There are a number of methods and protocols used for bandwidth monitoring. Understanding the differences can help understand the pros and cons of the different methods used by the various tools available.
Some of the common protocols used to monitor bandwidth include:. Given the above, SNMP may make sense if you would like to query a number of hosts running different operating systems from a central location and aggregate the data. In a strictly Windows environment, WMI may be all you need. Alternatively, a flow protocol may be better suited for aggregating data from routers spread throughout a network.
SolarWinds NetFlow Traffic Analyzer includes a variety of features to create a robust traffic analysis and bandwidth monitoring solution.
You can download a fully-functional day trial here or click here to take the NetFlow Traffic Analyzer for a test drive directly from your browser. You can get your free trial of the Network Bandwidth Analyzer pack here. One of the many features included in PRTG is bandwidth monitoring.
These sensors can be monitored directly using the various graphs and charts within PRTG or used to create reports that you can then export. The freeware version of PRTG supports up to sensors, but that does not necessarily equate to discrete network devices.
Sensors are monitoring elements e. You can download the freeware version of PRTG or a free trial of the full version here. This tool supports SNMP v1, v2c, and v3. You can poll multiple interfaces on a device at the same time and the tool graphs the data for easy visualization of the statistics. You can adjust polling time to increase the granularity of reporting and the monitor will continue to run in the system tray after you minimize the graphical user interface GUI.
Manage Engine offers a NetFlow Analyzer product that enables bandwidth monitoring, traffic analysis, and customizable reports. This tool offers granularity down to the minute in reports, detection of context-sensitive network anomalies helpful for zero-day attacks , traffic shaping via access control lists, NBAR support, and an SLA monitor.
You can download a free day trial for Windows or Linux here. You can try them both by downloading a day, fully functional free trial. What Is Network Bandwidth Monitoring? Finding the Right Bandwidth Monitoring Tool.
Network Bandwidth Analyzer Pack My favorite 2. NetFlow Traffic Analyzer 3. NetFlow Analyzer 5. Cacti 9. Higher bandwidth allows data to be transferred at a faster rate and for more devices to connect at once. I like to refer to networks as highways and bandwidth as the lanes. The more lanes you have on a highway, the more easily traffic can move. The same thing is true of a network. If too many users are watching videos or downloading files—any type of high-data activity—your network speed will lag.
This is why you may often notice a slower connection in public places full of users, with their laptops open and tablets in hand, all trying to use the internet at once. Bandwidth capacity is typically determined by the connection type. Digital subscriber line DSL internet relies on telephone lines and has limited capabilities. Cable internet is faster, but fiber-optic speeds trump them all. Typically, it takes a network interruption to alert IT technicians to a problem.
At that point, they are forced to be reactive rather than proactive. But if you always have your finger on the pulse of the network, you have a distinct advantage—you can spot and address issues more quickly because you know where to look.
This is where network bandwidth monitoring comes into play. With the right network bandwidth monitoring tool, you can:. A wide variety of network traffic monitoring tools and bandwidth monitors are on the market.
Some are more robust and comprehensive in their service offerings, while others are lean. Some involve a fair amount of spend, and others are free or open-source. Here are my picks for the top 9 tools to monitor bandwidth and network usage:.
Leverage the platform to view both IPv4 and IPv6 flow records and monitor. More than a net meter bandwidth monitor, the toolset is equipped to not only display traffic patterns but also correlate them into a visual, usable format via a web-based interface featuring bold charts and graphs.
Another positive feature is that it creates a graph, which lets you see bandwidth usage at a glance. VnStat works by running a daemon that captures and records bandwidth data. It reads from the kernel to stay light on resource usage. It can run in real-time by using the —l option. The real value lies in persistent records. As the daemon runs, it collects and stores bandwidth usage data. The vnstati command can be used to display usage statistics. VnStat is best suited for statistical reporting.
This tool is best for tweaking and maximizing network performance for a particular protocol. One limitation is that it requires both a server and a client to test.
The following tools are more graphical in their interface and display. Many of them offer a more robust suite of monitoring than the more simple command-line tools. Nagios has been a trusted open-source bandwidth monitoring tool for almost 20 years. The interface runs through a web browser and offers multiple monitoring vectors. It also has the ability to send notifications, such as when a problem occurs, or when an issue is resolved. Nagios Core is a free open-source application. A paid, supported version is also available.
It runs in PHP in a web browser. Zabbix aims to simplify network monitoring, and it includes device and application monitoring. It generates data logs, which can be used to track and improve performance, and it can quickly scale between large and small applications. One advantage to Zabbox is that it can be used for free, even in large commercial applications.
0コメント