This integration benefits managed service providers (MSPs) and small to midsize businesses (SMBs) by providing them with a more streamlined and effective approach to network management. Users can seamlessly oversee both the hardware and software aspects of Datto networking solutions from VSA, allowing for greater control over their environments.

Technicians can swiftly pinpoint and address issues from within VSA, saving valuable time and resources. Manually managing networks and switching between solutions to do so are now a thing of the past.

The synergy between VSA and Datto networking products

Datto’s networking solutions, like routers, switches and access points, are synonymous with reliability, performance, ease of use and efficiency. Users get access to capabilities and customer service that are typically associated with enterprise-grade networking solutions at a price that is easy on the wallet.

When integrated with VSA, a unified RMM that is consistently pushing the envelope on what an RMM can do, the possibilities are endless. We call VSA unified because it is a four-in-one tool that combines powerful remote control, software/patch management, executive reporting and endpoint monitoring into a single, easy-to-use solution.

The integration between VSA and Datto’s networking solutions, which are considered the best in the industry, promises to make discovering, deploying and managing networks effortless and cost-effective for technicians. While SMBs can impress their end users with consistent uptime and exceptional performance, MSPs can deliver high-quality managed networking services in a way that will give them a competitive edge and boost profitability.

Your one-stop network console

Managing networks is a colossal task for which technicians conventionally use a network management tool. Syncing these solutions with an RMM is frustrating and time-consuming, to say the least. The integration is poor, and juggling two solutions to solve a simple network problem is almost always counterproductive. Since inefficiency abounds, the risk of errors increases as well.

The critical integration between VSA and Datto networking tools allows technicians to monitor and manage all their Datto networking devices from one single, centralized console, eliminating the need to juggle multiple tools. Additionally, technicians get a comprehensive view of their entire IT infrastructure, allowing them to identify and troubleshoot any issue in their managed environment quickly.

Let’s say, for example, suppose a technician or support staff member receives an alert for a slow network on VSA. Right from VSA, they can then zoom into the device associated with the RMM agent that triggered the alert and get a full readout on the device. Again, without leaving VSA, technicians can also examine the switchboard or router the device in question is connected to to determine if it’s a larger issue. The entire process takes only a few clicks, and issues are resolved within minutes. Technicians can utilize the power of automation in VSA to begin auto-remediating everyday network problems that distract them from completing important tasks.

Once integrated, technicians can even unlock management functions for Datto networking devices in VSA to resolve issues like remotely resetting an access point, unblocking a wireless client or resetting a switch port faster.

What are the benefits?

Here are the top benefits of VSA’s integration with Datto’s networking solutions.

• Boost productivity: By tackling networking issues right within VSA, technicians do not have to switch between solutions. They can address issues faster and save valuable time.
• Get complete visibility: VSA gives technicians a comprehensive view of the IT environment, including details of all the networking devices. It allows them to address not only the issues for which a ticket is raised but also identify and address any underlying problem.
• Seamless integration: Since both products are from the same Kaseya family, the integration is seamless. You won’t have to worry about a glitchy integration that hinders network maintenance or impacts performance.
• Troubleshoot issues faster: Accessing network devices from within VSA and auto-remediating common issues reduces manual labor, resulting in faster problem resolution. Additionally, automated network monitoring can help identify security threats faster and more accurately than manual monitoring. This, in turn, can prevent costly data breaches and other network-related issues.
• More uptime: Seamless integration empowers you to manage networks more efficiently and address issues before they snowball into bigger problems. A well-maintained network leads to fewer glitches, higher performance and provides more uptime.
• Superior customer service: The integration is especially beneficial to MSPs who can differentiate their managed network services by providing clients with more uptime and quick issue resolution. By adding managed network services to the roster, MSPs can even explore unlocking a new revenue stream.
• Cost savings: The integration also helps to reduce the cost of network management, as technicians no longer need to monitor the network manually.

Experience the power of VSA and Datto Networking integration

The integration between VSA and Datto networking solutions will make building and managing your networks unbelievably easy. You no longer have to juggle multiple tools or fret over making tools from different vendors grudgingly integrate. With centralized access to all your on-premise and remote devices on a single console, you can start focusing on strengthening, securing and improving your network performance rather than spending time on putting out little fires.

Since you don’t have to invest in additional hardware, the burden on your wallet will also get lighter. To see how VSA and Datto networking can ease the pain of managing your network, get a free, personalized demo of VSA today.

The post Datto Networking and VSA: Your Shortcut to Smarter Networks appeared first on Kaseya.

A more recent example is Taylor Swift’s album, “Midnight,” which not only shattered all records on release but also caused a global outage on Spotify. Having anticipated high traffic to its servers, Spotify was able to return to business within minutes.

Network performance management prevents situations like these from surfacing and leaving your employees or customers without access to your service. Just a few minutes of downtime can cause irreparable damage to your company and brand, resulting in significant financial loss.

What is network performance management?

The goal of network performance management is to improve the availability and efficiency of an organization’s network systems by monitoring and analyzing network performance metrics. Network performance metrics provide a window into the health of various network components.

A network is made up of several components, such as routers, cables, switches, servers, applications, protocols and operating systems, that communicate with each other to keep information flowing. The seamless flow of data between these components allows employees and customers to access a company’s resources anywhere, anytime.

The efficiency of a network depends on identifying bottlenecks, taking corrective action and optimizing resource usage. Neglecting these aspects of network management can result in unplanned outages and downtime, negatively impacting your revenue and reputation.

Why is network performance important?

Businesses must have access to smooth and seamless networks in today’s connected world. It’s only on the back of a good network that employees can collaborate and communicate to drive projects forward and provide seamless customer service.

