The latest beta version of PRTG 6 adds a feature that has been requested numerous times by many customers: Graph Aggregation! Using aggregated graphing you can now sum up the traffic data of two or more ports and use it just a like a new sensor for graphs, tables and reports.
We have published a new article in our knowledge base that explains how you can use the Custom Script sensor of IPCheck Server Monitor to monitor non-integer values via SNMP.
Now there is a brand new version of our MIB Importer Tool available on the website. With this software you can easily import MIB files and convert them into OID libraries for PRTG Traffic Grapher and IPCheck Server Monitor.
Microsoft now offers preconfigured virtual machines that enable you to test drive setups of some of their server systems using MS Virtual Server 2005 R2.
Today we have uploaded a new guided tour movie for PRTG Traffic Grapher onto our website. The tour shows how easy it is to create a sensor within PRTG’s Windows user interface.
A new interesting online tool helps you to analyze how a browser downloads the elements of a page. All single HTTP requests with their timing are shown in an easy to read graph.
Question #5: Does It Support the Three Common Methods for Acquiring Network-Usage Data?
A comprehensive bandwidth-monitoring solution should support Packet Sniffer applications, as well as SNMP and NetFlow protocols. Each data-acquisition method has pros and cons — depending on your network configuration and your monitoring needs. That said, your bandwidth-monitoring solution should support all three methods and allow you to effectively monitor your traffic regardless of your current or future network configuration.
Here is a brief description and analysis of each method:
Advantage: Exact data, traffic can be accounted by IP and protocol.
Disadvantage: High load on monitoring system for high-traffic systems; network topology must be changed, so that all packets in the network are sent to the analyzing machine.
Advantage: Best choice for high-traffic networks that need protocol analysis
Disadvantage: Only works with Cisco routers.
Advantage: Low bandwidth and CPU load caused by monitoring itself. Best choice for high-traffic networks that don’t need protocol analysis
Disadvantage: Traffic can only be monitored in totals per device/port and cannot be differentiated by protocol.
Note: Only Packet Sniffer- and NetFlow-based monitoring methods allow you to measure traffic by IP address, MAC address and/or protocol. SNMP-based measurements are strictly port-based.
A web shop has 4 seconds to deliver its webpages according to a study from JupiterResearch that examines consumer reaction to a poor online shopping experience - or the customer goes someplace else. While a few years ago usability expert Jacob Nielsen suggested 10 seconds to be the maximum time obviously the growing use of broadband connections has pushed the limit even further.
The report ranked poor site performance as second only to high product prices and shipping costs as leading factors for dissatisfaction among online shoppers. While prices may not always be so easy to change the speed of your online shop can be checked and optimized with tools like our Webserver Stress Tool.
Question #4: Is the Price Right?
Cost, of course, is a major part of any procurement, but it should never be the sole or even leading variable in your evaluation of a monitoring solution. Bandwidth monitoring is simply too important to the overall success and viability of your operation for your team to be blinded — one way or the other — by price. Occasionally, cost can give you insight into how effective a solution may be, but it’s certainly not a fail-proof predictor of efficacy.
Frankly speaking, it’s both impractical and imprudent for your team to purchase solutions based almost entirely on price. As one can imagine, networking vendors weigh a complicated and unique set of internal and external variables to arrive at their various price points. In other words, price isn’t necessarily linked to a product’s functionality or features. And, as with any purchase, you shouldn’t use cost as a justification to bypass the due-diligence or research process that precedes any major procurement.
Question #3: Does It Have an Intuitive Interface That Can be Customized?
It’s critical that your solution allows users to create customized dashboards with graphs and tables that meet their specific departmental or project-based needs. Without customization, your monitoring tool may initially be well-received by team members, but, over time, it will likely become an under-used resource and be seen as something of a generic and predictable tool with limited practical functionality. Without customization, monitoring solutions become part of the operational status quo and, quite naturally, less of a staff priority. By comparison, customizable solutions prompt managers and team members to be engaged in the process, focus their monitoring efforts and take action to improve overall efficiencies. Monitoring bandwidth shouldn’t become a static procedure, but, rather, an interactive one that complements constantly changing operational goals.