vari-
ables, retrieving tables, or effecting commands via the
setting of remote network management variables.
MECHANISM
The parsing is performed via recursive descent methods.
Messages are passed via the Simple Network Management
Protocol (SNMP).
CAVEATS
None.
BUGS
None known.
LIMITATIONS
None reported.
IETF NOCTools Working Group [Page 106]
Internet Tool Catalog SNMP LIBRARIES
HARDWARE REQUIRED
This software has been ported to a wide range of sys-
tems, too numerous to itemize. It includes worksta-
tions, general purpose timesharing systems, and embed-
ded hardware in intelligent network devices such as re-
peaters, bridges, and routers.
SOFTWARE REQUIRED
C compiler, TCP/IP library from a variety of sources.
AVAILABILITY
This is a commercial product available under license
from:
SNMP Research
P.O. Box 8593
Knoxville, TN 37996-4800
(615) 573-1434 (Voice)
(615) 573-9197 (FAX)
Attn: Dr. Jeff Case
IETF NOCTools Working Group [Page 107]
Internet Tool Catalog SNMPASK
NAME
snmpask
KEYWORDS
manager, status; IP; NMS, SNMP; UNIX.
ABSTRACT
Snmpask is a network monitoring application which gath-
ers specific information from a single network entity
at regular intervals and stores this information into
UNIX flat files. A report generation package is
included in the NYSERNet SNMP Software Distribution to
produce reports and graphs from the raw data.
MECHANISM
Snmpask uses SNMP to gather its information. The agent
which must be queried and the variables to query for
are specified in a configuration file.
CAVEATS
An SNMP agent must be running in the network entity
being monitored in order for snmpask to be useful.
BUGS
None outstanding. They are fixed as reports come in.
Report bugs to: nysersnmp@nisc.nyser.net
LIMITATIONS
SNMP polling is done synchronously. Only a single
agent can be polled per snmpask process. Only 16 vari-
ables can be requested per snmpask process.
HARDWARE REQUIRED
Developed on Sun 3/60, Sun 3/260, tested on a SPARCsta-
tion I, DECstation, and a Solbourne 4/802.
SOFTWARE REQUIRED
Some UNIX variant or some other OS with a Berkeley
Socket Compatibility Library.
AVAILABILITY
Snmpask is available in the NYSERNet SNMP Software Dis-
tribution, which is licensed, copyrighted software. To
obtain information regarding the package send mail to:
snmplisc@nisc.nyser.net or call +1 518-283-8860.
IETF NOCTools Working Group [Page 108]
Internet Tool Catalog SNMPD (I)
NAME
snmpd
KEYWORDS
manager, status; IP; NMS, SNMP; UNIX.
ABSTRACT
Snmpd is an SNMP agent which runs on UNIX derivatives
and answers network management queries from network
management stations supporting SNMP. Snmpd also sup-
ports the sending of SNMP traps.
MECHANISM
Snmpd conforms to SNMP as specified in RFC 1098. Cer-
tain user configurable options are manipulated through
a simple configuration file.
CAVEATS
UNIX does not support all of the MIB variables speci-
fied in RFC 1066. Snmpd does the best it can to find
the answers.
BUGS
None outstanding. They are fixed as reports come in.
report bugs to: nysersnmp@nisc.nyser.net
LIMITATIONS
See CAVEATS.
HARDWARE REQUIRED
Developed on Sun 3/60, Sun 3/260, tested on a SPARCsta-
tion I, DECstation, and a Solbourne 4/802.
SOFTWARE REQUIRED
Some UNIX variant.
AVAILABILITY
Snmpd is available in the NYSERNet SNMP Software Dis-
tribution, which is licensed, copyrighted software. To
obtain information regarding the package send mail to:
snmplisc@nisc.nyser.net or call +1 518-283-8860.
IETF NOCTools Working Group [Page 109]
Internet Tool Catalog SNMPD (II)
NAME
snmpd -- an SNMP host/gateway agent daemon from SNMP
Research.
KEYWORDS
manager, status; bridge, ethernet, IP, ring, star; NMS,
SNMP; DOS, UNIX; sourcelib.
ABSTRACT
The snmpd agent daemon listens for and responds to net-
work management queries and commands from logically
remote network management stations. The agent daemon
also emits SNMP traps to identified trap receivers.
The agent daemon is architected to make the addition of
additional vendor-specific variables a straight-forward
task. The snmpd application comes complete with source
code including a powerful set of portable libraries for
generating and parsing SNMP messages and a set of com-
mand line utilities.
MECHANISM
Network management variables are made available for
inspection and/or alteration by means of the Simple
Network Management Protocol (SNMP).
CAVEATS
None.
BUGS
None known.
LIMITATIONS
Only the operating system variables available without
source code modifications to the operating system and
device device drivers are supported.
HARDWARE REQUIRED
This software has been ported to a wide range of sys-
tems, too numerous to itemize. It includes worksta-
tions, general purpose timesharing systems, and embed-
ded hardware in intelligent network devices such as
repeaters, bridges, and routers.
SOFTWARE REQUIRED
C compiler, ".h" files for operating system.
IETF NOCTools Working Group [Page 110]
Internet Tool Catalog SNMPD (II)
AVAILABILITY
This is a commercial product available under license
from:
SNMP Research
P.O. Box 8593
Knoxville, TN 37996-4800
(615) 573-1434 (Voice)
(615) 573-9197 (FAX)
Attn: Dr. Jeff Case
IETF NOCTools Working Group [Page 111]
Internet Tool Catalog SNMPLOOKUP
NAME
snmplookup
KEYWORDS
manager, status; IP; NMS, SNMP; UNIX.
ABSTRACT
Snmplookup is a network monitoring application that
allows the interactive querying of a network entity.
Snmplookup mimics nslookup, the DNS interactive query
tool, in style and feel.
MECHANISM
Snmplookup uses SNMP to gather its information. The
network entity to be queried and the variable to be
retrieved can be entered from the command shell after
snmplookup is invoked.
CAVEATS
An SNMP agent must be running on the network entity
being monitored.
BUGS
None outstanding. They are fixed as reports come in.
Report bugs to: nysersnmp@nisc.nyser.net
LIMITATIONS
See CAVEATS.
HARDWARE REQUIRED
Developed on Sun 3/60, Sun 3/260, tested on a SPARCsta-
tion I, DECstation, and a Solbourne 4/802.
SOFTWARE REQUIRED
Some UNIX variant or some other OS with a Berkeley
Socket Compatibility Library.
AVAILABILITY
Snmplookup is available in the NYSERNet SNMP Software
Distribution, which is licensed, copyrighted software.
To obtain information regarding the package send mail
to: snmplisc@nisc.nyser.net or call +1 518-283-8860.
IETF NOCTools Working Group [Page 112]
Internet Tool Catalog SNMPPERFMON
NAME
snmpperfmon
KEYWORDS
manager, status; IP; curses, NMS, SNMP; UNIX.
ABSTRACT
Snmpperfmon is a network monitoring application based
on the Berkeley curses terminal graphics package and
the Simple Network Management Protocol. The applica-
tion monitors certain interface statistics from a sin-
gle agent and displays them in tabular form on a stan-
dard terminal screen.
MECHANISM
Snmpperfmon uses SNMP to gather its information. The
agent to be queried is specified on the command line.
CAVEATS
An SNMP agent must be running in the network entity
being monitored in order for snmpperfmon to be useful.
BUGS
None outstanding. They are fixed as reports come in.
Report bugs to: nysersnmp@nisc.nyser.net
LIMITATIONS
SNMP polling is done synchronously. Only the predeter-
mined (read "hard coded") interface statistics can be
displayed.
HARDWARE REQUIRED
Developed on Sun 3/60, Sun 3/260, tested on a SPARCsta-
tion I, DECstation, and a Solbourne 4/802.
SOFTWARE REQUIRED
Some UNIX variant or some other OS with a Berkeley
Socket Compatibility Library. The "curses" library.
AVAILABILITY
Snmpperfmon is available in the NYSERNet SNMP Software
Distribution, which is licensed, copyrighted software.
To obtain information regarding the package send mail
to: snmplisc@nisc.nyser.net or call +1 518-283-8860.
IETF NOCTools Working Group [Page 113]
Internet Tool Catalog SNMPPOLL
NAME
snmppoll
KEYWORDS
manager, status; IP; NMS, SNMP; UNIX.
ABSTRACT
Snmppoll is a network monitoring application which
gathers specific information from a network at regular
intervals and stores this information into UNIX flat
files. A report generation package is included in the
NYSERNet SNMP Software Distribution to produce reports
and graphs of raw data collected via SNMP.
MECHANISM
Snmppoll uses SNMP to gather its information. The
agents which must be queried and the variables to query
for are specified in a configuration file.
CAVEATS
An SNMP agent must be running in the network entity
being monitored in order for snmppoll to be useful.
BUGS
None outstanding. They are fixed as reports come in.
Report bugs to: nysersnmp@nisc.nyser.net
LIMITATIONS
SNMP polling is done synchronously.
HARDWARE REQUIRED
Developed on Sun 3/60, Sun 3/260, tested on a SPARCsta-
tion I, DECstation, and a Solbourne 4/802.
SOFTWARE REQUIRED
Some UNIX variant or some other OS with a Berkeley
Socket Compatibility Library.
AVAILABILITY
Snmppoll is available in the NYSERNet SNMP Software
Distribution, which is licensed, copyrighted software.
To obtain information regarding the package send mail
to: snmplisc@nisc.nyser.net or call +1 518-283-8860.
IETF NOCTools Working Group [Page 114]
Internet Tool Catalog SNMPQUERY
NAME
snmpquery
KEYWORDS
manager, status; IP; NMS, SNMP; UNIX.
ABSTRACT
Snmpquery is a network monitoring application which
allows the simple query of a single network entity from
the command line.
MECHANISM
Snmpquery uses SNMP to gather its information. The
entity to be monitored and the variables to be
retrieved must be specified on the command line.
CAVEATS
An SNMP agent must be running on the network entity
being monitored.
BUGS
None outstanding. They are fixed as reports come in.
Report bugs to: nysersnmp@nisc.nyser.net
LIMITATIONS
Only one network entity can be managed per invocation.
HARDWARE REQUIRED
Developed on Sun 3/60, Sun 3/260, tested on a SPARCsta-
tion I, DECstation, and a Solbourne 4/802.
SOFTWARE REQUIRED
Some UNIX variant or some other OS with a Berkeley
Socket Compatibility Library.
AVAILABILITY
Snmpquery is available in the NYSERNet SNMP Software
Distribution, which is licensed, copyrighted software.
To obtain information regarding the package send mail
to: snmplisc@nisc.nyser.net or call +1 518-283-8860.
IETF NOCTools Working Group [Page 115]
Internet Tool Catalog SNMPROUTE
NAME
snmproute
KEYWORDS
manager, routing; IP; NMS, SNMP; UNIX.
ABSTRACT
Snmproute is a network monitoring application that
allows the user to query for the entire routing table
or a single routing table entry from a network entity.
MECHANISM
Snmproute uses SNMP to gather its information. The
network entity to be queried and the destination net-
work to be queried for must be specified on the command
line.
CAVEATS
An SNMP agent must be running on the network entity
being monitored.
BUGS
None outstanding. They are fixed as reports come in.
Report bugs to: nysersnmp@nisc.nyser.net
LIMITATIONS
Only one network entity can be queried per invocation.
HARDWARE REQUIRED
Developed on Sun 3/60, Sun 3/260, tested on a SPARCsta-
tion I, DECstation, and a Solbourne 4/802.
SOFTWARE REQUIRED
Some UNIX variant or some other OS with a Berkeley
Socket Compatibility Library.
AVAILABILITY
Snmproute is available in the NYSERNet SNMP Software
Distribution, which is licensed, copyrighted software.
To obtain information regarding the package send mail
to: snmplisc@nisc.nyser.net or call +1 518-283-8860.
IETF NOCTools Working Group [Page 116]
Internet Tool Catalog SNMPSET
NAME
snmpset
KEYWORDS
control, manager; IP; NMS, SNMP; UNIX.
ABSTRACT
Snmpset is a network management application that allows
the alteration of a single variable in a specific
agent.
MECHANISM
Snmpset uses SNMP to alter the agent variables. The
agent to which the set is directed and the variable to
alter must be specified on the command line. The user
is prompted before any changes are made.