Having to deal with slow networks or unexpected downtime can be a frustrating experience. Neglecting network performance management will undoubtedly impact your employees’ productivity and customer experience, but it can also lead to serious security risks. You can prepare your network for potential spikes in bandwidth usage or server overload through network performance management. With robust network management practices, you can instantly rectify any issue without compromising the end-user experience.

Network performance management goes beyond analyzing performance metrics to identifying patterns and trends in the network. Businesses and IT professionals gain real value when they use the data to make network changes, impacting performance and network management costs while positively impacting the overall user experience.

What is the difference between network performance management and network performance monitoring?

The difference between network performance management and network performance monitoring is the use of performance metrics for different objectives.

Network performance monitoring involves assessing and optimizing various networking infrastructure components to improve performance and usage. IT professionals use several network metrics to gauge the performance of their networks, such as latency, throughput and bandwidth. Some of the methods they use are monitoring Simple Network Management Protocol (SNMP) devices, flow data and packet capture.

While network monitoring focuses on maintaining network health, troubleshooting issues and ensuring everything stays in good shape, network management aims to improve the overall network infrastructure to make it more efficient. To this end, IT professionals leverage performance analytics, network simulations and predictive modeling to improve networks, upgrade configurations and prevent network disasters.

What is the network performance management process?

Depending on the network configuration, the process may differ from company to company, but the following steps are universal.

Quality data collection

Effective network performance management starts with collecting quality data, but each node on the network generates a massive amount of data that becomes hard to sift through. This is where network monitoring tools come to the rescue. Since each network is unique and designed to fulfil an organization’s specific needs, you can configure network monitoring tools to pull out only relevant data. The tool sifts through a sea of metrics, such as packet loss, network traffic, node outages, SNMP performance and bandwidth usage, to help you identify the most critical performance indicators. The technicians can either review and analyze the information themselves or, even better, they can let AI, machine learning or AIOps handle the analysis.

Comprehensive metric analysis

You can get a complete report card on the performance of your networking stack, complete with metrics and analysis, by using network performance monitoring software. But how do you know which metrics matter the most? By identifying the ones that provide the most comprehensive view of your multilayered network, you can become more aware of areas that frequently experience problems.

By using this valuable data, your IT team can create network management policies to improve productivity and user experience while mitigating any issues. Moreover, with a more precise understanding of your multilayered network, you can make more informed decisions and design more effective network management rules.

Continuous performance logging

When it comes to identifying performance issues, time is of the essence. That’s why network performance monitoring tools automatically record all performance concerns and relevant details. This includes the circumstances surrounding each issue, which can be invaluable in identifying patterns of recurring problems.

By referring to a log of past concerns, your IT team can quickly assess problem areas that require closer monitoring or more in-depth investigation. This saves time by directing your focus toward the most critical issues first.

Preventative security monitoring

Network performance management is also a security strategy. A robust network performance management tool can alert you to security threats and vulnerabilities before they become full-blown disasters. It can help detect malware, unsecured network devices and other vulnerabilities before they affect your data. If you catch these issues early, your IT team can develop protocols to prevent and manage weak points, in turn protecting your end users.

What are the benefits of network performance management?

With network performance management, you can closely monitor key metrics to address issues like slow speeds, poor connectivity and system failures. Keeping your network in good shape will ensure a seamless and efficient experience for all users.

• Maximize network availability: Network performance management helps optimize network resources and bandwidth usage, resulting in high-quality delivery of critical services to end users and improved customer retention.
• Minimize network downtime: Real-time alerts and insights provided by network performance management tools allow businesses to detect and troubleshoot issues before they result in expensive downtime or outages, minimizing their impact on the company.
• Enhance network scalability: As your business and network needs evolve, IT technicians can leverage historical data and insights from the network management tools to make informed decisions for topics such as scaling or reconfiguring the network.
• Secure network operations: Cybersecurity attacks often deplete network resources, so any significant deviation in resource usage could indicate a potential security threat. By staying vigilant and closely monitoring your network’s performance, you can help ensure the safety and security of your organization’s valuable data.
• Optimize bandwidth usage: By monitoring the amount of data being transmitted across devices, network performance management tools can pinpoint areas of inefficient bandwidth usage and excessive network congestion, and hence help optimize network performance and efficiency.
• Identify network performance trends: Network performance management tools leverage machine learning and AI capabilities to identify patterns in large data sets that would otherwise be impossible to discern. This data can inform decisions for future network investments and upgrades, improving resource allocation and network performance.

What are the challenges with network performance management?

Modern-day networks are complex and managing them is easier said than done. The road to a fast and reliable network presents many challenges that technicians must overcome with skill and care. Technicians often encounter challenges, such as inadequate network visibility, setting performance baselines, planning and updating capacity, configuring new devices and minimizing disruptions. They often have to do it all at the same time.

Network performance management software can act as a trusted assistant, helping IT professionals deal with all these issues and keeping networks in the pink of health. A core feature that changes how technicians manage networks is a network topology map that lets them visually see the network infrastructure and zoom in on devices and nodes for more significant insights. Features like data analytics and in-built report creation are the cherry on the cake.

What is network performance management software?

A network performance management tool is an advanced program that lets IT professionals view the various components of their network infrastructure on an interactive dashboard. IT professionals should be able to configure the tool to monitor the performance of any IP-based device and get the metrics even remotely. We will reiterate that a good tool should be easy to deploy and provide a network visualization map that gives a comprehensive view and insights into the health and status of the network.

When choosing a tool, make sure it integrates with core IT tools, like remote monitoring and management and documentation solutions, and has automation capabilities so that technicians can devote more time to essential business tasks instead of mundane tasks.

Monitor and manage network performance with Kaseya

Network performance monitoring is a challenging and complex task.

