How long will it take to create a HTML Report covering an asset inventory?

This can take minutes or hours, the duration will depend on:

How long should a discovery take?

Anything from 5 minutes to several hours, the duration of an inventory/discovery varies with:

The average time to process one IP address is 30 seconds. Ensure that you have correctly deployed and configured the Toolbox, see

• FAQ Deployment

After the discovery is finished,  you can create a HTML Asset report, see FAQ

• How long will it take to create a HTML Report covering an asset inventory?

What is a Device List and how is it used?

A Seed address Device List be used to speed up the discovery process, by adding a range of seed addresses or it can be used to define the range of addresses required in the discovery process. The list must be in the following format:-

Device List file format

Format is all community names on first line separated by a comma (no space) and all seed IP addresses on the following lines, one address or one address range per line, e.g.,

public,readonly,monitor
10.10.10.145
10.10.10.149
10.10.10.213-10.10.10.234
10.10.10.241-10.10.10.248

The list can be build from scratch or it can make use of IP addresses and community names in the current discovery

It also allows you to make more efficient use of device limited licenses, as the addresses in the list will be given priority.

Discovery process when Seed Address list is used:-

If the "Discovery devices outside the scope of the Seed list" option is set to off (unchecked), you are able to restrict you discovery operation to just the devices in the list. If the "Discovery devices outside the scope of the Seed list" option is set to on (checked), the discovery will go beyond the devices in the list.

How do I create a seed address device list?

The easiest way is to run a discovery once on the network, this automatically creates a device list which you can edit.

The file containing the list is stored in the ..\Program Files\CODIMA\Express\neonet\bin\DeviceLists folder.

or you can manually create one, the format is all community names on first line separated by a comma (no space) and all seed IP addresses on the following lines, one address or one address range per line, e.g.,

public,readonly,monitor
10.10.10.145
10.10.10.149
10.10.10.213-10.10.10.234
10.10.10.241-10.10.10.248

See also FAQ

• What is a seed address device list, how is it used?

Do I need to install Agents to provide information?

The Codima Discovery engine makes use of information already available from devices on the network, i.e., ARP Tables, Forwarding, Routing Tables. It will interrogate any existing active SNMP Agents on the network, make use of WMI to obtain information on Microsoft® devices and use other protocols such as SIP, rDNS and NetBIOS to get information.

The discovery engine provides facilities that allow you to see the parts of your network that are unmanaged. To enable you to make a decision regarding the need to add additional agents, see:-

• Can I easily identify unmanaged sectors of the network?

You will not need to install Agents as part of the Toolbox installation. However it is recommended that you activate as many SNMP Agents as possible prior to running an discovery. Toolbox installation only take a few minutes.

How large will the discovery database be?

It is not possible to give exact figures, as the size will be subject to amount of information gathered for each device. However as a guide, a thousand device network for example would typically produce a 15Mb file.

Is the Microsoft® Access® database capable of storing information from large network discoveries?

Yes, see below:-

For information on Microsoft® Access limitations, see  - http://www.databasedev.co.uk/access_specifications.html

Can discovery use MySQL or Oracle databases?

The installation program installs and configures a Microsoft® Access® database connector to the discovery database. It is not that we can not operate with MySQL or 0racle, it is simply that we do not need to with the standard discovery operations. Microsoft® Access is fine for most discoveries as they do not require multiple concurrent connections, see FAQ:-

• Is the Microsoft Access database capable of storing information from large network discoveries?

MySQL

Users can change the database used by the discovery process to MySQL after installation. This option was introduced to support a facility that allows for the scheduling of discovery runs to be applied to multiple sites and multiple databases. Each site has its own MySQL database.

For more information see FAQ entry

• Can I schedule discovery runs from a central point and cover multiple sites?

Oracle

As the discovery database is accessed through ODBC, it is possible to change the backend database engine (to Oracle) if required. This however would be a chargeable service, as cost would be incurred to make this kind of change.