CAVEATS
An SNMP agent must be running in the network entity
being managed in order for snmpset to be useful. In
addition, a read-write community must be configured on
the agent.
BUGS
None outstanding. They are fixed as reports come in.
Report bugs to: nysersnmp@nisc.nyser.net
LIMITATIONS
Only one variable can be altered per invocation.
HARDWARE REQUIRED
Developed on Sun 3/60, Sun 3/260, tested on a SPARCsta-
tion I, DECstation, and a Solbourne 4/802.
SOFTWARE REQUIRED
Some UNIX variant or some other OS with a Berkeley
Socket Compatibility Library.
AVAILABILITY
Snmpset is available in the NYSERNet SNMP Software Dis-
tribution, which is licensed, copyrighted software. To
obtain information regarding the package send mail to:
snmplisc@nisc.nyser.net or call +1 518-283-8860.
IETF NOCTools Working Group [Page 117]
Internet Tool Catalog SNMPSRC
NAME
snmpsrc
KEYWORDS
manager, routing; IP; NMS, SNMP; UNIX.
ABSTRACT
Snmpsrc is a network monitoring application that starts
at a specified router in the network and traces the
path of a given destination network from the starting
router.
MECHANISM
Snmpsrc uses SNMP to gather its information. The
starting router and destination network must be speci-
fied on the command line.
CAVEATS
An SNMP agent must be running on all of the routers in
the path to the destination network in order for a com-
plete path to be reported back to the user. The same
SNMP community must also be configured in every SNMP
agent in the path to the destination network.
BUGS
None outstanding. They are fixed as reports come in.
Report bugs to: nysersnmp@nisc.nyser.net
LIMITATIONS
See CAVEATS.
HARDWARE REQUIRED
Developed on Sun 3/60, Sun 3/260, tested on a SPARCsta-
tion I, DECstation, and a Solbourne 4/802.
SOFTWARE REQUIRED
Some UNIX variant or some other OS with a Berkeley
Socket Compatibility Library.
AVAILABILITY
Snmpsrc is available in the NYSERNet SNMP Software Dis-
tribution, which is licensed, copyrighted software. To
obtain information regarding the package send mail to:
snmplisc@nisc.nyser.net or call +1 518-283-8860.
IETF NOCTools Working Group [Page 118]
Internet Tool Catalog SNMPSTAT
NAME
snmpstat
KEYWORDS
manager, status; IP; NMS, SNMP; UNIX.
ABSTRACT
Snmpstat is a network monitoring application that gath-
ers specific information from a network at regular
intervals and stores this information into a commercial
database. A report generation package is included in
the NYSERNet SNMP Software Distribution to produce
reports and graphs of raw data collected via SNMP.
MECHANISM
Snmpstat uses SNMP to gather its information. The
agents which must be queried and the variables to query
for are specified in a configuration file.
CAVEATS
An SNMP agent must be running in the network entity
being monitored in order for snmpstat to be useful.
BUGS
None outstanding. They are fixed as reports come in.
Report bugs to: nysersnmp@nisc.nyser.net
LIMITATIONS
SNMP polling is done synchronously. Currently, Ingres
is the only commercial database supported. SQL is the
query language being used.
HARDWARE REQUIRED
Developed on Sun 3/60, Sun 3/260, tested on a SPARCsta-
tion I, DECstation, and a Solbourne 4/802.
SOFTWARE REQUIRED
Some UNIX variant or some other OS with a Berkeley
Socket Compatibility Library.
AVAILABILITY
Snmpstat is available in the NYSERNet SNMP Software
Distribution, which is licensed, copyrighted software.
To obtain information regarding the package send mail
to: snmplisc@nisc.nyser.net or call +1 518-283-8860.
IETF NOCTools Working Group [Page 119]
Internet Tool Catalog SNMPTRAPD
NAME
snmptrapd
KEYWORDS
alarm, manager; IP; NMS, SNMP; UNIX.
ABSTRACT
Snmptrapd is an SNMP trap agent that runs on UNIX
derivatives. It receives and logs traps which are gen-
erated from snmp agents. A report generation package
is included in the NYSERNet SNMP Software Distribution
to produce reports and graphs of raw data collected via
SNMP.
MECHANISM
Snmptrapd conforms to SNMP as specified in RFC 1098.
Certain user configurable options are manipulated
through a simple configuration file.
CAVEATS
None.
BUGS
None outstanding. They are fixed as reports come in.
Report bugs to: nysersnmp@nisc.nyser.net
LIMITATIONS
Snmptrapd only logs traps into a UNIX flat file.
HARDWARE REQUIRED
Developed on Sun 3/60, Sun 3/260, tested on a SPARCsta-
tion I, DECstation, and a Solbourne 4/802.
SOFTWARE REQUIRED
Some UNIX variant.
AVAILABILITY
Snmptrapd is available in the NYSERNet SNMP Software
Distribution, which is licensed, copyrighted software.
To obtain information regarding the package send mail
to: snmplisc@nisc.nyser.net or call +1 518-283-8860.
IETF NOCTools Working Group [Page 120]
Internet Tool Catalog SNMPWATCH
NAME
snmpwatch
KEYWORDS
manager, status; IP; NMS, SNMP; UNIX.
ABSTRACT
Snmpwatch is a network monitoring application that mon-
itors variables in a single network entity and reports
when they have changed value.
MECHANISM
Snmpwatch uses SNMP to gather its information. The
entity to be monitored and the variables to be watched
must be specified on the command line. Once a value
changes, snmpwatch prints out the value and the vari-
able to the standard output.
CAVEATS
An SNMP agent must be running on the network entity
being monitored. Upon invocation, the initial value of
each variable will printed out to the standard output.
BUGS
None outstanding. They are fixed as reports come in.
Report bugs to: nysersnmp@nisc.nyser.net
LIMITATIONS
Only one network entity can be managed per invocation.
HARDWARE REQUIRED
Developed on Sun 3/60, Sun 3/260, tested on a SPARCsta-
tion I, DECstation, and a Solbourne 4/802.
SOFTWARE REQUIRED
Some UNIX variant or some other OS with a Berkeley
Socket Compatibility Library.
AVAILABILITY
Snmpwatch is available in the NYSERNet SNMP Software
Distribution, which is licensed, copyrighted software.
To obtain information regarding the package send mail
to: snmplisc@nisc.nyser.net or call +1 518-283-8860.
IETF NOCTools Working Group [Page 121]
Internet Tool Catalog SNMPXBAR
NAME
snmpxbar
KEYWORDS
manager, status; IP; NMS, SNMP, X; UNIX.
ABSTRACT
Snmpxbar is a network monitoring application based on
X-Windows Version 11 Release 2 and the Simple Network
Management Protocol. The application monitors a single
numeric MIB object and displays its value in a bar
chart. Snmpxbar supports color graphics.
MECHANISM
Snmpxbar uses SNMP to gather its information. The MIB
object to be graphed must be specified on the command
line. The polling interval can be changed dynamically
from within snmpxbar.
CAVEATS
An SNMP agent must be running in the network entity
being monitored in order for snmpxbar to be useful.
BUGS
Bugs are fixed as reports come in. Report bugs to:
nysersnmp@nisc.nyser.net
LIMITATIONS
Can only graph one numeric MIB object per invocation.
HARDWARE REQUIRED
Developed on Sun 3/60, Sun 3/260, tested on a SPARCsta-
tion I, DECstation, and a Solbourne 4/802.
SOFTWARE REQUIRED
Some UNIX variant or some other OS with a Berkeley
Socket Compatibility Library. X-Windows.
AVAILABILITY
Snmpxbar is available in the NYSERNet SNMP Software
Distribution, which is licensed, copyrighted software.
To obtain information regarding the package send mail
to: snmplisc@nisc.nyser.net or call +1 518-283-8860.
IETF NOCTools Working Group [Page 122]
Internet Tool Catalog SNMPXCONN
NAME
snmpxconn
KEYWORDS
manager, map, status; IP; NMS, SNMP, X; UNIX.
ABSTRACT
Snmpxconn is a network monitoring application based on
X-Windows Version 11 Release 2 and the Simple Network
Management Protocol. The application monitors a number
of (configurable) network entities and graphically dep-
icts the TCP connections associated with the network
entities via a TCP topology map.
MECHANISM
Snmpxconn uses SNMP to gather its information. A con-
figuration file is used to determine the network enti-
ties to be monitored. There are certain command line
arguments which manipulate the X environment and SNMP
actions.
CAVEATS
An SNMP agent must be running in the network entity
being monitored in order for snmpxconn to be useful.
BUGS
None outstanding. They are fixed as reports come in.
Report bugs to: nysersnmp@nisc.nyser.net
LIMITATIONS
SNMP polling is done synchronously. The network enti-
ties must be configured by manually adding information
to a configuration file.
HARDWARE REQUIRED
Developed on Sun 3/60, Sun 3/260, tested on a SPARCsta-
tion I, DECstation, and a Solbourne 4/802.
SOFTWARE REQUIRED
Some UNIX variant or some other OS with a Berkeley
Socket Compatibility Library. X-Windows.
AVAILABILITY
Snmpxconn is available in the NYSERNet SNMP Software
Distribution, which is licensed, copyrighted software.
To obtain information regarding the package send mail
to: snmplisc@nisc.nyser.net or call +1 518-283-8860.
IETF NOCTools Working Group [Page 123]
Internet Tool Catalog SNMPXMON
NAME
snmpxmon
KEYWORDS
manager, map, status; IP; NMS, SNMP, X; UNIX.
ABSTRACT
Snmpxmon is a network monitoring application based on
X-Windows Version 11 Release 2 and the Simple Network
Management Protocol. This application will determine
the status of sites and links it is configured to moni-
tor (via its configuration file) by querying the desig-
nated sites and then displaying the result in a map
form. Snmpxmon supports color graphics.
MECHANISM
Snmpxmon uses SNMP to gather its information. A confi-
guration file is used to design the topology map.
There are certain command line arguments which manipu-
late the X environment and SNMP actions.
CAVEATS
An SNMP agent must be running in the network entity
being monitored in order for snmpxmon to be useful.
BUGS
None outstanding. They are fixed as reports come in.
Report bugs to: nysersnmp@nisc.nyser.net
LIMITATIONS
SNMP polling is done synchronously. The topology map
must be configured by hand.
HARDWARE REQUIRED
Developed on Sun 3/60, Sun 3/260, tested on a SPARCsta-
tion I, DECstation, and a Solbourne 4/802.
SOFTWARE REQUIRED
Some UNIX variant or some other OS with a Berkeley
Socket Compatibility Library. X-Windows.
AVAILABILITY
Snmpxmon is available in the NYSERNet SNMP Software
Distribution, which is licensed, copyrighted software.
To obtain information regarding the package send mail
to: snmplisc@nisc.nyser.net or call +1 518-283-8860.
IETF NOCTools Working Group [Page 124]
Internet Tool Catalog SNMPXPERF
NAME
snmpxperf
KEYWORDS
manager, status; IP; NMS, SNMP, X; UNIX.
ABSTRACT
Snmpxperf is a network monitoring application based on
X-Windows Version 11 Release 2 and the Simple Network
Management Protocol. The application monitors a single
numeric MIB object and displays its value in an EKG
style histogram. Snmpxperf supports color graphics.
MECHANISM
Snmpxperf uses SNMP to gather its information. The MIB
object to be graphed must be specified on the command
line. The polling interval can be changed dynamically
from within snmpxperf.
CAVEATS
An SNMP agent must be running in the network entity
being monitored in order for snmpxperf to be useful.
BUGS
Auto-scaling sometimes doesn't downscale the EKG-graph
enough on large spikes. This results in some of the
graph running into the button boxes at the top of the
window. Generally, Bugs are fixed as reports come in.
Report bugs to: nysersnmp@nisc.nyser.net
LIMITATIONS
Can only graph one numeric MIB object per invocation.
HARDWARE REQUIRED
Developed on Sun 3/60, Sun 3/260, tested on a SPARCsta-
tion I, DECstation, and a Solbourne 4/802.
SOFTWARE REQUIRED
Some UNIX variant or some other OS with a Berkeley
Socket Compatibility Library. X-Windows.
AVAILABILITY
Snmpxperf is available in the NYSERNet SNMP Software
Distribution, which is licensed, copyrighted software.
