Network Monitoring Best Practices with PRTG

The recommended protocol for network monitoring typically includes a combination of SNMP (Simple Network Management Protocol), NetFlow/IPFIX, Syslog, and ICMP (Internet Control Message Protocol). These protocols serve different purposes and are often used together for comprehensive monitoring.

• SNMP (Simple Network Management Protocol): SNMP is widely used for collecting and managing information about network devices such as routers, switches, servers, and printers.
• NetFlow/IPFIX (Internet Protocol Flow Information Export): NetFlow (by Cisco) and IPFIX (an IETF standard based on NetFlow) are used for monitoring and analyzing IP network traffic by collecting flow data.
• Syslog (System Logging Protocol): Syslog is used to transmit log or event messages from network devices to a centralized Syslog server for logging and analysis.
• ICMP (Internet Control Message Protocol): ICMP is used for basic network troubleshooting and monitoring, especially to check the availability and responsiveness of devices.

The best way to monitor your network effectively involves using a combination of tools, protocols, and best practices to cover all aspects of network performance, security, and reliability. Here’s a structured approach:

• Determine goals: Start by defining what you need to monitor. Common goals include tracking performance, identifying security threats, maintaining uptime, and managing capacity.
• Identify key metrics:
  • Performance: Bandwidth usage, latency, packet loss, error rates, CPU/memory usage on network devices.
  • Availability: Uptime and downtime, device availability, network reachability.
  • Traffic: Who is using the network, what applications or protocols are consuming bandwidth, and when.
  • Security: Unusual traffic patterns, access attempts, security alerts.
• Define thresholds: Establish thresholds for key metrics to identify when a device or network segment is performing outside of normal parameters.
• Set up alerts: Configure alerts for critical issues. Use escalation protocols to notify the appropriate teams based on the severity of alerts.
• Create dashboards: Use dashboards to create visual overviews of network health, traffic, and device status.
• Generate reports: Schedule reports that analyze trends in performance, usage, and security incidents.
• Device updates: Regularly update network devices with firmware and security patches to minimize vulnerabilities.
• Network audits: Periodic audits help validate network configurations, security settings, and monitoring accuracy.
• Trend analysis: Use historical data to identify trends in bandwidth usage, device performance, and security incidents.
• Capacity planning: Use traffic data to anticipate and prevent bottlenecks by planning for additional resources.

Monitoring the effectiveness of a network system involves evaluating how well the network meets performance, reliability, and security objectives. This can be done by tracking key metrics, setting benchmarks, analyzing trends, and conducting regular assessments. Here’s a step-by-step approach:

1. Define objectives with clear KPIs.
2. Use a combination of monitoring tools and protocols to gain complete visibility.
3. Set thresholds and alerts for proactive management.
4. Analyze performance trends for capacity planning.
5. Evaluate security measures for network protection.
6. Regularly assess network health and conduct audits for optimization.
7. Report and review with stakeholders to ensure goals are being met.

With our free network monitoring tool, you get:

• A freeware monitoring solution for up to 100 sensors for life
• Monitoring of hardware, software, network performance, data traffic included
• Free alerting, reporting, and mapping features

With the freeware edition of PRTG, you can get started with network monitoring in a matter of minutes. Our auto-discovery function detects all the devices within a given IP address range and automatically incorporates them into your monitoring environment.

PRTG’s flexible subscription licensing makes it easy to scale as needed, based on the number of sensors in use. After your 30-day free trial of the unlimited version of PRTG, you can still use the free version with 100 free sensors. Review our pricing

In PRTG, “sensors” are the basic monitoring elements. One sensor usually monitors one measured value in your network, for example the traffic of a switch port, the CPU load of a server, or the free space on a disk drive. On average, you need about 5-10 sensors per device or one sensor per switch port.