NerveCenter^TM: Downstream Alarm Suppression - Glossary -
Alarms      NerveCenter^TM 3.8: An Overview

Glossary

The following terms are used in this white paper.

alarm

An Open NerveCenter construct that correlates one or more detected network or system events.

behavior model

The group of alarm, trigger, and property group definitions required to detect and handle a particular network or system behavior.

child

A node whose network path to the Open NerveCenter server is dependent on another device (a router, for example). A child may have one or more parents.

circular transition

A transition that does not change an alarm's state.

managed node

A device on a network that is actively monitored and managed by Open NerveCenter.

mask

A construct that determines which SNMP traps generate NerveCenter triggers.

node

A device on a network.

parent

A node between the Open NerveCenter server and other managed nodes. A parent may have one or more children.

Perl subroutine

A Perl script that is run when the transition to which it is assigned is triggered.

poll

A construct that solicits MIB data from managed nodes running SNMP agents, evaluates the returned data, and, depending on the results, can trigger an alarm transition.

Smart Polling

Open NerveCenter technology that lets NerveCenter suppress polling to nodes that are unreachable so unnecessary network traffic is minimized.

state

Part of the finite state machine that represents an alarm. Alarms transition from state to state.

status

The real-time status of a node -- up, down, testing, or unreachable.

transition

A change from one state in alarm state diagram to another. During a transition, Open NerveCenter carries out any actions assigned to the transition.

trigger

A flag sent to an alarm to indicate that an event has been detected or a condition has been satisfied.