To obtain information regarding the package send mail
to: snmplisc@nisc.nyser.net or call +1 518-283-8860.
IETF NOCTools Working Group [Page 125]
Internet Tool Catalog SNMPXPERFMON
NAME
snmpxperfmon
KEYWORDS
manager, status, traffic; IP; NMS, SNMP, X; UNIX.
ABSTRACT
Snmpxperfmon is a network monitoring application based
on X-Windows Version 11 Release 2 and the Simple Net-
work Management Protocol. The application monitors a
single Network Entity and displays graphical informa-
tion pertaining to the entities interface traffic
statistics. Snmpxperfmon supports color graphics.
MECHANISM
Snmpxperfmon uses SNMP to gather its information. The
MIB agent to be polled must be specified on the command
line. The agent is then queried about all of its
interfaces. Four EKG-style graphs are constructed for
each interface (input pkts, output pkts, input Octets,
output Octets).
CAVEATS
An SNMP agent must be running in the network entity
being monitored in order for snmpxperfmon to be useful.
BUGS
Generally, bugs are fixed as reports come in. Report
bugs to: nysersnmp@nisc.nyser.net
LIMITATIONS
Can only graph one network entity per invocation. Can
only graph the amount of interfaces which will fit on a
single bitmap display. Does not auto-scale or resize.
HARDWARE REQUIRED
Developed on Sun 3/60, Sun 3/260, tested on a SPARCsta-
tion I, DECstation, and a Solbourne 4/802.
SOFTWARE REQUIRED
Some UNIX variant or some other OS with a Berkeley
Socket Compatibility Library. X-Windows.
AVAILABILITY
Snmpxperfmon is available in the NYSERNet SNMP Software
Distribution, which is licensed, copyrighted software.
To obtain information regarding the package send mail
to: snmplisc@nisc.nyser.net or call +1 518-283-8860.
IETF NOCTools Working Group [Page 126]
Internet Tool Catalog SNMPXPERFMON
NAME
snmpxrtmetric
KEYWORDS
manager, routing; IP; NMS, SNMP, X; UNIX.
ABSTRACT
Snmpxrtmetric is a network monitoring application based
on X-Windows Version 11 Release 2 and the Simple Net-
work Management Protocol. The application monitors the
routing table of a specific agent and displays the RIP
routing metric of certain destination networks in bar
chart format.
MECHANISM
Snmpxrtmetric uses SNMP to gather its information. A
configuration file is used to determine which destina-
tion networks will be graphed. The agent to be queried
is specified on the command line. Snmpxrtmetrtic sup-
ports color graphics.
CAVEATS
An SNMP agent must be running in the network entity
being monitored in order for snmpxrtmetric to be use-
ful.
BUGS
None outstanding. They are fixed as reports come in.
Report bugs to: nysersnmp@nisc.nyser.net
LIMITATIONS
SNMP polling is done synchronously. The destination
networks must be configured by manually adding informa-
tion to a configuration file.
HARDWARE REQUIRED
Developed on Sun 3/60, Sun 3/260, tested on a SPARCsta-
tion I, DECstation, and a Solbourne 4/802.
SOFTWARE REQUIRED
Some UNIX variant or some other OS with a Berkeley
Socket Compatibility Library. The X window system.
IETF NOCTools Working Group [Page 127]
Internet Tool Catalog SNMPXRTMETRIC
AVAILABILITY
Snmpxrtmetric is available in the NYSERNet SNMP
Software Distribution, which is licensed, copyrighted
software. To obtain information regarding the package
send mail to: snmplisc@nisc.nyser.net or call +1 518-
283-8860.
IETF NOCTools Working Group [Page 128]
Internet Tool Catalog SPIDERMONITOR
NAME
SpiderMonitor P220, K220 and
SpiderAnalyzer P320, K320
KEYWORDS
alarm, analyzer, generator, traffic; DECnet, ethernet,
IP, OSI; eavesdrop; standalone; sourcelib.
ABSTRACT
The SpiderMonitor and SpiderAnalyzer are protocol
analyzers for performing ethernet LAN diagnostics, mon-
itoring, traffic generation, and troubleshooting. The
SpiderMonitor has the capability of capturing every
packet on a network and of decoding the first four
layers of the OSI protocol model. The SpiderAnalyzer
has additional software for decoding higher protocol
layers. Protocol suites understood: TCP/IP (including
SNMP and applications-layer protocols), OSI, XNS, DEC-
net and IPX. User-definable decodes can be written in
'C' with the Microsoft version 5.0 'C' compiler. A
decode guide is provided.
The SpiderAnalyzer supports multiple simultaneous
filters for capturing packets using predefined patterns
and error states. Filter patterns can also trigger on
NOT matching 1 or more filters, an alarm, or a speci-
fied time.
The SpiderAnalyzer can also employ TDR (Time Domain
Reflectometry) to find media faults, open or short cir-
cuits, or transceiver faults. It can transmit OSI,
XNS, and Xerox link-level echo packets to user-
specified stations, performs loop round tests.
In traffic generation mode, the SpiderAnalyzer has the
ability to generate packets at random intervals of ran-
dom lengths or any combination of random or fixed
interval or length, generation of packets with CRC
errors, or packets that are too short, or packets that
are too long.
Output from the SpiderMonitor/Analyzer can be imported
to database or spreadsheet packages.
MECHANISM
The SpiderMonitor and Spider Analyzer are available as
stand-alone, IBM PC compatible packages based upon a
Compaq III portable system, or as a plug-in boards for
IETF NOCTools Working Group [Page 129]
Internet Tool Catalog SPIDERMONITOR
any IBM XT/AT compatible machine. The model 220 (Spi-
derMonitor) systems provide a functional base suited
for most network management needs. The model 320 (Spi-
derAnalyzer) systems provide extended functionality in
the development mode and traffic generation mode as
well more filtering capabilities than the 220 models.
CAVEATS
Traffic generation will congest an operational ether-
net.
BUGS
None known.
LIMITATIONS
Monitoring of up to 1024 stations and buffering of up
to 1500 packets. The model 220 provides for 3 filters
with a filter depth of 46 bytes. The model 320 pro-
vides for 4 filters and a second level of filtering
with a filter depth of 64 bytes.
HARDWARE REQUIRED
PX20s are self contained, the KX20s require an IBM
PC/XT-AT compatible machine with 5 megabytes of hard
disk storage and the spare slot into which the board
kit is plugged.
SOFTWARE REQUIRED
None. The SpiderAnalyzer requires the Microsoft 'C'
Compiler, Version 5.0 for writing user defined decodes.
AVAILABILITY
The SpiderMonitor/Analyzer is available commercially.
For information on your local representative, call or
write:
Spider Systems, Inc.
12 New England Executive Park
Burlington, MA 01803
Telephone: 617-270-3510
FAX: 617-270-9818
IETF NOCTools Working Group [Page 130]
Internet Tool Catalog SPIMS
NAME
SPIMS -- the Swedish Institute of Computer Science
(SICS) Protocol Implementation Measurement System tool.
KEYWORDS
benchmark, debugger; IP, OSI; spoof; UNIX.
ABSTRACT
SPIMS is used to measure the performance of protocol
and "protocol-like" services including response time
(two-way delay), throughput and the time to open and
close connections. It has been used to:
o+ benchmark alternative protocol implementations,
o+ observe how performance varies when parameters in
specific implementations have been varied (i.e.,
to tune parameters).
SPIMS currently has interfaces to the DoD Internet Pro-
tocols: UDP, TCP, FTP, SunRPC, the OSI protocols from
the ISODE 4.0 distribution package: FTAM, ROSE, ISO TP0
and to Sunlink 5.2 ISO TP4 as well as Stanford's VMTP.
Also available are a rudimentary set of benchmarks,
stubs for new protocol interfaces and a user manual.
For an example of the use of SPIMS to tune protocols,
see:
Nordmark & Cheriton, "Experiences from VMTP: How
to achieve low response time," _I_F_I_P _W_G_6._1/_6._4:
_P_r_o_t_o_c_o_l_s _f_o_r _H_i_g_h-_S_p_e_e_d _N_e_t_w_o_r_k_s, May 1989,
Zurich. To be published.
MECHANISM
SPIMS runs as user processes and uses a TCP connection
for measurement set-up. Measurements take place
between processes over the measured protocol. SPIMS
generates messages and transfers them via the measured
protocol service according to a user-supplied specifi-
cation. SPIMS has a unique measurement specification
language that is used to specify a measurement session.
In the language there are constructs for different
application types (e.g., bulk data transfer), for
specifying frequency and sequence of messages, for dis-
tribution over message sizes and for combining basic
specifications. These specifications are independent
of both protocols and protocol implementations and can
be used for benchmarking. For more details on the
IETF NOCTools Working Group [Page 131]
Internet Tool Catalog SPIMS
internals of SPIMS, see:
Nordmark & Gunningberg, "SPIMS: A Tool for Proto-
col Implementation Performance Measurements" _P_r_o_c.
_o_f _1_3:_t_h _C_o_n_f. _o_n _L_o_c_a_l _C_o_m_p_u_t_e_r _N_e_t_w_o_r_k_s, Min-
neapolis 1989, pp 222-229.
CAVEATS
None.
BUGS
None known.
LIMITATIONS
None reported.
HARDWARE REQUIRED
No restrictions.
SOFTWARE REQUIRED
SPIMS is implemented on UNIX, including SunOS 4.,
4.3BSD UNIX, DN (UNIX System V, with extensions) and
Ultrix 2.0/3.0. It requires a TCP connection for meas-
urement set-up. No kernel modifications or any modifi-
cations to measured protocols are required.
AVAILABILITY
SPIMS is not in the public domain; the software is
covered by licenses. The Swedish Institute of Computer
Science has released the research prototype of SPIMS
for research and non-commercial use. Commercial organ-
izations may obtain the research prototype, but it is
for internal research only and for no commercial use
whatsoever. A commercial, supported version of SPIMS is
distributed by TeleLOGIC Uppsala AB, Sweden.
For universities and non-profit organizations, SPIMS
source code is distributed free of charge. There are
two ways to get the software:
1. FTP. If you have an Internet FTP connection, you
can use anonymous FTP to sics.se [192.16.123.90],
and retrieve the file in pub/spims-
dist/dist890915.tar.Z (this is a .6MB tar image)
in BINARY mode. Log in as user anonymous and at
the password prompt, use your complete electronic
mail address.
2. On a Sun 1/4-inch cartridge tape. For mailing, a
IETF NOCTools Working Group [Page 132]
Internet Tool Catalog SPIMS
handling fee of US$150.00 will be charged. Submit
a bank check with the request. Do not send tapes
or envelopes.
For other organizations, the SPIMS source code for the
research prototype is distributed for a one-time fee of
US$500.00. Organizations interested in the research
prototype need to contact SICS via email and briefly
motivate why they qualify (non-commercial use) for the
research prototype. They will thereafter get a permis-
sion to obtain a copy from the same distribution source
as for universities.
For more information about the research prototype dis-
tribution, contact:
Swedish Institute of Computer Science
Att: Birgitta Klingenberg
P.O. Box 1263
S-164 28 Kista
SWEDEN
e-address: spims@sics.se
Phone: +46-8-7521500, Fax: +46-8-7517230
TeleLOGIC Uppsala AB, a subsidiary of Swedish Telecom,
distributes and supports a version of SPIMS for commer-
cial use. It consists of object code for SunOS 4.,
4.3BSD UNIX, DNIX, and Ultrix 2.0/3.0. Support for
other UNIX-like implementations will be considered
according to demand. The same interfaces to the DoD
Internet and OSI protocols from the ISODE 4.0 are
included as well as a user manual.
For further information about SPIMS for the commercial
user please contact:
Claes Hojenberg
TeleLOGIC Uppsala AB
P.O. Box 1218
S-751 42 UPPSALA
Sweden
e-address: claes@uplog.se
Phone: +46-18-189400, Fax: +46-18-132039
IETF NOCTools Working Group [Page 133]
Internet Tool Catalog SPRAY
NAME
spray
KEYWORDS
benchmark, generator; IP; ping; UNIX.
