What is the Remote Manager - what is it used for?, What is a Remote system?

The Remote facilities provide remote viewing and control. A Remote Manager is used to view and in some cases control the Remote systems, These remote systems can be:-

Type of Remote system	What is it used for:-
Probes	Enables you to use the functions accessible via remote systems autoAnalyzer and autoVoIP tree branches. Extends the domain being monitored by passive analysis tool
Toolboxes on the remote site	Enables you to use the functions accessible via the remote systems autoMonitor or autoPinger tree branches.
Sink systems designated as Blaster Managers	Enables you to remotely control the stress testing process used by the VoIP Pre Deployment Assessment tool For more information, see FAQ - autoVoIP Blaster Tree branch and the VoIP Pre Deployment Assessment tool section in the Codima Toolbox Deployment Guide

All toolboxes have the Remote Manager tool included.

However you can also use it externally.

The Host PC for the Remote Manager in this instance will have a license that only allows it to undertake remote operations, it will not have access to any tools locally.

For more information see Remote Manager section of the :-

• Codima Toolbox Deployment Guide

 

What are Probes - what are they used for?

Probes extend the domain managed by the Toolbox, they enable Passive Analysis to be undertaken on remote systems.

They provide access to functions associated with the following tree branches

These Probes operate with:-

• Remote Managers

• SNMP Managers

 

They are used to provide local management, monitoring and analysis facilities. The following diagram shows how multiple Probes can be deployed to extend the domain managed:-

 

Display showing the Remote Manager and Probe deployment :-

 

 

 

 

Can I use Probes as Sink PCs?

The use of Probes as a Sink Systems when using functions that are accessible via the autoVoIP Simulator or autoVoIP Blaster tree branches is not recommended.

For more information, see:-

• FAQ - autoVoIP Blaster Tree branch
• FAQ - autoVoIP Simulator Tree branch

 

Scope/Operation:-

 

How many Probes can a Manager Support?

 

The is no set probe limit, as the Manager does not maintain a permanent connection with the Probes, the Remote Manager has the resources to process 96 connections simultaneously. Connections are only opened if a Probe has an alarm report or update information to send (it is then closed when the alarm/update receipt is acknowledged), and if the Manager is currently asking the Probe for information, e.g., requesting statistics to fill a History Template or asking for all the Alarms in a log, or retrieving frames.

 

Alarm reporting includes a retry facility, so even if a connection was not available the probe can retry for delivery of alarm report.

All the information is stored on the Probe, the information is only provided to the Manager on request.
 

What does the management interface look like?

 

The Remote Manager interface used to view the information from a Probe is accessible via the Pane 1 Tree view, each probe can be allocated a unique color, the displays provided in Pane 2 and 3 are generally the same layout as those provided when using the system locally. So operation looks an feels almost identical to local use. The main difference is that the information to fill the display is requested from the Probe when a specific window is opened. Real time updates are provided for the selected window.

 

The Probe can be used locally at the same time the Remote Manager is requesting information to fill displays.

 

Interface example - shows Troubleshooting Dashboard and Segments Map for two different segments:-

 

 

 

What are the Traffic overheads?

 

The Remote Management process cuts down on the network overheads traditionally associated with SNMP based Network Management, as it does not involve using a regular Polling process to obtain Remote information. Database information is stored locally on the Probe which means that the volume of traffic will be subject to the operations undertaken on the Remote Manager, for example:-

1. When the Remote Manager is being used to view one of the Probes History Charts for a selected time period - Only the statistical objects needed to fill the chart will be requested and received.
2. When Probes are not being viewed on the Remote Manager - The only traffic will be information associated with changes, e.g., Alarm Reports, new Node information for the Map etc.

 

What are the security implications?

 

The Codima system does not use SNMP for remote operation, users therefore do not need to have the SNMP ports open on their firewalls.

 

The firewalls on the remote sites will need to be configured to allow access for the specific port used by the Codima Technologies Remote Transaction Protocol.

 

The dialog between the Probes and the Remote Manager is highlight compressed and the protocol used is proprietary.

 

 

 

Can I run the Toolbox as a Windows Service?

 

The Toolbox software used by the Probes can be run as a Windows Service. A Windows Service is a long-running executable that performs specific functions and is designed not to require user intervention. Windows services can be configured to start when the operating system is booted and run in the background as long as Windows is running, or they can be started manually when required. This feature is especially useful for unmanned Probes.

 

Access points for selecting/deselecting running Toolbox as a Windows Service:-

 

 

 

 

Toolbox FAQ Index - Click here to return to FAQ index

Toolbox FAQ index

Copyright/Disclaimer

Copyright ©2010 Codima Inc. All Rights Reserved.
No part of this document may be copied or reproduced in any form or by any means without the prior consent of Codima Inc.
Information in this document is subject to change without notice and does not represent a commitment on the part of Codima Inc. Codima Inc. reserves the right to revise or change this document without obligation of Codima Inc. to notify any person of the revision or changes. Information in this document is believed to be accurate at the time of publication but no liability whatsoever can be accepted by Codima Inc. arising out of the use of this information. Also, this document could include typographical errors or technical inaccuracies.
Any trademarks or trade names owned or registered by any other company and used in this document are the property of their respective companies