NerveCenterTM: Integration with
Micromuse Netcool/OMNIbus
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Contents - Overview - What is NerveCenter? -
NerveCenter obtains data from SNMP agents running on managed nodes by processing incoming SNMP traps and polling the nodes for specific MIB values. NerveCenter interprets and correlates this data to detect predefined network conditions and determine which actions should be performed.
To correlate network data, NerveCenter relies on configurable models of network and system behavior, or behavior models, for each type of managed resource. When a predefined network condition is detected, NerveCenter generates alarm instances that track the status of the interface, node, or enterprise being monitored. The alarm waits for subsequent events or issues polls to determine if the condition warrants further action. Each transition in an alarm can trigger actions, including notifying an administrator or a network management platform, executing a program or Perl script, modifying the node's properties, changing SNMP values, and logging the critical data.
A behavior model is a group of NerveCenter objects that detect and handle a particular network or system behavior. A typical behavior model consists of one or more alarms with all their supporting polls and masks.
Alarms are key to the correlation of events. Each alarm defines a set of operational states (such as Normal or Down) and transitions between the states. Transitions are caused by trigger-generating objects such as polls, trap masks, Perl scripts, or other alarms. When the alarm receives the proper trigger, one or more transitions occur. If actions are associated with a transition, the NerveCenter Server performs these actions each time the transition takes place.
The following diagram illustrates an alarm that monitors each interface on managed nodes and determines whether device load is low, medium, or high. Load is the amount of interface traffic compared to the media's capacity. The IfLoad alarm can give an immediate impression of network and system utilization. By measuring traffic against capacity, you can determine, for example, whether more file servers need to be added to the network.
The alarm transitions to a corresponding state when it receives a MediumLoad trigger or a HighLoad trigger. The HighLoad state fires a trigger after the alarm has received its third HighLoad trigger, transitioning the alarm to the HighLoadPersists state.
Once the alarm has entered the MediumLoad, HighLoad, or HighLoadPersists state, receiving a LowLoad trigger returns the alarm to Low and clears any alarm instances.
Actions can be associated with alarm transitions. NerveCenter has several actions that notify an administrator, network management platform, or another NerveCenter of an alarm transition. One important notification action is the NerveCenter inform action. An inform message contains the variable bindings associated with the event that caused the alarm to transition.
NerveCenter can send informs to Netcool/OMNIbus when specified events trigger NerveCenter alarms.
NerveCenter sends informs to Netcool/OMNIbus when an alarm transition occurs and the transition includes an inform with Netcool designated as the recipient. The NerveCenter Server forwards the inform data to Netcool's NerveCenter probe, which formats the data and sends alerts to the Object Server.
You can configure NerveCenter to send informs to Netcool when certain network conditions are detected, thereby greatly reducing the number of alerts sent to the corresponding Netcool Event List. For example, in the previous alarm (see IfLoad Alarm), NerveCenter sends an inform only when the IfLoad alarm transitions to the HiLoadPersists state.
| Overview | How NerveCenter Complements Netcool/OMNIbus |
| 29 July 2003 |