ABSTRACT
Spray is a traffic generation tool that generates RPC
or UDP packets, or ICMP Echo Requests. The packets are
sent to a remote procedure call application at the des-
tination host. The count of received packets is
retrieved from the remote application after a certain
number of packets have been transmitted. The differ-
ence in packets received versus packets sent represents
(on a LAN) the packets that the destination host had to
drop due to increasing queue length. A measure of
throughput relative to system speed and network load
can thus be obtained.
MECHANISM
See above.
CAVEATS
Spray can congest a network.
BUGS
None known.
LIMITATIONS
None reported.
HARDWARE REQUIRED
No restrictions.
SOFTWARE REQUIRED
SunOS
AVAILABILITY
Supplied with SunOS.
IETF NOCTools Working Group [Page 134]
Internet Tool Catalog TCPDUMP
NAME
tcpdump
KEYWORDS
traffic; ethernet, IP, NFS; UNIX, VMS; free.
ABSTRACT
Tcpdump can interpret and print headers for the follow-
ing protocols: ethernet, IP, ICMP, TCP, UDP, NFS, ND,
ARP/RARP, AppleTalk. Tcpdump has proven useful for
examining and evaluating the retransmission and window
management operations of TCP implementations.
MECHANISM
Much like etherfind, tcpdump writes a log file of the
frames traversing an ethernet interface. Each output
line includes the time a packet is received, the type
of packet, and various values from its header.
CAVEATS
None.
BUGS
None known.
LIMITATIONS
Public domain version requires a kernel patch for
SunOS.
HARDWARE REQUIRED
Ethernet.
SOFTWARE REQUIRED
BSD UNIX or related OS, or VMS.
AVAILABILITY
Available, though subject to copyright restrictions,
via anonymous FTP from ftp.ee.lbl.gov. The source and
documentation for the tool is in compressed tar format,
in file tcpdump.tar.Z. Also available from
spam.itstd.sri.com, in directory pub. For VMS hosts
with DEC ethernet controllers, available as part of TGV
MultiNet IP software package.
IETF NOCTools Working Group [Page 135]
Internet Tool Catalog TCPLOGGER
NAME
tcplogger
KEYWORDS
traffic; IP; eavesdrop; UNIX; free.
ABSTRACT
Tcplogger consists of modifications to the 4.3BSD UNIX
source code, and a large library of post-processing
software. Tcplogger records timestamped information
from TCP and IP packets that are sent and received on a
specified connection. For each TCP packet, information
such as sequence number, acknowledgement sequence
number, packet size, and header flags is recorded. For
an IP packet, header length, packet length and TTL
values are recorded. Customized use of the TCP option
field allows the detection of lost or duplicate pack-
ets.
MECHANISM
Routines of 4.3BSD UNIX in the netinet directory have
been modified to append information to a log in memory.
The log is read continuously by a user process and
written to a file. A TCP option has been added to
start the logging of a connection. Lots of post-
processing software has been written to analyze the
data.
CAVEATS
None.
BUGS
None known.
LIMITATIONS
To get a log at both ends of the connection, the modi-
fied kernel should be run at both the hosts.
All connections are logged in a single file, but
software is provided to filter out the record of a sin-
gle connection.
HARDWARE REQUIRED
No restrictions.
SOFTWARE REQUIRED
4.3BSD UNIX (as modified for this tool).
IETF NOCTools Working Group [Page 136]
Internet Tool Catalog TCPLOGGER
AVAILABILITY
Free, although a 4.3BSD license is required. Contact
Olafur Gudmundsson (ogud@cs.umd.edu).
IETF NOCTools Working Group [Page 137]
Internet Tool Catalog TOKENVIEW
NAME
TokenVIEW
KEYWORDS
control, manager, status; ring; NMS, proprietary; DOS.
ABSTRACT
Network Management tool for 4/16 Mbit IEEE 802.5 Token
Ring Networks. Monitors active nodes and ring errors.
Maintains database of nodes, wire centers and their
connections. Separate network management ring allows
remote configuration of wire centers.
MECHANISM
A separate network management ring used with Proteon
Intelligent Wire Centers allows wire center configura-
tion information to be read and modified from a single
remote workstation. A log of network events used with
a database contain nodes, wire centers and their con-
nections, facilitates tracking and correction of net-
work errors. Requires an "E" series PROM, sold with
package.
CAVEATS
Currently, only ISA bus cards support the required E
series PROM.
BUGS
None known.
LIMITATIONS
256 nodes, 1 net.
HARDWARE REQUIRED
512K RAM, CGA or better, hard disk, mouse supported.
SOFTWARE REQUIRED
MS-DOS, optional mouse driver
AVAILABILITY
Fully supported product of Proteon, Inc. Previously
sold as Advanced Network Manager (ANM). For more in-
formation, contact:
Proteon, Inc. Phone: (508) 898-2800
2 Technology Drive Fax: (508) 366-8901
Westborough, MA 01581 Telex: 928124
IETF NOCTools Working Group [Page 138]
Internet Tool Catalog TRACEROUTE
NAME
traceroute
KEYWORDS
routing; IP; ping; UNIX, VMS; free.
ABSTRACT
Traceroute is a tool that allows the route taken by
packets from source to destination to be discovered.
It can be used for situations where the IP record route
option would fail, such as intermediate gateways dis-
carding packets, routes that exceed the capacity of an
datagram, or intermediate IP implementations that don't
support record route. Round trip delays between the
source and intermediate gateways are also reported
allowing the determination of individual gateways con-
tribution to end-to-end delay.
Enhanced versions of traceroute have been developed
that allow specification of loose source routes for
datagrams. This allows one to investigate the return
path from remote machines back to the local host.
MECHANISM
Traceroute relies on the ICMP TIME_EXCEEDED error
reporting mechanism. When an IP packet is received by
an gateway with a time-to-live value of 0, an ICMP
packet is sent to the host which generated the packet.
By sending packets to a destination with a TTL of 0,
the next hop can be identified as the source of the
ICMP TIME EXCEEDED message. By incrementing the TTL
field the subsequent hops can be identified. Each
packet sent out is also time stamped. The time stamp
is returned as part of the ICMP packet so a round trip
delay can be calculated.
CAVEATS
Some IP implementations forward packets with a TTL of
0, thus escaping identification. Others use the TTL
field in the arriving packet as the TTL for the ICMP
error reply, which delays identification.
Sending datagrams with the source route option will
cause some gateways to crash. It is considered poor
form to repeat this behavior.
BUGS
None known.
IETF NOCTools Working Group [Page 139]
Internet Tool Catalog TRACEROUTE
LIMITATIONS
Most versions of UNIX have errors in the raw IP code
that require kernel mods for the standard version of
traceroute to work. A version of traceroute exists
that runs without kernel mods under SunOS 3.5 (see
below), but it only operates over an ethernet inter-
face.
HARDWARE REQUIRED
No restrictions.
SOFTWARE REQUIRED
BSD UNIX or related OS, or VMS.
AVAILABILITY
Available by anonymous FTP from ftp.ee.lbl.gov, in file
traceroute.tar.Z. It is also available from
uc.msc.umn.edu.
A version of traceroute that supports Loose Source
Record Route, along with the source code of the
required kernel modifications and a Makefile for
installing them, is available via anonymous FTP from
zerkalo.harvard.edu, in directory pub, file
traceroute_pkg.tar.Z.
A version of traceroute that runs under SunOS 3.5 and
does NOT require kernel mods is available via anonymous
FTP from dopey.cs.unc.edu, in file
~ftp/pub/traceroute.tar.Z.
For VMS, traceroute is available as part of TGV Mul-
tiNet IP software package.
IETF NOCTools Working Group [Page 140]
Internet Tool Catalog TRPT
NAME
TRPT -- transliterate protocol trace
KEYWORDS
traffic; IP; eavesdrop; UNIX; free.
ABSTRACT
TRPT displays a trace of a TCP socket events. When no
options are supplied, TRPT prints all the trace records
found in a system, grouped according to TCP connection
protocol control block (PCB).
An example of TRPT output is:
38241 ESTABLISHED:input
[e0531003..e0531203)@6cc5b402(win=4000)<ACK> -> ESTA-
BLISHED
38241 ESTABLISHED:user RCVD -> ESTABLISHED
38266 ESTABLISHED:output
6cc5b402@e0531203(win=4000)<ACK> -> ESTABLISHED
38331 ESTABLISHED:input
[e0531203..e0531403)@6cc5b402(win=4000)<ACK,FIN,PUSH>
-> CLOSE_WAIT
38331 CLOSE_WAIT:output
6cc5b402@e0531404(win=3dff)<ACK> -> CLOSE_WAIT
38331 CLOSE_WAIT:user RCVD -> CLOSE_WAIT
38343 LAST_ACK:output
6cc5b402@e0531404(win=4000)<ACK,FIN> -> LAST_ACK
38343 CLOSE_WAIT:user DISCONNECT -> LAST_ACK
38343 LAST_ACK:user DETACH -> LAST_ACK
MECHANISM
TRPT interrogates the buffer of TCP trace records that
is created when a TCP socket is marked for debugging.
CAVEATS
Prior to using TRPT, an analyst should take steps to
isolate the problem connection and find the address of
its protocol control blocks.
BUGS
None reported.
LIMITATIONS
A socket must have the debugging option set for TRPT to
operate. Another problem is that the output format of
TRPT is difficult.
IETF NOCTools Working Group [Page 141]
Internet Tool Catalog TRPT
HARDWARE REQUIRED
No restrictions.
SOFTWARE REQUIRED
BSD UNIX or related OS.
AVAILABILITY
Included with BSD and SunOS distributions. Available
via anonymous FTP from uunet.uu.net, in file bsd-
sources/src/etc/trpt.tar.Z.
IETF NOCTools Working Group [Page 142]
Internet Tool Catalog TTCP
NAME
TTCP
KEYWORDS
benchmark, generator; IP; ping; UNIX, VMS; free.
ABSTRACT
TTCP is a traffic generator that can be used for test-
ing end-to-end throughput. It is good for evaluating
TCP/IP implementations.
MECHANISM
Cooperating processes are started on two hosts. The
open a TCP connection and transfer a high volume of
data. Delay and throughput are calculated.
CAVEATS
Will greatly increase system load.
BUGS
None known.
LIMITATIONS
None reported.
HARDWARE REQUIRED
No restrictions.
SOFTWARE REQUIRED
BSD UNIX or related OS, or VMS.
AVAILABILITY
Source for BSD UNIX is available via anonymous FTP from
vgr.brl.mil, in file ftp/pub/ttcp.c, and from sgi.com,
in file sgi/src/ttcp.c. A version of TTCP has also
been submitted to the USENET news group
comp.sources.unix. For VMS, ttcp.c is included in the
MultiNet Programmer's Kit, a standard feature of TGV
MultiNet IP software package.
IETF NOCTools Working Group [Page 143]
Internet Tool Catalog UNISYS NCC
NAME
Unisys Network Control Center (NCC)
KEYWORDS
alarm, benchmark, control, generator, manager, map,
reference, status, traffic; ethernet, FDDI, IP; NMS,
ping, SNMP; UNIX.
ABSTRACT
The Unisys Defense Systems Network Control Center (NCC)
provides high-performance software to support the
management and control of TCP/IP-based networks. The
network management system uses the Simple Network
Management Protocol (SNMP) to exchange management
information between the NCC and network devices. The
NCC supports the Management Information Base (MIB)
[RFC-1066] and the Structure and Identification of
Management Information for TCP/IP-based Internets
[RFC-1065]. In addition, Unisys has extended the MIB
definitions to support the features of Unisys FDDI LAN
devices, such as the FDDI Smart Concentrators, the FDDI
Host Network Front Ends, and the Remote FDDI, FDDI-to-
LAN, and FDDI-to-DDN gateways.
The NCC supports seven applications. The network
topology map displays the physical and logical maps of
the network. The configuration management tool sup-
ports the modification and validation of network device
configuration data as well as the modification of MIB
configuration data. The performance monitoring tool
supports the collection and analysis of statistical
parameters from network devices. The status monitoring
tool reports on the up/down status and responsiveness
of network devices using ICMP. The accounting tool is
used to collect, store, and display user job activity
at the subscriber hosts. The NCC database entry sup-
ports RFC 1066 object definitions and Unisys-specific
object definitions to support the Unisys FDDI devices.
And finally, the trap reporting tool reports the
arrival of error and event notifications using UDP
datagrams. The NCC supports all the trap messages
defined in RFC 1098.