Codima can supply full documentation of the database schema after a Non Disclosure Agreement has to be signed.
 

Does the discovery process need/use Probes?

No it does not. A single Host PC can be used to interrogate all the Agents on the network. If the Host PC is configured as a trusted user the discovery process will continue beyond firewalls.

Probes are used specifically to monitor the network traffic and are part of the Remote Management facility.

Note: The Probes have no involvement in the discovery operations,  if Codima Probes are installed on a network, the discovery process will show the Probes when drawing the network infrastructure.

If you have a requirement to use the discovery process across multiple sites, see FAQ:-

• Can I apply the discovery to multiple sites and control from a central point.?

Can device specific external data be shown in Visio Drawings? - uses Link Data to Shapes facility in Visio 2007

- i.e. data in an Excel workbook or an SQL databases

 Select Link Data to Shapes, available via the Data Menu bar and use the Wizard facility provided by Microsoft® Office Visio.

Viewing information

The information imported is then available in the selected Visio view and when the drawing is saved for example to a .htm file, the imported information is saved with it

Display example showing imported information:-

How do I find the MAC Address of the PC I wish to install on?

The license files used by the Codima Toolbox are linked to the MAC Address of the PC you install the software on. To obtain the MAC Address of a PC you should type ipconfig/all from a DOS window.

The MAC Address is a 12 digit hex number, e.g., 00-07-E9-5A-77-DB

To get to a DOS window, click Start, then Run, then type cmd in the text box.

If PC has multiple MAC Addresses, you need only to supply one for the license link.

DOS Window example:-

Alternatively if you are using a demonstration system, you can make use of the automated facility to request a license upgrade, this facility automatically finds your MAC address.

 

Display showing interface used to request license upgrades:-

  

 

 

 

Network Security/WMI :- 

What network security rights must I have to run a discovery?

To obtain SNMP information you need to use the correct :-

• Read Community string (e.g., Public) - SNMPv1 or v2

• Authentication and Privacy information - SNMPv3

To obtain WMI information you must run a discovery using the correct WMI Credentials

Will show devices with the wrong permission in the Discovery Summary Report.

Diagram showing deployment and host PC configuration requirements:-

What does it mean to be a Domain Administrator?

Because connecting a Windows workstation to a network is easy, the shared resources (servers and printers) must be protected. On a small network, requiring users to login to their workstation can protect resources sufficiently.

On a large network, with hundreds of users, this becomes impractical. Microsoft offers a centralised authentication service called Active Directory. Users are defined and declared once on an Active Directory server, and the user is authenticated from that server when logging in to any Windows Workstation.

The ‘Administrator Group’, is a group of users with rights that enable them to create and modify users, as well as remotely access other Windows machines.

To make it possible to segment the network (e.g. between Production and Administration), Microsoft has defined Domains, something similar in concept to a subnet, but not necessarily having the same topology. Domains are then linked into a hierarchy called a Forest. Domains and Forests both have Administrators.

Practically, this translates into the fact that a user can go to any workstation in a given Domain and log on using the correct username/password/domain combination. The Active Directory is queried about that user’s rights, then logs the user onto the Domain, and grants them access to resources based on those rights (e.g. the user can access Server A and B as well as Printer C, but cannot access Server D). If a user is in the Administrator Group, they can access all the resources.

The WMI technology used by the Toolbox needs to query other Windows systems. The Toolbox should therefore be configured with the correct WMI Credentials.

In summary, the Toolbox must have the correct WMI Credentials and will identify all the Windows 2000 (SP4 or later), XP and 2003 machines logged on to that Domain. For Windows 2000, XP and 2003 machines connected to the network but not logged on to the Domain, Windows 95, 98 and NT (pre SP6) are not included in those reports, this information is provided in the Discovery Summary Report section of the HTML Asset report.

What is WMI?