Kaseya’s network performance monitoring tool, Traverse, lets you easily monitor and manage your networks and data centers, whether private or hybrid clouds, virtualized or distributed. Traverse is super easy to deploy and will help you stay on top of your game with network alerts, trend analysis and machine learning features. Moreover, you can leverage its predictive analytics feature to identify problems before they impact critical services. Traverse also easily integrates with essential IT solutions like documentation, messaging and BI tools.

It’s a complete package designed to meet all your networking needs on a budget. If you are facing a persistent networking challenge that you can’t find a workaround for, then schedule a demo of Traverse today.

The post Network Performance Management: Processes, Benefits and How to Accomplish It appeared first on Kaseya.

In today’s connected and digital world, where businesses are operational 24/7, network performance monitoring helps MSPs and IT departments prevent connectivity-related outages and other performance issues. Read on to learn the why and how of network performance monitoring and its impact on business productivity, profitability and reputation.

What is network performance monitoring?

Network performance monitoring involves assessing and optimizing the various networking infrastructure components to improve performance and usage. Businesses cannot succeed without a reliable and efficient network in place. Therefore, IT professionals constantly monitor their company’s and clients’ network infrastructure to ensure it runs efficiently and optimally and data and information move securely and uninterruptedly.

Today, networks must be built and managed to accommodate a variety of devices, applications and data types. Many factors contribute to the complexity of network setups today, including mobile device proliferation, data explosion and cloud computing. Moreover, depending on changing business needs, IT professionals have to reconfigure the networks, optimize them, change settings and even upgrade the infrastructure to make it more efficient.

Network monitoring helps IT professionals manage all these elements from a single tool. It helps them detect issues in real time and take corrective action to avoid downtime and productivity losses. Bandwidth and latency issues are signs of poor network management and, if left unattended, can further degrade performance. Network monitoring also helps and prevents cybersecurity breaches. Regular network monitoring helps IT professionals identify and fix vulnerabilities before threat actors exploit them.

Why is network performance monitoring important?

Network performance monitoring enables IT professionals to identify and troubleshoot issues before they snowball into bigger problems and adversely impact business operations. A glitchy or unreliable network can stall business operations, hurting productivity and frustrating customers and users. Monitoring networks not only helps IT professionals avoid these outcomes but it also optimizes the use of resources. An underutilized network increases costs, while overutilization causes congestion and painfully slow performance. By using advanced network monitoring tools like Traverse, businesses can easily visualize their entire network on a topography map and diagnose and fix issues right from the dashboard.

Network monitoring is also a cybersecurity strategy and plays a big part in keeping threats and breaches at bay. Network monitoring tools can detect anomalies in a network traffic pattern or unauthorized activity and alert IT professionals. It even identifies the device or region where the problem resides so technicians can quickly quarantine and remediate the issue. Network monitoring is essential to prevent malware like ransomware from gaining access to the network, which can compromise the integrity and security of company and client data.

IT professionals use several metrics to gauge the performance of their networks. Some common ones are latency, throughput and bandwidth, which we will look at in more detail later in the blog.

How can network performance be monitored?

IT professionals use a network monitoring tool to monitor their networks, collect data on network performance, analyze it, remediate issues and create informative reports. Here are some methods IT professionals use to monitor their networks.

SNMP

Monitoring Simple Network Management Protocol (SNMP) devices, such as routers, switches and printers, allows system administrators to quickly detect and remediate potential issues before they can cause major damage to an organization’s productivity.

Standard monitoring of SNMP devices involves configuring of network devices to report various pieces of data. This data gives a detailed view of the health and operational status of these devices. Network monitoring allows devices to generate alerts when events occur outside the set thresholds. This flags networking issues that can lead to IT system and service downtime.

For example, for network devices like routers and switches, SNMP monitoring can collect information such as interface metrics for operational status, bandwidth in and out, and errors in and out. For printers, information such as operational status, printer current status, detected error state and printer cover (i.e., door) status can be collected.

Flow data

Network flow data monitoring is a way to get insights into the health of the network traffic, everything from the source and destination of the traffic to data transferred and the protocols used. It is combined with other network monitoring methods to comprehensively view a company’s network performance. Flow data is configured in devices like routers and switches and collects data from IP traffic. When analyzing data, it doesn’t drill down to the details like packet capture monitoring methods. Still, it gives a general overview of the traffic that helps to identify anomalies in traffic patterns that can indicate a security incident.

Packet capture

Packet capture is another way to analyze and detect anomalies in network traffic. Instead of looking at traffic summary, it intercepts and captures data packets from anywhere on the network or a subnet. Packets are bits of information that travel from the source to the destination. Information transmitted over a network is broken into smaller packets that take different routes to the destination server. At the receiver’s end, they combine to form the complete message.

Two ways to perform packet capture are network tap and port mirroring. A network tap involves placing a device between a switch and the destination server. Port mirroring uses a switch port to send a network packet copy to another switch port connected to a network monitoring connection.

Packet capture allows granular traffic data analysis and provides insights into bandwidth usage and security issues. Network congestion and misconfigured devices can cause dropped packets, resulting in the user not receiving the data properly. A packet capture provides an exact copy of the data for analysis, while flow data summarizes it into a general picture.

What are network performance metrics?

Metrics measure a network’s performance and bring to light the issues and areas for improvement. They help identify potential errors, outages and malfunctions in real time so that IT professionals can resolve them as soon as they arise. Additionally, metrics provide insights into whether network infrastructure and devices are performing optimally. Let’s look at the commonly used network performance metrics:

Bandwidth

We’ve all had the experience of restarting our routers to get better internet bandwidth at home. It does help to speed things up. In simple terms, bandwidth is the amount of data transmitted over a network within a specific timeframe. An example is how quickly you can buffer or download a movie. The more data you can download quickly, the faster the network’s speed. IT professionals analyze bandwidth data to optimize usage and stay within the bandwidth threshold. Going beyond the threshold will overburden the network and translate to connectivity issues, slow network and lost hours in productivity.