MECHANISM
The NCC is based on the Simple Network Management Pro-
tocol (SNMP).
IETF NOCTools Working Group [Page 144]
Internet Tool Catalog UNISYS NCC
CAVEATS
None.
BUGS
None known.
LIMITATIONS
None reported.
HARDWARE REQUIRED
A minimal platform consists of a Sun 3/60FC-8, with at
least 200 MB disk and cartridge tape (1/4"). A full-
sized color monitor, more disk, and a workstation based
on a higher performance processor is beneficial to NCC
activities.
SOFTWARE REQUIRED
SunOS Version 4.0 running the SunView windowing en-
vironment and the SYBASE Relational Data Base Manage-
ment System.
AVAILABILITY
Commercially available as a turn-key package or as a
software product from:
Unisys Defense Systems
5151 Camino Ruiz
Camarillo, California 93010
(805) 987-6811
(Dale Russell <dsr@cam.unisys.com>)
IETF NOCTools Working Group [Page 145]
Internet Tool Catalog WIN/MGT STATION
NAME
WIN/MGT Station -- Network Management Station for
SunOS.
KEYWORDS
alarm, control, manager, routing, status, traffic; eth-
ernet, IP; NMS, SNMP, X; UNIX; library.
ABSTRACT
WIN/MGT Station for SunOS is a network management
software product based on the SNMP. It provides the
capability to manage standards-based networking pro-
ducts from The Wollongong Group as well as other ven-
dors. Fully compliant with RFCs 1065, 1066 and 1098,
WIN/MGT Station uses a menu-driven graphical user
interface.
WIN/MGT capabilities include configuration, performance
and fault management for SNMP-based agents. The
WIN/MGT station can perform polling to monitor the
status of all MIB variables defined in RFC 1066,
"Management Information Base for network management of
TCP/IP-based internets." In addition, the WIN/MGT Sta-
tion can process "trap" messages from SNMP agents.
Furthermore, the WIN/MGT Station can support any
private extension to the Management Information Base
with minimal user configuration.
An icon-driven network interface map allows the user to
monitor their network topology and status. Changes in
the operational status of any manageable network ele-
ment is displayed visually and audibly.
The WIN/MGT package includes an Applications Program-
ming Interface (API) for the "C" language. The API is
a set of libraries that enable an applications program
to perform SNMP "set" and "get" operations. This
allows users to integrate site-specific applications
with WIN/MGT.
SNMP agent software for the Sun 3 host is also provided
so that the Network Management Station itself can also
be monitored and managed.
MECHANISM
The WIN/MGT Station uses SNMP to monitor and control
SNMP agents.
IETF NOCTools Working Group [Page 146]
Internet Tool Catalog WIN/MGT STATION
CAVEATS
None.
BUGS
None known.
LIMITATIONS
A theoretical limitation of approximately 18,000 net-
work elements can be managed.
HARDWARE REQUIRED
Any model of Sun 3 system. Recommended minimums
include 8 MB RAM, 100 MB disk space (30 MB to start),
and color monitor. Also tested on DECstation 3100,
PS/2 (with SCO UNIX) and Macintosh IIcx computer using
A/UX.
SOFTWARE REQUIRED
SunOS 4.x. MIT X Window System, Release 11, version 3,
or OpenWindows (X.11/NeWS) from Sun Microsystems, Inc.
WIN/MGT Station for SunOS is provided on 1/4" tape in
cpio format.
AVAILABILITY
A commercial product of:
The Wollongong Group, Inc.
1129 San Antonio Rd.
Palo Alto, CA 94303
(415) 962-7200 br fax (415) 968-3619
internet oldera@twg.com
IETF NOCTools Working Group [Page 147]
Internet Tool Catalog XNETMON (I)
NAME
xnetmon, xpmon
KEYWORDS
alarm, manager, map, status; IP; NMS, SNMP; UNIX.
ABSTRACT
Xnetmon and xpmon provide graphical representation of
performance and status of SNMP-capable network ele-
ments. Xnetmon presents a schematic network map
representing the up/down status of network elements;
xpmon draws a pen plot style graph of the change over
time of any arbitrary MIB object (RFC1066). Both xnet-
mon and xpmon use the SNMP (RFC1098) for retrieving
status and performance data.
MECHANISM
Xnetmon polls network elements for the status of their
interfaces on a controllable polling interval. Pop-up
windows displaying the values of any MIB variable are
supported by separate polls. When SNMP traps are
received from a network element, that element and all
adjacent elements are immediately re-polled to update
their status. The layout of the network map is stati-
cally configured. Xpmon repeatedly polls (using SNMP)
the designated network element for the value of the
designated MIB variable on the user-specified interval.
The change in the variable is then plotted on the strip
chart. The strip chart regularly adjusts its scale to
the current maximum value on the graph.
CAVEATS
Polling intervals should be chosen with care so as not
to affect system performance adversely.
BUGS
None known.
LIMITATIONS
None reported.
HARDWARE REQUIRED
Distributed and supported for Sun-3 systems.
SOFTWARE REQUIRED
SunOS 3.5 or 4.x; X11, release 2 or 3.
IETF NOCTools Working Group [Page 148]
Internet Tool Catalog XNETMON (I)
AVAILABILITY
Commercial product of:
Wellfleet Communications, Inc.
12 DeAngelo Drive
Bedford, MA 01730-2204
(617) 275-2400
IETF NOCTools Working Group [Page 149]
Internet Tool Catalog XNETMON (II)
NAME
XNETMON -- an X windows based SNMP network management
station from SNMP Research.
KEYWORDS
alarm, control, manager, map, routing, security,
status; DECnet, ethernet, IP, OSI, ring, star; NMS,
SNMP, X; DOS, UNIX, VMS; sourcelib.
ABSTRACT
The XNETMON application implements a powerful network
management station based on the X window system. It
provides network managers tools for fault management,
configuration management, performance management, and
security management. It can be successfully used with
many types of networks including those based on various
LAN media, and wide area networks. XNETMON has been
used with multiprotocol devices including those which
support TCP/IP, DECnet, and OSI protocols. The fault
management tool displays the map of the network confi-
guration with node and link state indicated in one of
several colors to indicate current status. Alarms may
be enabled to alert the operator of events occurring in
the network. Events are logged to disk. The confi-
guration management tool may be used to edit the net-
work management information base stored in the network
management station to reflect changes occurring in the
network. Other features include graphs and tabular
tools for use in fault and performance management and
mechanisms by which additional variables, such as
vendor-specific variables, may be added. The XNETMON
application comes complete with source code including a
powerful set of portable libraries for generating and
parsing SNMP messages. Output data from XNETMON may be
transferred via flat files for additional report gen-
eration by a variety of statistical packages.
MECHANISM
The XNETMON application is based on the Simple Network
Management Protocol (SNMP). Polling is performed via
the powerful SNMP get-next operator and the SNMP get
operator. Trap directed polling is used to regulate
the focus and intensity of the polling.
CAVEATS
None.
BUGS
IETF NOCTools Working Group [Page 150]
Internet Tool Catalog XNETMON (II)
None known.
LIMITATIONS
The monitored and managed nodes must implement the SNMP
over UDP per RFC 1098 or must be reachable via a proxy
agent.
HARDWARE REQUIRED
X windows workstation with UDP socket library. Mono-
chrome is acceptable but color is far superior.
SOFTWARE REQUIRED
X windows version 11 release 3 or later.
AVAILABILITY
This is a commercial product available under license
from:
SNMP Research
P.O. Box 8593
Knoxville, TN 37996-4800
(615) 573-1434 (Voice)
(615) 573-9197 (FAX)
Attn: Dr. Jeff Case
IETF NOCTools Working Group [Page 151]
Internet Tool Catalog XNETPERFMON
NAME
xnetperfmon -- a graphical network performance and
fault management tool from SNMP Research.
KEYWORDS
manager, status; DECnet, ethernet, IP, OSI, ring, star;
NMS, SNMP, X; DOS, UNIX, VMS; sourcelib.
ABSTRACT
Xnetperfmon may be used to plot SNMP variables as a
graphical display. These graphs are often useful for
fault and performance management. Variables may be
plotted as gauges versus time. Alternatively, counters
may be plotted as delta count/delta time (rates). The
user may easily customize the variables to be plotted,
labels, step size, update interval, and the like. The
scales automatically adjust whenever a point to be
plotted would go off scale.
MECHANISM
The xnetperfmon application communicates with remote
agents or proxy agents via the Simple Network Manage-
ment Protocol (SNMP).
CAVEATS
All plots for a single invocation of xnetperfmon must
be for variables provided by a single network manage-
ment agent. However, multiple invocations of xnetperf-
mon may be active on a single display simultaneously or
proxy agents may be used to summarize information at a
common point.
BUGS
None known.
LIMITATIONS
None reported.
HARDWARE REQUIRED
Systems supporting X windows.
SOFTWARE REQUIRED
X Version 11 release 2 or later.
IETF NOCTools Working Group [Page 152]
Internet Tool Catalog XNETPERFMON
AVAILABILITY
This is a commercial product available under license
from:
SNMP Research
P.O. Box 8593
Knoxville, TN 37996-4800
(615) 573-1434 (Voice)
(615) 573-9197 (FAX)
Attn: Dr. Jeff Case
IETF NOCTools Working Group [Page 153]
Internet Tool Catalog XUP
NAME
xup
KEYWORDS
status; ping, X; HP.
ABSTRACT
Xup uses the X-Windows to display the status of an
"interesting" set of hosts.
MECHANISM
Xup uses ping to determine host status.
CAVEATS
Polling for status increases network load.
BUGS
None known.
LIMITATIONS
None reported.
HARDWARE REQUIRED
Runs only on HP series 300 and 800 workstations.
SOFTWARE REQUIRED
Version 10 of X-Windows.
AVAILABILITY
A standard command for the HP 300 & 800 Workstations.
IETF NOCTools Working Group [Page 154]
Appendix Network Management Tutorial
Network Management Tutorial
This tutorial is an overview of the practice of network
management. Reading this section is no substitute for know-
ing your system, and knowing how it is used. Do not wait
until things break to learn what they ought to do or how
they usually work: a crisis is not the time for determining
how "normal" packet traces should look. Furthermore, it
takes little imagination to realize that you do not want to
be digging through manuals while your boss is screaming for
network service to be restored.
We assume an acquaintance with the TCP/IP protocol suite and
the Internet architecture. There are many available refer-
ences on these topics, several of which are listed below in
Section 7.
Since many of the details of network management are system-
specific, this tutorial is a bit superficial. There is,
however, a more fundamental problem in prescribing network
management practices: network management is not a well-
understood endeavor. At present, the cutting edge of net-
work management is the use of distributed systems to collect
and exchange status information, and then to display the
data as histograms or trend lines. It is not clear that we
know what data should be collected, how to analyze it when
we get it, or how to structure our collection systems. For
now, automated, real-time control of internets is an aspira-
tion, rather than a reality. The communications systems
that we field are apparently more complex than we can
comprehend, which no doubt accounts in part for their fre-
quently surprising behavior.
The first section of this tutorial lists the overall goals
and functions of network management. It presents several
aspects of network management, including system monitoring,
fault detection and isolation, performance testing, confi-
guration management, and security. These discussions are
followed by a bibliographic section. The tutorial closes
with some final advice for network managers.
1. Network Management Goals and Functions
An organization's view of network management goals is shaped
by two factors:
IETF NOCTools Working Group [Page 155]
Appendix Network Management Tutorial
1. people in the organization depend on the system
working,
2. LANs, routers, lines, and other communications
resources have costs.
From the organizational vantage point, the ultimate goal of
network management is to provide a consistent, predictable,
acceptable level of service from the available data communi-
cations resources. To achieve this, a network manager must
first be able to perform fault detection, isolation, and
correction. He must also be able to effect configuration
changes with a minimum of disruption, and measure the utili-
zation of system components.
People actually managing networks have a different focus.
Network managers are usually evaluated by the availability
and performance of their communications systems, even though
many factors of net performance are beyond their control.
To them, the most important requirement of a network manage-
ment tool is that it allows the detection and diagnosis of
faults before users can call to complain: users (and bosses)
can often be placated just by knowing that a network problem
has been diagnosed. Another vital network management func-
tion is the ability to collect data that justify current or
future expenditures for the data communications plant and
staff.