WMI is the acronym for Windows Management Instrumentation. This is an API in the Windows operating system that enables devices and systems in a network, typically enterprise networks, to be managed and controlled. Utilizing CIM (Common Information Model, an industry standard, for describing data about applications and devices) WMI allows network administrators to query and set information on workstations, applications and networks.

The Discovery Engine uses WMI to obtain information on Microsoft™ devices. To obtain this information the discovery engine must be run from a Domain Administrator account and will identify all the Windows 2000 (SP4 or later), XP and 2003 machines logged on that Domain.

What Operating Systems can we obtain WMI information from?

autoMap tree branch – Background Information :-

What is autoMap tree branch used for?

The tree branch provides access to functions that are used to produce Topology drawings and HTML Asset reports. This part of the Toolbox uses:-:-

How does Toolbox discover the network?

The Codima Discovery Engine associated with the Mapping Tool starts the discovery from a seed-device, which must be SNMP-capable.  The Codima Discovery Engine will inspect the ARP table, Routing and Forwarding Tables for the seed-device to see who is communicating with whom and then start to interrogate those devices.  As it finds the next switch or router it starts to see more devices and the discovery process works in a recursive manner until it sees all active devices. 

As ARP tables get flushed after 5 minutes by default, the Discovery Engine can force those tables to be populated by using a controlled ping scan of the network and that way also discover connected devices that have not been recently active.  We strongly recommend using a router as the seed-device as this will have the most reliable and extensive ARP table and typically will have most devices on the network in its ARP table. 

The Discovery Engine can interrogate the devices using a number of protocols including SNMP, NetBios, SIP, rDNS, CDP and WMI.

A large part of the discovery engine’s functionality is dedicated to discovering the capabilities and inter-connectivity between switches and routers.  These are the major infrastructure nodes and are the components used to build the topology of a network.  Much of the information needed to discover a network’s topology is stored in proprietary MIBs and we support CDP (Cisco Discovery Protocol), CDP (Cabletron Discovery Protocol) and EDP (Extreme Discovery Protocol) to get the requisite information.  In fact our knowledge of these vendors (Cabletron is now called Enterasys) and Nortel Networks and the particularities of their extensive product families is one of the key differentiators of the Codima Discovery Engine against our competition.

Installation :-

Do I need third party components to operate functions accessible via the autoMap tree branch?

The following third-party components are required:-

• Microsoft® Office Visio® 2007 (Professional ) and 2010 (Professional or Premium) - This is an essential requirement to display the result of the Codima Discovery Engine process.
• Java 2 Platform, Standard Edition (J2SE) V1.4.1 or later - Installed automatically as part of the Toolbox Installation
• Microsoft® Access® driver - Configured during the Toolbox Installation.

What are the PC Platform Requirements for Toolbox?

• How much memory do I need to install?
• How much disk space do I need?

Getting Started

Is there any guidance available to help me get started when using autoMap tree branch?

Yes, the following reference documents:-

• autoMap tree branch - Getting Started Guide -a URL to access this guide is provided when you download software and is included in the license delivery emails when you evaluate or buy the tools.

• autoMap tree branch - Operations Guide - Power Point Presentation, the URL to access this guide is provided directly to sales staff/resellers on request.

   

autoMap tree branch – Operation :-

What device should I use as a start point in a discovery ?

Why must it be SNMP compliant 

The Start Point for a discovery is the Seed address for the discovery process, it should be the IP address of an SNMP device that is to be used as the origin of the discovery. If possible, a central router should be used. Virtual IP addresses used by HSRP or VRRP should be avoided, i.e., device must be SNMP-capable and have one of its physical interfaces configured to support SNMP.