Throughput

While bandwidth provides a theoretical insight into the data transmission rate, the throughput metric offers insights into actual data transmitted over different networks. It does this by checking how many data packets reach the destination server. When the throughput metric is low, it means that data packets are being frequently lost or dropped from the network and must be retransmitted.

Latency

The lag or delay in data transmission over a network is calculated using the latency metrics. Data is transmitted faster over a network with low latency and more slowly over a network with high latency. Low latency networks are vital in today’s digital world where applications and services are provided online and data is stored and accessed in the cloud. Too much latency in a network can stop applications from working properly and hurt customer satisfaction and business operations.

Jitters

A jitter is a variation in the delivery time of packets over a network. Data shared over a network is sent to its destination in smaller packets. Depending on how these packets travel, they may experience different network issues, such as congestion or equipment failures, that can impact their arrival times. By reducing jitters, network administrators make data delivery smoother and less glitchy.

Packet loss

While being transmitted over a network, data packets can get dropped, lost or corrupted. When they get corrupted, it disrupts the end-user experience and can be detrimental to business in the case of a client-facing service. IT professionals analyze this metric to reduce packet losses caused by congestion on the network, faulty hardware or software.

Network availability

Business operations are adversely affected by an unreliable network that suffers frequent outages. The result can be a significant reduction in productivity and revenue. Network availability is the simplest and most critical network performance metric that provides insights into how often a network is operational and available for use.

What is a network performance monitoring tool?

A network performance monitoring tool is an advanced software that lets IT professionals view the various components of their network infrastructure on an interactive dashboard. These tools are quick to deploy and provide a network topology map that gives a comprehensive view and insights into the health and status of the network. A network monitoring tool has a host of features that IT professionals can leverage to monitor devices, identify and troubleshoot issues, and take steps to optimize network performance — all in real time. It helps users to work more productively and deliver seamless service to clients, in turn boosting revenue. By uprooting inefficiencies in the IT infrastructure, the tool helps reduce the costs associated with downtime, maintenance and upgrades, thus increasing the bottom line.

A great network performance monitoring tool should integrate with other core IT tools like ticketing, IT documentation and BI solutions so technicians can manage tickets from within the same dashboard. This will help technicians utilize the solutions stack fully and provide better network management services. An advanced network monitoring solution should also have automation capabilities on the menu so that technicians can spend less time on mundane tasks and devote more time to other essential business tasks. Lastly, it should provide top-notch reporting so that IT professionals can demonstrate the tool’s value to clients and stakeholders.

What features should a network performance monitoring tool have?

With many networking monitoring tools in the market, choosing the right one can be challenging. Look for the following features when shopping for a network monitoring tool:

• Network discovery: This refers to how easily and quickly the tool can be deployed and detect the devices and software that need monitoring and managing. Ideally, a network performance monitoring tool should support devices from various vendors so that administrators can monitor everything from a single console.
• Topology mapping: This feature can automatically discover and map network topology, providing a visual representation of the network infrastructure and helping administrators quickly identify the location of performance issues.
• Targeted analysis: This feature enables IT professionals to zero in on the specific network or device causing problems for applying fixes. This helps technicians resolve issues quickly and optimize network performance.
• Configuration management: This feature helps IT professionals track, monitor and make real-time network configuration changes. Businesses need to change network configuration depending on changing business needs, and this feature allows them to go about it efficiently and quickly.
• Event tracking: This feature allows technicians to track, assign severity levels and troubleshoot networking events like SNMP traps, win events and syslogs before they escalate.
• Predictive analytics: In predictive analytics, past data is analyzed to diagnose issues that may arise in the future and provide network insights to help avoid them. Thus, a network problem can be detected and resolved before it negatively impacts operations.
• Real-time monitoring and alerts: An ideal network performance monitoring tool should be able to monitor network performance metrics in real time and provide alerts when performance issues are detected, allowing administrators to respond quickly to and resolve problems.
• Compliance support: Networks must adhere to certain industry and regulatory compliance requirements. Compliance support helps professionals keep track of metrics that will keep them compliant.
• Robust reporting: Advanced network monitoring tools provide detailed analytics and reporting capabilities that enable administrators to track network performance over time, identify trends and generate insightful performance reports.

What are the benefits of a network performance monitoring tool?

Network monitoring is a must-have in today’s increasingly digital world. Modern networks are fraught with challenges and complexity with on-premises, hybrid cloud and virtual assets that need constant monitoring. By using an advanced network monitoring tool like Traverse, you can easily monitor all your networks and data centers, whether large or small. Here are some benefits organizations can realize by deploying a network performance monitoring tool.

• Speedy deployment: Network monitoring tools can be deployed in a matter of hours. Thus, IT administrators can start detecting and troubleshooting problems on the spot and start optimizing the network from day one.
• Comprehensive monitoring: Modern network monitoring tools provide insights into all aspects of network infrastructure, such as routers, switches, servers, applications, modems and access points, so technicians don’t have to waste time looking for problems and can make better decisions based on all the real-time data available to them.
• Minimized downtime: Keeping your network up and running is more than just handling network issues when they arise. A modern networking tool uses advanced analytics to predict potential problems before they occur. In turn, this leads to more uptime, productivity and revenue.
• Network health improvement: With complete visibility into network performance and capacity, IT professionals can keep network health and usage at their peak.
• Seamless integrations: Today’s IT infrastructure is interconnected, and verticals rarely work in silos. Using network monitoring tools that integrate seamlessly with the broader tech stack helps IT professionals complete their tasks more efficiently and reduce security incidents.