Following a section on system monitoring, this tutorial
addresses fault, performance, configuration, and security
management. By fault management, we mean the detection,
diagnosis, and correction of network malfunctions. Under
the subject of performance management, we include support
for predictable, efficient service, as well as capacity
planning and capacity testing. Configuration management
includes support for orderly configuration changes (usually,
system growth), and local administration of component names
and addresses. Security management includes both protecting
system components from damage and protecting sensitive
information from unintentional or malicious disclosure or
corruption.
Readers familiar with the ISO management standards and
drafts will note both that we have borrowed heavily from the
"OSI Management Framework," except that we have omitted the
"account management" function. Account management seems a
bit out of place with the other network management
IETF NOCTools Working Group [Page 156]
Appendix Network Management Tutorial
functions. The logging required by account management is
likely to be done by specialized, dedicated subsystems that
are distinct from other network management components.
Hence, this tutorial does not cover account management.
Rest assured, however, that account management, if required,
will be adequately supported and staffed.
For those with a DoD background, security may also seem out
of place as a subtopic of network management. Without
doubt, communications security is an important issue that
should be considered in its own right. Because of the
requirements of trust for security mechanisms, security com-
ponents will probably not be integrated subcomponents of a
larger network management system. Nevertheless, because a
network manager has a responsibility to protect his system
from undue security risks, this tutorial includes a discus-
sion on internet security.
2. System Monitoring
System monitoring is a fundamental aspect of network manage-
ment. One can divide system monitoring into two rough
categories: error detection and baseline monitoring.
System errors, such as misformatted frames or dropped pack-
ets, are not in themselves cause for concern. Spikes in
error rates, however, should be investigated. It is sound
practice to log error rates over time, so that increases can
be recognized. Furthermore, logging error rates as a func-
tion of traffic rates can be used to detect congestion.
Investigate unusual error rates and other anomalies as they
are detected, and keep a notebook to record your
discoveries.
Day-to-day traffic should be monitored, so that the opera-
tional baselines of a system and its components can be
determined. As well as being essential for performance
management, baseline determination and traffic monitoring
are the keys to early fault detection.
A preliminary step to developing baseline measurements is
construction of a system map: a graphical representation of
the system components and their interfaces. Then, measure-
ments of utilization (i.e., use divided by capacity) are
needed. Problems are most likely to arise, and system tun-
ing efforts are most likely to be beneficial, at highly
utilized components.
IETF NOCTools Working Group [Page 157]
Appendix Network Management Tutorial
It is worthwhile to develop a source/destination traffic
matrix, including a breakdown of traffic between the local
system and other internet sites. Both volume and type of
traffic should be logged, along with its evolution over
time. Of particular interest for systems with diskless
workstations is memory swapping and other disk server
access. For all systems, broadcast traffic and routing
traffic should be monitored. Sudden increases in the vari-
ance of delay or the volume of routing traffic may indicate
thrashing or other soft failures.
In monitoring a system, long-term averages are of little
use. Hourly averages are a better indicator of system use.
Variance in utilization and delay should also be tracked.
Sudden spikes in variance are tell-tale signs that a problem
is looming or exists. So, too, are trends of increased
packet or line errors, broadcasts, routing traffic, or
delay.
3. Fault Detection and Isolation
When a system fails, caution is in order. A net manager
should make an attempt to diagnose the cause of a system
crash before rebooting. In many cases, however, a quick
diagnosis will not be possible. For some high priority
applications, restoring at least some level of service will
have priority over fault repair or even complete fault diag-
nosis. This necessitates prior planning. A net manager
must know the vital applications at his site. If applica-
tions require it, he must also have a fall-back plan for
bringing them online. Meanwhile, repeated crashes or
hardware failures are unambiguous signs of a problem that
must be corrected.
A network manager should prepare for fault diagnosis by
becoming familiar with how diagnostic tools respond to net-
work failure. In times of relative peace, a net manager
should occasionally unplug the network connection from an
unused workstation and then "debug" the problem.
When diagnosing a fault or anomaly, it is vital to proceed
in an orderly manner, especially since network faults will
usually generate spurious as well as accurate error mes-
sages. Remember to keep in mind that the network itself is
failing. Do not place too much trust in anything obtained
remotely. Furthermore, it is unlikely to be significant
that remote information such as DNS names or NFS files can-
not be obtained.
IETF NOCTools Working Group [Page 158]
Appendix Network Management Tutorial
Even spurious messages can be revealing, because they pro-
vide clues to the problem. From the data at hand, develop
working hypotheses about probable causes of the problems you
detect. Direct your further data gathering efforts so that
the information you get will either refute or support your
hypotheses.
An orderly approach to debugging is facilitated if it is
guided by a model of network behavior. The following por-
tions of this section present such a model, along with a
procedure for checking network connectivity. The section
concludes with some hints for diagnosing a particularly
tricky class of connectivity problem.
3.1 A Network Model as a Diagnostic Framework
The point of having a model of how things work is to have a
basis for developing educated guesses about how things go
wrong. The problem of cascading faults -- faults generating
other faults -- makes use of a conceptual model a virtual
necessity.
In general, only problems in a component's hardware or
operating system will generate simultaneous faults in multi-
ple protocol layers. Otherwise, faults will propagate vert-
ically (up the protocol stack) or horizontally (between
peer-level communications components). Applying a concep-
tual model that includes the architectural relations of net-
work components can help to order an otherwise senseless
barrage of error messages and symptoms.
The model does not have to be formal or complex to bring
structure to debugging efforts. A useful start is something
as simple as the following:
1. Applications programs use transport services:
TCP/UDP. Before using service, applications that
accept host names as parameters must translate the
names into IP addresses. Translation may be based
on a static table lookup (/etc/hosts file in UNIX
hosts), the DNS, or yellow pages. Nslookup and
DiG are tools for monitoring the activities of the
DNS.
2. Transport protocol implementations use IP ser-
vices. The local IP module makes the initial
decision on forwarding. An IP datagram is for-
warded directly to the destination host if the
IETF NOCTools Working Group [Page 159]
Appendix Network Management Tutorial
destination is on the same network as the source.
Otherwise, the datagram is forwarded to a gateway
attached to the network. On BSD hosts, the con-
tents of a host's routing table are visible by use
of the "netstat" command.*
3. IP implementations translate the IP address of a
datagram's next hop (either the destination host
or a gateway) to a local network address. For
ethernets, the Address Resolution Protocol (ARP)
is commonly used for this translation. On BSD
systems, an interface's IP address and other con-
figuration options can be viewed by use of the
"ifconfig" command, while the contents of a host's
ARP cache may be viewed by use of "arp" command.
4. IP implementations in hosts and gateways route
datagrams based on subnet and net identifiers.
Subnetting is a means of allocating and preserving
IP address space, and of insulating users from the
topological details of a multi-network campus.
Sites that use subnetting reserve portions of the
IP address's host identifier to indicate particu-
lar networks at their campus. Subnetting is
highly system-dependent. The details are a criti-
cal, though local, issue. As for routing between
separate networks, a variety of gateway-to-gateway
protocols are used. Traceroute is a useful tool
for investigating routing problems. The tool,
"query," can be used to examine RIP routing
tables.
A neophyte network manager should expand the above descrip-
tion so that it accurately describes his particular system,
_________________________
* Initial forwarding may actually be complex and
vulnerable to multiple points of failure. For example,
when sending an IP datagram, 4.3BSD hosts first look
for a route to the particular host. If none has been
specified for the destination, then a search is made
for a route to the network of the destination. If this
search also fails, then as a last resort, a search is
made for a route to a "default" gateway. Routes to
hosts, networks, and the "default" gateway may be stat-
ic, loaded at boot time and perhaps updated by operator
commands. Alternatively, they may be dynamic, loaded
from redirects and routing protocol updates.
IETF NOCTools Working Group [Page 160]
Appendix Network Management Tutorial
and learn the tools and techniques for monitoring the opera-
tions at each of the above stages.
3.2 A Simple Procedure for Connectivity Check
In this section, we describe a procedure for isolating a
TCP/IP connectivity problem.** In this procedure, a series
of tests methodically examine connectivity from a host,
starting with nearby resources and working outward. The
steps in our connectivity-testing procedure are:
1. As an initial sanity check, ping your own IP address
and the loopback address.
2. Next, try to ping other IP hosts on the local subnet.
Use numeric addresses when starting off, since this
eliminates the name resolvers and host tables as poten-
tial sources of problems. The lack of an answer may
indicate either that the destination host did not
respond to ARP (if it is used on your LAN), or that a
datagram was forwarded (and hence, the destination IP
address was resolved to a local media address) but that
no ICMP Echo Reply was received. This could indicate a
length-related problem, or misconfigured IP Security.
3. If an IP router (gateway) is in the system, ping both
its near and far-side addresses.
4. Make sure that your local host recognizes the gateway
as a relay. (For BSD hosts, use netstat.)
5.addresses
Still using numeric IP addresses, try to ping hosts
beyond the gateway. If you get no response, run hop-
check or traceroute, if available. Note whether your
packets even go to the gateway on their way to the des-
tination. If not, examine the methods used to instruct
your host to use this gateway to reach the specified
destination net (e.g., is the default route in place?
Alternatively, are you successfully wire-tapping the
IGP messages broadcast on the net you are attached to?)
_________________________
** Thanks to James VanBokkelen, president of FTP
Software, for sharing with us a portion of a PC/TCP
support document, the basis for the above connectivity
procedure.
IETF NOCTools Working Group [Page 161]
Appendix Network Management Tutorial
If traceroute is not available, ping, netstat, arp, and
a knowledge of the IP addresses of all the gateway's
interfaces can be used to isolate the cause of the
problem. Use netstat to determine your next hop to the
destination. Ping that IP address to ensure the router
is up. Next, ping the router interface on the far sub-
net. If the router returns "network unreachable" or
other errors, investigate the router's routing tables
and interface status. If the pings succeed, ping the
close interface of the succeeding next hop gateway, and
so on. Remember the routing along the outbound and
return paths may be different.
6. Once ping is working with numeric addresses, use ping
to try to reach a few remote hosts by name. If ping
fails when host names are used, check the operation of
the local name-mapping system (i.e., with nslookup or
DiG). If you want to use "shorthand" forms ("myhost"
instead of "myhost.mydomain.com"), be sure that the
alias tables are correctly configured.
7. Once basic reachability has been established with ping,
try some TCP-based applications: FTP and TELNET are
supported on almost all IP hosts, but FINGER is a
simpler protocol. The Berkeley-specific protocols
(RSH, RCP, REXEC and LPR) require extra configuration
on the server host before they can work, and so are
poor choices for connectivity testing.
If problems arise in steps 2-7 above, rerunning the tests
while executing a line monitor (e.g., etherfind, netwatch,
or tcpdump) can help to pinpoint the problem.
The above procedure is sound and useful, especially if lit-
tle is known about the cause of the connectivity problem.
It is not, however, guaranteed to be the shortest path to
diagnosis. In some cases, a binary search on the problem
might be more effective (i.e., try a test "in the middle,"
in a spot where the failure modes are well defined). In
other cases, available information might so strongly suggest
a particular failure that immediately testing for it is in
order. This last "approach," which might be called "hunting
and pecking," should be used with caution: chasing one will
o' the wisp after another can waste much time and effort.
Note that line problems are still among the most common
causes of connectivity loss. Problems in transmission
across local media are outside the scope of this tutorial.
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But, if a host or workstation loses or cannot establish con-
nectivity, check its physical connection.
3.3 Limited Connectivity
An interesting class of problems can result in a particu-
larly mysterious failure: TELNET or other low-volume TCP
connections work, but large file transfers fail. FTP
transfers may start, but then hang. There are several pos-
sible culprits in this problem. The most likely suspects
are IP implementations that cannot fragment or reassemble
datagrams, and TCP implementations that do not perform
dynamic window sizing (a.k.a. Van Jacobson's "Slow Start"
algorithm). Another possibility is mixing incompatible
frame formats on an ethernet.
Even today, some IP implementations in the Internet cannot
correctly handle fragmentation or reassembly. They will
work fine for small packets, but drop all large packets.
The problem can also be caused by buffer exhaustion at gate-
ways that connect interfaces of widely differing bandwidth.