Monitor network performance with Traverse by Kaseya

Traverse by Kaseya is one of the most advanced network monitoring tools in the market that will help your IT professionals tackle even the most complex and challenging networking tasks easily and quickly. It is extremely easy to deploy and will instantly give you a comprehensive view of your networking environment through an interactive topography map. Traverse makes network management easy with the capability to solve any networking issue you may encounter. You’ll enjoy superior uptime and network efficiency. Get in touch with us today to schedule a Traverse demo.

The post Network Performance Monitoring: How to Measure Network Performance appeared first on Kaseya.

Although this development isn’t a complete surprise, its pace was accelerated during the pandemic when technology adoption by small and midsize businesses (SMBs) got fast-tracked by five years. This left IT professionals in the lurch as the portfolio of devices to be managed increased exponentially. Markets acted quickly and developed bespoke solutions for each device type; for example, you could get a Mac tool for Mac management and a cloud tool for cloud management.

This became a boon and a curse at the same time. On the one hand, IT professionals had a way to manage various devices, but on the other hand, they had to juggle multiple device management tools, work with 10 different vendors and keep a tab on all of these contracts. Thus began the search for a unified tool that could do it all without a hassle.

This blog will briefly explain how IT professionals can effectively manage and control various network devices using a single cutting-edge solution. Dive in.

How To Remotely Control Network Devices

Multifunctional IT professionals require an integrated and unified IT management and security platform that is purpose-built to address their complex needs. VSA is that solution and offers complete IT management via a single-user interface. With a single click, VSA creates a secure communication channel to initiate a remote-control session for managing devices like routers, firewalls, switches and printers, on any network.

Networking devices are well-designed to be managed remotely, as even the old school routers could be configured and managed through a command-line interface (CLI). VSA’s remote control feature allows you to fully control/manage agentless devices without needing to install a VSA agent on them. So long as the vendor offers the option, you can remotely change anything about the current device configuration.

Use Cases for Network Device Remote Control

Network device management via remote access is not just quicker but more efficient, and you can manage security more effectively.

Rebooting

Besides your desktops, laptops and mobile devices, your network devices also need timely rebooting. It could be a bug fix, a performance improvement or a firmware update. VSA allows you to remotely reboot a network device, whereas, in the past, you had to have the device in front of you. The most compelling use case of the remote rebooting feature is the ability to shut down an interface to stop a broadcast storm, which can occur due to misconfigured networking switches.

Firmware or Software Updates

Firmware is a software that comes preinstalled on networking devices like routers and printers. It ensures networking devices follow instructions correctly and perform their functions as expected. Firmware also protects devices from malware and gives administrators a convenient way to manage device settings.

Just as you must update your operating systems (OS) and other software application regularly, firmware must be updated, too. Keep firmware patching up to date and remediate critical vulnerabilities remotely with VSA to maintain security of your IT infrastructure. It is a crucial security practice to keep your networking device from being used as a backdoor for a cyberattack. The firmware update can also introduce new features and fix performance-draining bugs. You can efficiently address the difficulties associated with patching firmware by automating the entire process using Kaseya VSA.

Configuration Updates

Networking devices may require configuration updates from time to time to either fix performance issues or troubleshoot a potentially dangerous problem. Consider the verbose logging feature. Whether you need to turn it on to troubleshoot an issue or activate it for additional logging, you can enable the function remotely using VSA to access information quickly.

Manage Your Network Devices With VSA

If you’re using bespoke software for network device remote control or your endpoint management solution (RMM) can’t manage networking devices remotely, it’s time to upgrade. With VSA, you can access state-of-the-art remote network management features and more from the get-go. Request your free demo today to see how you can manage all your device from one platform.

The post The How and Why of Networking Device Remote Control appeared first on Kaseya.

Network monitoring is a key function for maintaining IT service availability. It enables technicians to quickly detect and respond to an issue with a network device, such as a switch or a router, that could disrupt a service to all downstream devices and users.

A key requirement for quickly finding and fixing the root cause of an IT incident is gaining visibility of the entire IT network. This includes all agent-based devices, such as Windows, Mac and Linux devices, and agentless devices, such as routers, switches and printers, on the network. The discovery process allows the endpoint and network management tool to build a network topology map, as shown in the screenshot below.

Being able to visualize the entire network and see all of the device connectivity can be a huge timesaver for network admins that are troubleshooting an issue. The topology map can show the up/down status of the endpoints and network devices as well as whether there are any active alarms for that device.

IT technicians employ a network management system (NMS) to monitor network devices (e.g. routers and switches) and printers, using the Simple Network Management Protocol (SNMP).

SNMP allows the NMS to communicate with the network devices by sending messages that query Objects in the Management Information Base (MIB). The NMS can query the device for operational status, data errors in and out of the device, bandwidth in and out, and more. Network monitoring enables technicians to constantly monitor an IT network for poorly performing or failing devices.

Network monitoring allows IT teams to be proactive in spotting and resolving issues before they turn into major problems that could affect business productivity.

Simplify Network Monitoring With Kaseya VSA

Kaseya VSA provides standard SNMP device monitoring for routers, switches and printers.

Kaseya VSA’s “zero-configuration” standard SNMP monitoring means the only thing you have to do to enable this function is check a box and you’re done.

Kaseya VSA automatically configures standard SNMP monitoring using best-practice-based thresholds. It collects the following data for SNMP devices:

Network Devices (Routers, Switches)

Collect interface metrics for operational status, bandwidth in and out, and errors in and out

Printers

Printer Operational Status, Printer Current Status, Detected Error State, Printer Cover Status (1st door)

For monitored devices, Kaseya VSA can take the following user-selectable actions if an alert occurs:

• Create an Alarm
• Create a Ticket
• Email Recipients

Triaging Networking Issues

When an alert occurs, depending on what actions have been selected, as shown above, the network admin may see an alarm on the Network Topology Map in VSA. Or, they could get an email notification or be assigned a new service ticket that describes the networking issue. If there’s an active alarm on the topology map. the technician can jump to the Alarm Summary page for that device (see screenshot below).

Technicians can also drill down and get more detailed information on the device in the VSA QuickView window.

All of these features allow technicians to quickly detect and resolve networking issues and help them keep IT systems and services up and running.

Benefits of Kaseya VSA’s SNMP Device Monitoring

Kaseya VSA’s SNMP device monitoring enables technicians to monitor and manage all network devices and endpoints from a single pane of glass. Kaseya VSA’s network monitoring enables you to:

• Easily deploy SNMP monitoring with “zero-configuration”
• Quickly detect and respond to network device alerts
• Gain complete visibility of your networks and device status with the topology map
• Easily see if a device has any open alarms
• Resolve IT incidents quickly to maintain system and service availability

Network monitoring is one of the most critical functions for ensuring the smooth operation of your business. To learn more about how you can simplify network monitoring and management and maintain system uptime with Kaseya VSA, download the feature sheet now!

The post Identifying and Resolving IT Networking Issues appeared first on Kaseya.

What Does SNMP Monitoring Involve?

Standard monitoring of SNMP devices involves the configuring of network devices to report various pieces of data. This data gives a detailed view of the health and operational status of these devices. Network monitoring allows devices to generate alerts when events occur outside of set thresholds. This flags networking issues that can lead to IT system and service downtime.

For example, for network devices such as routers and switches, SNMP monitoring can collect information such as interface metrics for operational status, bandwidth in and out, and errors in and out.

For printers, information such as operational status, printer current status, detected error state and printer cover (i.e. door) status can be collected.

Configuring monitoring for network devices can sometimes become tedious and time consuming. It involves applying a standard set of configurations to each and every device. However, network monitoring configuration can be automated with an appropriate network management tool that follows industry best practices for setting thresholds.

What is Network Management Software and What Actions Can It Take?

As the name suggests, network management software monitors, manages and helps optimize a network for maximum uptime and performance.

When network management software registers an alert – created when the operation of a network device exceeds a pre-defined threshold – it can perform certain actions such as:

• Creating an Alarm – A graphical way of notifying the user that an alert has occurred. This takes place in the network management software dashboard and can be viewed by users that are logged in to the software.
• Creating a Ticket – A service ticket is created and logged in the software and assigned to a specific IT technician/helpdesk agent to be resolved.
• Sending an Email – An email is sent to notify the IT team (or some individual) of the incident. It provides alert details so that someone can take action to remediate the issue.

Is a Separate Network Monitoring Tool Required to Manage SNMP Devices?

If you’re using a remote monitoring and management (RMM; aka endpoint management) tool, it may have the capability to monitor SNMP devices. If so, you may not require a separate network monitoring tool. However, depending on the specific needs of your organization and the skillset of your IT team members that manage network devices, you may require a more advanced network management solution.

For many IT teams in small to midsize businesses, an easy-to-use network monitoring feature built into the RMM/endpoint management tool could be the best solution. This approach ensures that everyone on the team can use the network management capabilities and saves you money by eliminating the need for a standalone solution.

And, for network engineers that manage complex IT networks and troubleshoot network issues on a daily basis, a more powerful network monitoring solution is probably preferable.

Kaseya VSA, a powerful endpoint and network management solution, automatically discovers all devices on a network, including Windows, Mac and Linux devices, as well as routers, switches and printers. It also provides a network topology map showing how each device (VSA agent-based and agentless) is interconnected.

This network topology also shows active alarms on devices and allows for easy drill-down on a device to see detailed asset information and fast access to the Alarm Summary page for that device. This enables quicker resolution of IT incidents on that device.

With Kaseya VSA, setting up standard SNMP device monitoring is also quite easy. In fact, Kaseya VSA provides “zero configuration” standard SNMP monitoring, which means the only thing you have to do to enable this function is check a box and you’re done. VSA automatically takes care of the rest for you.

Learn more about standard SNMP device monitoring and network visualization by reading our product brief.

The post Standard SNMP Device Monitoring appeared first on Kaseya.

As companies grow, so does the number of endpoints on the network. Network structure may also get more complicated, making them harder to manage. Managed Service Provider (MSP) technicians may get overburdened with the task of monitoring these complex IT networks.

According to the 2020 MSP Benchmark Survey Results Report, when asked about the network monitoring services MSPs provided to their clients, most MSPs (about 82 percent) provided Local Area Network/Wide Area Network (LAN/WAN) services. Monitoring of on-site physical devices is done by 78 percent of MSPs whereas monitoring of on-site virtual devices is done by 68 percent of MSPs.

Many organizations use WAN links to interconnect local area networks (LANs) at geographically dispersed sites. As companies grow, it takes more IT time and resources to manage these WANs and LANs.

Today, companies need close to 100% percent network and system uptime, without which they could incur a significant loss in business productivity. Listed below are some best practices that your MSP can implement to streamline network management functions and troubleshoot issues to maintain uptime and customer satisfaction.

5 Best Practices for Effective Network Monitoring

1. Establish a Network Baseline to Set Alerts

Know how your client’s network usually behaves. Establish a baseline based on the network’s normal behavior and quantify network performance when it’s running smoothly. Having a baseline in place enables network admins to set appropriate alert threshold values. These alerts can help the team be proactive about troubleshooting potential issues, before a network failure occurs. For example, if server CPU utilization exceeds the threshold you’ve set, then you can investigate the issue before the server overheats and fails.