Datagrams from a TCP connection that traverses a bottleneck
will experience queue delays, and will be dropped if buffer
resources are depleted. The congestion can be made worse if
the TCP implementation at the traffic source does not use
the recommended algorithms for computing retransmission
times, since spuriously retransmitted datagrams will only
add to the congestion.* Fragmentation, even if correctly
implemented, will compound this problem, since processing
delays and congestion will be increased at the bottleneck.
Serial Line Internet Protocol (SLIP) links are especially
vulnerable to this and other congestion problems. SLIP
lines are typically an order of magnitude slower than other
gateway interfaces. Also, the SLIP lines are at times con-
figured with MTUs (Maximum Transfer Unit, the maximum length
of an IP datagram for a particular subnet) as small as 256
_________________________
* To avoid this problem, TCP implementations on the In-
ternet must use "exponential backoff" between succes-
sive retransmissions, Karn's algorithm for filtering
samples used to estimate round-trip delay between TCP
peers, and Jacobson's algorithm for incorporating vari-
ance into the "retransmission time-out" computation for
TCP segments. See Section 4.2.3.1 of RFC 1122, "Re-
quirements for Internet Hosts -- Communication Layers."
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bytes, which virtually guarantees fragmentation.
To alleviate this problem, TCP implementations behind slow
lines should advertise small windows. Also, if possible,
SLIP lines should be configured with an MTU no less than 576
bytes. The tradeoff to weigh is whether interactive traffic
will be penalized too severly by transmission delays of
lengthy datagrams from concurrent file transfers.
Misuse of ethernet trailers can also cause the problem of
hanging file transfers. "Trailers" refers to an ethernet
frame format optionally employed by BSD systems to minimize
buffer copying by system software. BSD systems with ether-
net interfaces can be configured to send large frames so
that their address and control data are at the end of a
frame (hence, a "trailer" instead of a "header"). After a
memory page is allocated and loaded with a received ethernet
frame, the ethernet data will begin at the start of the
memory page boundary. Hence, the ethernet control informa-
tion can be logically stripped from the end merely by
adjusting the page's length field. By manipulating virtual
memory mapping, this same page (sans ethernet control infor-
mation), can then be passed to the local IP module without
additional allocation and loading of memory. The disadvan-
tage in using trailers is that it is non-standard. Many
implementations cannot parse trailers.
The hanging FTP problem will appear if a gateway is not con-
figured to recognize trailers, but a host or gateway immedi-
ately "upstream" on an ethernet uses them. Short datagrams
will not be formatted with trailers, and so will be pro-
cessed correctly. When the bulk data transfer starts, how-
ever, full-sized frames will be sent, and will use the
trailer format. To the gateway that receives them, they
appear simply as misformatted frames, and are quietly
dropped. The solution, obviously, is to insure that all
hosts and gateways on an ethernet are consistent in their
use of trailers. Note that RFC 1122, "Internet Host
Requirements," places very strict restrictions on the use of
trailers.
4. Performance Testing
Performance management encompasses two rather different
activities. One is passive system monitoring to detect
problems and determine operational baselines. The goal is
to measure system and component utilization and so locate
bottlenecks, since bottlenecks should receive the focus of
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performance tuning efforts. Also, performance data is usu-
ally required by upper level management to justify the costs
of communications systems. This is essentially identical to
system monitoring, and is addressed at greater length in
Section 2, above.
Another aspect of performance management is active perfor-
mance testing and capacity planning. Some work in this area
can be based on analysis. For example, a rough estimate of
gateway capacity can be deduced from a simple model given by
Charles Hedrick in his "Introduction to Administration of an
Internet-based Local Network," which is
per-packet processing time =
switching time +
(packet size) * (transmission bps).
Another guideline for capacity planning is that in order to
avoid excessive queuing delays, a system should be sized at
about double its expected load. In other words, system
capacity should be so high that utilization is no greater
than 50%.
Although there are more sophisticated analytic models of
communications systems than those above, their added com-
plexity does not usually gain a corresponding accuracy.
Most analytic models of communications nets require assump-
tions about traffic load distributions and service rates
that are not merely problematic, but are patently false.
These errors tend to result in underestimating queuing
delays. Hence, it is often necessary to actually load and
measure the performance of a real communications system if
one is to get accurate performance predictions. Obviously,
this type of testing is performed on isolated systems or
during off hours. The results can be used to evaluate
parameter settings or predict performance during normal
operations.
Simulations can be used to supplement the testing of real
systems. To be believable, however, simulations require
validation, which, in turn, requires measurements from a
real system. Whether testing or simulating a system's per-
formance, actual traffic traces should be incorporated as
input to traffic generators. The performance of a communi-
cations system will be greatly influenced by its load
characteristics (burstiness, volume, etc.), which are them-
selves highly dependent on the applications that are run.
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When tuning a net, in addition to the usual configuration
parameters, consider the impact of the location of gateways
and print and file servers. A few rules of thumb can guide
the location of shared system resources. First, there is
the principle of locality: a system will perform better if
most traffic is between nearby destinations. The second
rule is to avoid creating bottlenecks. For example, multi-
ple diskservers may be called for to support a large number
of workstations. Furthermore, to avoid LAN and diskserver
congestion, workstations should be configured with enough
memory to avoid frequent swapping.
As a final note on performance management, proceed cau-
tiously if your ethernet interface allows you to customize
its collision recovery algorithm. This is almost always a
bad idea. The best that it can accomplish is to give a few
favored hosts a disproportionate share of the ethernet
bandwidth, perhaps at the cost of a reduction in total sys-
tem throughput. Worse, it is possible that differing colli-
sion recovery algorithms may exhibit a self-synchronizing
behavior, so that excess collisions are generated.
5. Configuration Management
Configuration management is the setting, collecting, and
storing of the state and parameters of network resources.
It overlaps all other network management functions. Hence,
some aspects of configuration management have already been
addressed (e.g., tuning for performance). In this section,
we will focus on configuration management activities needed
to "hook up" a net or campus to a larger internet. We will
not, of course, include specific details on installing or
maintaining internetted communications systems. We will,
however, skim over some of the TCP/IP configuration
highlights.
Configuration management includes "name management" -- the
control and allocation of system names and addresses, and
the translation between names and addresses. Name-to-
address translation is performed by "name servers." We con-
clude this section with a few strictures on the simultaneous
use of two automated name-servers, the Domain Name System
(DNS), and Yellow Pages (YP).
5.1 Required Host Configuration Data for TCP/IP internets
In a TCP/IP internet, each host needs several items of
information for internet communications. Some will be
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host-specific, while other information will be common for
all hosts on a subnet. In a soon to be published RFC docu-
ment,* R. Droms identifies the following configuration data
required by internet hosts:
o+ An IP address, a host specific value that can be
hard-coded or obtained via BOOTP, the Reverse
Address Resolution Protocol (RARP) or Dynamic RARP
(DRARP).
o+ Subnet properties, such as the subnet mask and the
Maximum Transmission Unit (MTU); obviously, these
values are not host-specific.
o+ Addresses of "entry" gateways to the internet;
addresses of default gateways are usually hard-
coded; though the ICMP "redirect" message can be
used to refine a host's routing tables, there is
currently no dynamic TCP/IP mechanism or protocol
for a host to locate a gateway; an IETF working
group is busy on this problem.
o+ For hosts in internets using the Domain Name Sys-
tem (DNS) for name-to-address translation, the
location of a local DNS server is needed; this
information is not host-specific, and usually
hard-coded;
o+ Host name (domain name, for hosts using DNS);
obviously host-specific; either hard-coded or
obtained in a boot procedure.
o+ For diskless hosts, various boot services. BOOTP
is the standard Internet protocol for downloading
boot configuration information. The Trivial File
Transfer Protocol (TFTP) is typically used for
downloading boot images. Sun computers use the
"bootparams" RPC mechanism for downloading initial
configuration data to a host.
There are ongoing developments, most notably the work of the
Dynamic Host Configuration Working Group of the IETF, to
support dynamic, automatic gathering of the above data. In
the meantime, most systems will rely on hand-crafted confi-
guration files.
_________________________
* Draft "Dynamic Configuration of Internet Hosts."
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5.3 Connecting to THE Internet
The original TCP/IP Internet (spelled with an upper-case
"I") is still active, and still growing. An interesting
aspect of the Internet is that it spans many independently
administered systems.
Connection to the Internet requires: a registered network
number, for use in IP addresses; a registered autonomous
system number (ASN), for use in internet routing; and, a
registered domain name. Fielding a primary and backup DNS
server is a condition for registering a domain name.
The Defense Data Network (DDN) Network Information Center
(NIC) is responsible for registering network numbers, auto-
nomous system numbers, and domain names. Regional nets will
have their own policies and requirements for Internet con-
nections, but all use the NIC for this registration service.
Contact the NIC for further information, at:
DDN Network Information Center
SRI International, Room EJ291
333 Ravenswood Avenue
Menlo Park, CA 94025
Email: HOSTMASTER@NIC.DDN.MIL
Phone: 1-415-859-3695
1-800-235-3155 (toll-free hotline)
5.4 YP and DNS: Dueling name servers.
The Domain Name System (DNS) provides name service: it
translates host names into IP addresses (this mapping is
also called "resolution"). Two widespread DNS implementa-
tions are "bind" and "named." The Sun Yellow Pages (YP)
system can be configured to provide an identical service, by
providing remote, keyed access to the "hosts.byname" map.
Unfortunately, if both DNS and the YP hosts.byname map are
installed, they can interact in disruptive ways.
The problem has been noted in systems in which DNS is used
as a fallback, to resolve hostnames that YP cannot. If DNS
is slow in responding, the timeout in program ypserv may
expire, which triggers a repeated request. This can result
in disaster if DNS was initially slow because of congestion:
the slower things get, the more requests are generated,
which slows things even more. A symptom of this problem is
that failures by the DNS server or network will trigger
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numerous requests to DNS.
Reportedly, the bug in YP that results in the avalanche of
DNS requests has been repaired in SunOS 4.1. The problem,
however, is more fundamental than an implementation error.
The YP map hosts.byname and the DNS contain the same class
of information. One can get an answer to the same query
from each system. These answers may well be different:
there is not a mechanism to maintain consistency between the
systems. More critical, however, is the lack of a mechanism
or procedure to establish which system is authoritative.
Hence, running the DNS and YP name services in parallel is
pointless. If the systems stay consistent, then only one is
needed. If they differ, there is no way to choose which is
correct.
The YP hosts.byname service and DNS are comparable, but
incompatible. If possible, a site should not run both ser-
vices. Because of Internet policy, sites with Internet con-
nections MUST use the DNS. If YP is also used, then it
should be configured with YP-to-DNS disabled.
Hacking a system so that it uses DNS rather than the YP
hosts.byname map is not trivial, and should not be attempted
by novices. The approach is to rebuild the shared C link-
library, so that system calls to gethostbyname() and
gethostbyaddr() will use DNS rather than YP. To complete
the change, programs that do not dynamically link the shared
C library (rcp, arp, etc.) must also be rebuilt.
Modified shared C libraries for Sun 3s and Sun 4s are avail-
able via anonymous FTP from host uunet.uu.net, in the sun-
fixes directory. Note that use of DNS routines rather than
YP for general name resolution is not a supported SunOS
feature at this time.
6. Internet Security
The guidelines and advice in this section pertain to enhanc-
ing the protection of data that are merely "sensitive." By
themselves, these measures are insufficient for protecting
"classified" data. Implementing the policies required to
protect classified data is subject to stringent, formal
review procedures, and is regulated by agencies such as the
Defense Investigative Service (DIS) and the National Secu-
rity Agency (NSA).
A network manager must realize that he is responsible for
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protecting his system and its users. Furthermore, though
the Internet may appear to be a grand example of a coopera-
tive joint enterprise, recent incidents have made it clear
that not all Internet denizens are benign.
A network manager should be aware that the network services
he runs have a large impact on the security risks to which
his system is exposed. The prudent network manager will be
very careful as to what services his site provides to the
rest of the Internet, and what access restrictions are
enforced. For example, the protocol "finger" may provide
more information about a user than should be given to the
world at large. Worse, most implementations of the protocol
TFTP give access to all world-readable files.
This section highlights several basic security considera-
tions for Internet sites. It then lists several sources of
information and advice on improving the security of systems
connected to the Internet.