2. Use Tools That Provide End-To-End Network Visibility

Your network monitoring tool should have complete visibility into your client’s network to identify potential issues and help determine the root cause of an incident. A network topology map shows how all of the devices on the network are connected. This includes agent-based devices—workstations and servers, and agentless (SNMP) devices. It should be able to display the up/down status of endpoints on the network—for availability monitoring, so it’s easy to see where problems are occurring.

3. Implement Proper Configuration Management

Many network issues stem from incorrect configurations. Standardize network configurations for device classifications, such as LAN switch, WAN switch, etc. Configuration management allows network admins to make sure that configuration changes don’t break something that currently works. Unauthorized changes can create security risks to your network that may result in data breaches and disruption of business continuity. Configuration management helps prevent unauthorized changes, which helps keep your network more secure.

If you are required to change configurations for audit purposes, keep track of all the changes. You may even back up the changes made to the network, in case you need to restore a previous configuration.

4. Set Up an Alert Escalation Matrix

Your technicians are constantly under pressure to prioritize and respond to network issues. There might be cases where issues go unnoticed and unresolved due to multiple technicians working on different aspects of network management. Create a plan that specifies who is alerted when a specific type of problem occurs. In addition, your plan should include how alerts for issues should be escalated to other personnel based on severity, elapsed time, and service levels.

5. Enable Auto-Remediation of Network Issues

Traditional network monitoring consists of monitoring endpoints and detecting issues. Take a proactive approach by enabling auto-remediation of common issues with your remote monitoring and management tool before they impact client operations. Take the load off your busy technicians and resolve incidents more quickly.

In today’s highly competitive business environment, network and system uptime is critical to your clients’ business. Select the best RMM and network monitoring tools to keep all your clients up and running.

Kaseya VSA provides complete network visibility with its Network Visualization feature that includes a network topology map showing how all devices on the network are connected. This includes both agent based and agentless devices. It also enables you to see endpoint (asset) up or down status at a glance.

A QuickView window appears when you click on an endpoint in the topology map. From the QuickView window you have access to detailed asset information. You can also take advantage of VSA’s remote endpoint management tools — Live Connect and Remote Control to access the endpoint and troubleshoot issues. Quickly resolve IT incidents.

Learn more about the Network Topology Map by downloading the feature sheet “Find and Fix IT Incidents Faster With Network Topology Map.”

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What is RMON?

Remote network monitoring (RMON) is the process of monitoring network traffic on a remote Ethernet segment to detect network issues such as dropped packets, network collisions and traffic congestion. One of the most successful network management protocols, RMON was originally developed by the Internet Engineering Task Force (IETF), an open organization made up of network designers, operators, vendors and researchers, that develops and promotes voluntary Internet standards.

Developed specifically to help network administrators remotely monitor and analyze data that is collected from local area networks, RMON allows for the collection of network data from LANs without having to reach the site and set up equipment.

With RMON, you can set performance thresholds and generate alerts when the threshold is breached, allowing for proactive network management.

How Does RMON Work?

RMON probes or RMON agents are hardware/software components or software embedded into a network device, such as a router or a switch. Typically, the RMON probe is put on just one device or interface on a TCP/IP subnet. The probe software usually runs on the port of the network device to capture information and statistics on network protocols and traffic activity. It can relay this information back to a remote network monitoring console for analysis and reporting.

With an RMON console, network admins can monitor networks, save logs, capture historic performance and get notified in case of an issue – all without interfering with normal operations.

What Is the Difference Between RMON and SNMP?

Simple Network Management Protocol (SNMP) is an application-layer protocol for monitoring and managing network devices on a local area network (LAN) or wide area network (WAN) and is sometimes even used to configure remote devices. SNMP agents are typically included with all network devices to allow communication with the network management system.

As noted earlier, RMON is an extension of SNMP and provides nine groups of monitoring elements to allow the capturing of detailed network information. This data pertains to the physical layer (Layer 1) and the data-link layer (Layer 2) of the OSI model. As RMON agents monitor data over LAN networks, the accumulated information is retrieved by the RMON console using SNMP commands.

SNMP was originally developed as a mechanism for managing Transmission Control Protocol/Internet Protocol (TCP/IP), and Ethernet gateway, an extension of SNMP, was created to allow monitoring of remote networks.

An SNMP device, such as a hub or router, usually needs additional software installed on it to provide RMON functionality and turn it into a probe.

RMON1 and RMON2

There are two remote network monitoring specifications – RMON1 and RMON 2. RMON 2 is an extension of RMON1. It adds nine more groups of data that pertain to the network layer (Layer 3) and application layer (Layer 7) of the OSI model.

RMON1 Management Information Base (MIB) – a hierarchical database that defines the information that an RMON console can request from an agent using SNMP, and provides traffic statistics at the Media Access Control (MAC) and physical layers, such as:

• Statistics – Information such as packets dropped, packets sent, bytes sent (octets), broadcast packets, and multicast packets
• History – Historical data of already selected statistics
• Alarm – Alarms set through SNMP traps are sent when statistics for an event exceed the defined thresholds
• Hosts – LAN statistics for each host (e.g., bytes sent/received)
• Hosts top N – Record of N most active connections in a specific time frame
• Matrix – Traffic matrix for data sent/received between two systems
• Filter – Bit-filter type (mask or not mask), filter expression (bit level), conditional expression (and, or, not) to other filters
• Packet Capture – Includes information, such as size of buffer for captured packets, full status (alarm), and number of captured packets
• Events – Information about event type, description, last time event sent
• Token Ring – Additional statistics for Token Ring networks

RMON2 MIB provides insights into RMON1 traffic statistics by specifying the protocol and applications that compose that traffic. This knowledge is critical to maintaining and troubleshooting today’s client/server environments. The information provided by RMON2 MIB is as follows:

• Protocol Directory – Lists the inventory of protocols that the probe can monitor
• Protocol Distribution – Maps the data collected by a probe to the correct protocol name that can then be displayed to the network admin
• Network Layer Host – Counts the amount of traffic sent from and to each discovered network address
• Network Layer Matrix – Counts the amount of traffic sent between each pair of discovered network addresses
• Application Layer Host – Counts the amount of traffic, per protocol, sent from and to each discovered network address
• Application Layer Matrix – Counts the amount of traffic, per protocol, sent between each pair of discovered network addresses
• User History – Combines mechanisms from the Alarms and History groups to provide history collection based on user-defined criteria
• Probe Configuration – Controls the configuration of RMON features
• RMON Conformance – Describes conformance requirements

RMON2 agents can also monitor the traffic coming to the LAN via routers and not just at the LAN to which it is attached.

RMON2 is not an upgraded version of RMON1 and cannot be considered as a replacement. For complete remote network monitoring, both RMON1 and RMON2 capabilities are required.

Remote Network Management With Kaseya VSA

Kaseya VSA’s network visualization capabilities allow IT teams to remotely identify potential problem sources on the network so they can resolve them more quickly. With VSA, you can automatically discover all endpoints on the network, including Windows, Mac and Linux devices, as well as routers, switches and firewalls. IT techs can move easily from viewing the endpoint on the network topology map to remotely accessing the device to troubleshoot an issue.

Learn more about network visualization and network topology maps here.

The post RMON: A Closer Look at Remote Network Monitoring appeared first on Kaseya.

Today, you not only need to manage laptops and devices used by a highly distributed workforce, you also need the capability to do your job away from the office by managing remotely. Let’s look at the challenges to properly monitoring and managing your mobile workforce (sometimes called off network monitoring), and how to overcome those challenges successfully and efficiently.

The Challenges of Off Network Monitoring

In today’s global and cloud environment, leaving the office and network doesn’t mean leaving behind corporate data─your job doesn’t end when your workforce leaves the office. Nor does your leaving the office mean your work is done. You are still responsible for the security and monitoring of all your systems.

IT managers need to be able to access and manage devices anywhere in the world, at any time. Routine maintenance, updates, and patches all need to be done in a timely manner for security and compliance. This can be a problem when it is not possible to wait until the employee – or you – are back in the office.

If you are worried about issues caused by remote and mobile device usage, you are not alone. A recent Information Week Strategic Security Survey revealed the following results:

• 64% were concerned about sensitive data being accessed when the device is lost or stolen.
• 59% felt that it was likely that infected personal devices would be connected to the corporate network.
• 37% were afraid of malicious apps being downloaded by a user.

It’s a serious, and potentially costly, issue. It is estimated that over $7 billion was spent in 2015 for desktop and mobile solutions. Unfortunately, that money was often spent on programs that did not integrate IT functions, nor solve the problem of how to manage a device that is not in-house.

How Kaseya Addresses These Challenges

Kaseya comes from a Sioux Indian term meaning “to secure, to protect,” and that is exactly what Kaseya’s Virtual System Administrator (VSA) does. Kaseya VSA allows you to manage security, compliance, auditing, and more, from one centralized console, even if your users – or you – are remote and off the corporate network. You simply install an agent on the devices manually, or let VSA detect devices and automatically install the agents. No other software, no extensive installation processes, and no further action needed for Kaseya to work.

Kaseya gives you:

• Control of all IT assets – network, desktop, peripherals, and mobile, whether they are local or remote, on network or off – through one central console
• Geographical independence with the ability to work anywhere at any time – even if you or the user you’re supporting is off network
• Automatic patching and updates for equipment and software, including third-party applications – even if the device is sitting on a counter at home. You no longer have to rely on users or wait until the end of the work day to keep devices up-to-date
• Near instantaneous remote connections – reliable even if the device being accessed is in an airport or on the employee’s kitchen counter
• Separate corporate from personal data by placing it in an encrypted area on mobile and remote devices, keeping it secure and giving you the power to locate and wipe data from stolen or lost devices, or from devices of de-provisioned users, wherever they are – without disturbing personal data

Now that’s remote!

No matter what market segment you are in, Kaseya VSA will work for you just as it has for thousands of mid-to-large enterprises, financial services, healthcare providers, education systems, government and military institutions, and over half the top MSPs.

Learn more about how Kaseya gives you peace of mind through effective centralized management by downloading The Time-Strapped IT Pro’s Guide to Getting More Done – Manage Remotely and Seconds Matter: Resolve Issues Quickly with Remote Desktop Management today!

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One of the most important aspects of a monitoring system is its capabilities to monitor all kinds of file and folder related processes. KNM has several ways to perform file and folder monitoring, one of them being the directory property monitor.

The directory property monitor is a flexible file and folder monitor that can test file count, directory size, relative size changes and age of files in a directory. The test can be limited in scope to files matched by a wildcard. The directory property monitor also stores statistical data, for each test it stores the size of the directory and the number of files it contains. This data can later be used in reports.

The configuration of the monitor is straight forward, just remember that the path is relative to the monitored device. For example \\mymachine\myshare would be entered as \myshare only.

The following scenarios can be monitored:

• Directory contains a minimum number of files
• Directory contains a maximum number of files
• Oldest file in directory is not older then a certain number of hours
• Newest file in directory is not older than a certain number of hours
• Relative directory size between test
• The absolute size of files in directory

Sometimes even this is not enough, thats where Lua scripts come in to the picture. Next time we will take a look at the Lua scripting language thats built into KNM and how to use the Lua Integrated development environment that ships with KNM.

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