6.1 Basic Internet Security
Two major Internet security threats are denial of service
and unauthorized access.
Denial of service threats often take the form of protocol
spoofers or other malicious traffic generators. These prob-
lems can be detected through system monitoring logs. If an
attack is suspected, immediately contact your regional net
office (e.g., SURANET, MILNET). In addition, DDN users
should contact SCC, while other Internet users should con-
tact CERT (see below). A cogent description of your
system's symptoms will be needed.
At your own site, be prepared to isolate the problems (e.g.,
by limiting disk space available to the message queue of a
mail system under attack). As a last resort, coping with an
attack may require taking down an Internet connection. It
is better, however, not to be too quick to quarantine your
site, since information for coping with the attack may come
via the Internet.
Unauthorized access is a potentially more ominous security
threat. The main avenues are attacks against passwords and
attacks against privileged system processes.
An appallingly common means of gaining entry to systems is
by use of the initial passwords to root, sysdiag, and other
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management accounts that systems are shipped with. Only
slightly less vulnerable are common or trivial passwords,
since these are readily subverted by dictionary attacks.*
Obvious steps can reduce the risk of password attacks: pass-
words should be short-lived, at least eight characters long,
with a mix of upper and lower case, and preferably random.
The distasteful aspect of memorizing a random string can be
alleviated if the password is pronounceable.
Improving passwords does not remove all risks. Passwords
transmitted over an ethernet are visible to all attached
systems. Furthermore, gateways have the potential to inter-
cept passwords used by any FTP or TELNET connections that
traverse them. It is a bad idea for the root account to be
accessed by FTP or TELNET if the connections must cross
untrusted elements.
Attacks against system processes are another avenue of unau-
thorized access. The principle is that by subverting a sys-
tem process, the attacker can then gain its access
privileges.
One approach to reducing this risk is to make system pro-
grams harder to subvert. For example, the widespread attack
in November 1988 by a self-replicating computer program
("worm," analogous to a tapeworm) subverted the "fingerd"
process, by loading an intrusive bootstrap program (known
variously as a "grappling hook" or "vector" program), and
then corrupting the stack space so that a subroutine's
return address was overwritten with the address of the
bootstrap program.** The security hole in fingerd consisted
of an input routine that did not have a length check. Secu-
rity fixes to "fingerd" include the use of a revised input
routine.
A more general protection is to apply the principle of
"least privilege." Where possible, system routines should
run under separate user IDs, and should have no more
privilege than is necessary for them to function.
_________________________
* Exotic fantasy creatures and women's names are well
represented in most password dictionaries.
** An early account of the Internet Worm incident of
November 1988 is given by Eugene Spafford in the Janu-
ary 89 issue of "Computer Communications Review."
Several other articles on the worm incident are in the
June 89 issue of the "Communications of the ACM."
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To further protect against attacks on system processes, sys-
tem managers should regularly check their system programs to
ensure that they have not been tampered with or modified in
any way. Checksums should be used for this purpose. Using
the operating system to check a file's last date of modifi-
cation is insufficient, since the date itself can be
compromised.
Finally, to avoid the unauthorized replacement of system
code, care should be exercised in assigning protection to
its directory paths.
Some system programs actually have "trap doors" that facili-
tate subversion. A trap door is the epitome of an undocu-
mented feature: it is a hidden capability of a system pro-
gram that allows a knowledgeable person to gain access to a
system. The Internet Worm exploited what was essentially a
trap door in the BSD sendmail program.
Ensuring against trap doors in software as complex as send-
mail may be infeasible. In an ideal world, the BSD sendmail
program would be replaced by an entire mail subsystem (i.e.,
perhaps including mail user agents, mail transfer agents,
and text preparation and filing programs). Any site using
sendmail should at least obtain the less vulnerable,
toughened distribution from ucbarpa.berkeley.edu, in file
~ftp/4.3/sendmail.tar.Z. Sites running SunOS should note
that the 4.0.3 release closed the security holes exploited
by the Internet Worm. Fixes for a more obscure security
hole in SunOS are available from host uunet.uu.net in
~ftp/sun-fixes; these improvements have been incorporated in
SunOS 4.1.
Sendmail has problems other than size and complexity. Its
use of root privileges, its approach to alias expansion, and
several other design characteristics present potential ave-
nues of attack. For UNIX sites, an alternative mail server
to consider is MMDF, which is now at version 2. MMDF is
distributed as part of the SCO UNIX distribution, and is
also available in the user contributed portion of 4.3BSD.
Though free, MMDF is licensed, and resale is restricted.
Sites running MMDF should be on the mmdf email list;
requests to join this list should be sent to:
mmdf2-request@relay.cs.net.
Programs that masquerade as legitimate system code but which
contain trap doors or other aides to unauthorized access are
known as trojan horses. Computer "viruses," intrusive
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software that infects seemingly innocent programs and pro-
pagates when the infected programs are executed or copied,
are a special case of trojan horse programs.*
To guard against trojan horse attacks, be wary of programs
downloaded from remote sources. At minimum, do not download
executables from any but the most trusted sources. Also, as
noted above, to avoid proliferation of "infected" software,
checksums should be computed, recorded, and periodically
verified.
6.2 Security Information Clearing-Houses
The Internet community can get security assistance from the
Computer Emergency Response Team (CERT), established by
DARPA in November 1988. The Coordination Center for the
CERT (CERT/CC) is located at the Software Engineering Insti-
tute at Carnegie Mellon University. The CERT is intended to
respond to computer security threats such as the November
'88 worm attack that invaded many defense and research com-
puters. Consult RFC 1135 (Reynolds, J., "The Helminthiasis
of the Internet", USC/ISI, December 1989), for further
information.
CERT assists Internet sites in response to security attacks
or other emergency situations. It can immediately tap
experts to diagnose and solve the problems, as well as
establish and maintain communications with the affected com-
puter users and with government authorities as appropriate.
Specific responses will be taken in accordance with the
nature of the problem and the magnitude of the threat.
CERT is also an information clearing-house for the identifi-
cation and repair of security vulnerabilities, informal
assessments of existing systems in the research community,
improvement to emergency response capability, and both ven-
dor and user security awareness. This security information
is distributed by periodic bulletins, and is posted to the
USENET news group comp.security.announce. In addition, the
security advisories issued by CERT, as well as other useful
security-related information, are available via anonymous
FTP from cert.sei.cmu.edu.
For immediate response to attacks or incidents, CERT mans a
_________________________
* Virus attacks have been seen against PCs, but as yet
have rarely been directed agains UNIX systems.
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24-hour hotline at (412) 268-7090. To subscribe to CERT's
security announcement bulletin, or for further information,
contact:
CERT
Software Engineering Institute
Carnegie Mellon University
Pittsburgh, PA 15213-3890
(412) 268-7080
cert@cert.sei.cmu.edu.
For DDN users, the Security Coordination Center (SCC) serves
a function similar to CERT. The SCC is the DDN's clearing-
house for host/user security problems and fixes, and works
with the DDN Network Security Officer. The SCC also distri-
butes the DDN Security Bulletin, which communicates informa-
tion on network and host security exposures, fixes, and con-
cerns to security and management personnel at DDN facili-
ties. It is available online, via kermit or anonymous FTP,
from nic.ddn.mil, in SCC:DDN-SECURITY-yy-nn.TXT (where "yy"
is the year and "nn" is the bulletin number). The SCC pro-
vides immediate assistance with DDN-related host security
problems; call (800) 235-3155 (6:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.
Pacific Time) or send e-Mail to SCC@NIC.DDN.MIL. For 24
hour coverage, call the MILNET Trouble Desk (800) 451-7413
or AUTOVON 231-1713.
The CERT/CC and the SCC communicate on a regular basis and
support each other when problems occur. These two organiza-
tions are examples of the incident response centers that are
forming; each serving their own constituency or focusing on
a particular area of technology.
Other network groups that discuss security issues are:
comp.protocols.tcp-ip, comp.virus (mostly PC-related, but
occasionally covers Internet topics), misc.security, and the
BITNET Listserv list called VIRUS-L.
7. Internet Information
There are many available references on the TCP/IP protocol
suite, the internet architecture, and the DDN Internet. A
soon to be published FYI RFC document, "Where to Start: A
Bibliography of General Internetworking Information." pro-
vides a bibliography of online and hard copy documents,
reference materials, and multimedia training tools that
address general networking information and "how to use the
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Internet." It presents a representative collection of
materials that will help the reader become familiar with the
concepts of internetworking. Inquires on the current status
of this document can be sent to user-doc@nnsc.nsf.net or by
postal mail to:
Corporation for National Research Initiatives
1895 Preston White, Suite 100
Reston, VA 22091
Attn: IAB Secretariat.
Two texts on networking are especially noteworthy. _I_n_t_e_r_-
_n_e_t_w_o_r_k_i_n_g _W_i_t_h _T_C_P/_I_P, by Douglas Comer, is an informative
description of the TCP/IP protocol suite and its underlying
architecture. The _U_N_I_X _S_y_s_t_e_m _A_d_m_i_n_i_s_t_r_a_t_i_o_n _H_a_n_d_b_o_o_k, by
Nemeth, Snyder, and Seebass, is a "must have" for system
administrators who are responsible for UNIX hosts. In addi-
tion to covering UNIX, it provides a wealth of tutorial
material on networking, the Internet, and network manage-
ment.
A great deal of information on the Internet is available
online. An automated, online reference service is available
from CSNET. To obtain a bibliography of their online offer-
ings, send the email message
request: info
topic: help
request: end
to info-server@sh.cs.net.
The DDN NIC also offers automated access to many NIC docu-
ments, online files, and WHOIS information via electronic
mail. To use the service, send an email message with your
request specified in the SUBJECT field of the message. For
a sampling of the type of offerings available through this
service, send the following message
To: SERVICE@NIC.DDN.MIL
Subject: help
Msg: <none>
The DDN Protocol Implementations and Vendors Guide, pub-
lished by the DDN Network Information Center (DDN NIC),* is
_________________________
* Products mentioned in the guide are not specifically
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an online reference to products and implementations associ-
ated with the DoD Defense Data Network (DDN) group of com-
munication protocols, with emphasis on TCP/IP and OSI proto-
cols. It contains information on protocol policy and
evaluation procedures, a discussion of software and hardware
implementations, and analysis tools with a focus on protocol
and network analyzers. To obtain the guide, invoke FTP at
your local host and connect to host NIC.DDN.MIL (internet
address 26.0.0.73 or 10.0.0.51). Log in using username
'anonymous' with password 'guest' and get the file
NETINFO:VENDORS-GUIDE.DOC.
The DDN Protocol Guide is also available in hardcopy form.
To obtain a hardcopy version of the guide, contact the DDN
Network Information Center:
By U.S. mail:
SRI International
DDN Network Information Center
333 Ravenswood Avenue, Room EJ291
Menlo Park, CA 94025
By e-mail:
NIC@NIC.DDN.MIL
By phone:
1-415-859-3695
1-800-235-3155 (toll-free hotline)
For further information about the guide, or for information
on how to list a product in a subsequent edition of the
guide, contact the DDN NIC.
There are many additional online sources on Internet Manage-
ment. RFC 1118, "A Hitchhiker's Guide to the Internet," by
Ed Krol, is a useful introduction to the Internet routing
algorithms. For more of the nitty-gritty on laying out and
configuring a campus net, see Charles Hedrick's "Introduc-
tion to Administration of an Internet-based Local Network,"
available via anonymous FTP from cs.rutgers.edu (sometimes
listed in host tables as aramis.rutgers.edu), in subdirec-
tory runet, file tcp-ip-admin. Finally, anyone responsible
for systems connected to the Internet must be thoroughly
versed in the Host Requirements RFCs (RFC 1122 and RFC 1123)
_________________________
endorsed or recommended by the Defense Communications
Agency (DCA).
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Appendix Network Management Tutorial
and "Requirements for Internet Gateways," RFC 1009.
8. The Final Words on Internet Management
Keep smiling, no matter how bad things may seem. You are
the expert. They need you.
9. Security Considerations
Security issues are discussed in Section 6.
10. Author's Address
Robert H. Stine
SPARTA, Inc.
7926 Jones Branch Drive
Suite 1070
McLean, VA 22102
EMail: STINE@SPARTA.COM
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