A single address point of an SNMP Router is recommended, but you can have multiple start points, the format to used to configure multiple start points = 192.168.0.1,10.0.1.1-10.0.1.254

The discovery process will involve inspecting the ARP and forwarding tables (if present) for the seed-device to see who is communicating with whom and then start to interrogate those devices.  As it finds the next switch or router it starts to see more devices and the discovery process works in a recursive manner until it sees all active devices.  As ARP and forwarding tables get flushed after 5 minutes by default the discovery process can force those tables to be populated by using a controlled ping scan of the network and that way also discover connected devices that have not been recently active.  We strongly recommend using a router as the seed-device as this will have the most reliable and extensive ARP table and typically will have most devices on the network in its ARP table. 

If the seed devices is a not a router, but a switch, we will not have forwarding tables and the discovery engine will not immediately find the router, delaying the discovery of other subnets until a device reports the existence of Router.

If the seed device is neither a router nor a switch, e.g., an end station or server, then the range of addresses the discovery engine has to work with is much smaller, than it would be with a switch or router.

The objective of choosing a seed devices is to go with the device that will give the largest number of existing IP addresses straight away.

SNMP is required to explore large networks, where Class C networks are connected to Class B networks etc. What ever the configuration of the network is, the discovery engine will identify the Routers and explore all their interfaces, finding new routers to continue the process, the SNMP protocol is essential for this task.

Linux devices are weak starting points and should be avoided as they may not fully support Mib-2.

You can not for example normally select as a start point, a Default Gateway that is a firewall. This device would not be seen with SNMP. Firewalls are configured without SNMP enabled and are managed via more secure protocols.

What SNMP versions are supported by the Codima Discovery Engine?

Asset View :-

What is the Asset View?

This is the main access point to the Asset Inventory & Reports Tool, it uses the Codima Discovery Engine to discovery the network, it then presents an asset inventory and provides facilities to create asset reports.

What range of Asset information is available?

The Asset Inventory & Reports tool provide access to a wide range of asset information, the information provided is obtained using SNMP and WMI and is presented as a range of Tabs and as HTML Reports.

See below for information on the range of asset information available

• The Asset view tabs and the HTML Reports provide Summary and Link information for devices and for Switches and Routers a Port table:-

• For Switches and Routers that support the Entity Mib, you can use the HTML report to view information on the physical relationships between components in the Switch/Router.

Report layout Toolbox version 500 0001/0002

• The Asset view tabs and the HTML Reports provide Software and Hot fix listings for devices and for disk, processor, monitor and printer configuration information for devices that support WMI.

• The Asset view tabs and the HTML Reports provide Window Services and Processes information for devices that support WMI.

To view the complete range of asset information you should create an HTML Web page report when discovery is complete, as this contains more information than the Asset tree view, for example information on VLANs and the physical structure of switches and routers.

Can I see the physical relationships between components in a switch or router?

Yes, for Switches and Routers that support the Entity Mib, you can use the HTML report to view information on the physical relationships between components in the Switch/Router.

Report layout

Can I identify used and unused ports

Yes - The Asset HTML report includes information on when a port was last used, which means you can quickly identify used or unused ports. This feature helps to consolidate the ports/slots per device and save equipment costs (Equipment rationalization).

Ports for example that are DOWN, will show how long they have been in that State.

The information is available in the the HTML Asset report (Via the Advanced Reports - Switch Port Utilization Table)

Example showing an excerpt from Asset report :-

The Asset Inventory & Reports tool includes a Port Usage Report which provides a count of the used and unused ports.

Can I identify the IOS version for a device?

Yes, this information if available in the asset view HTML Report for a selected device - in the Details area under Description, e.g.,

It is also available in the Asset view for a selected device under SysDescription, e.g.,

You can also monitor Historical changes using the topology drawings, see:-.

• FAQ - Can I run multiple discoveries and have Toolbox highlight what has changed?

What does the Discovery Rating mean?

The Asset HTML Report includes a Discovery Rating calculation. The Discovery Rating %, is a calculation that is based up how many devices are directly attached to managed switches where:

The Discovery Rating is provided in the Discovery Summary Report accessible via the Advanced Reports tree branch of the Asset HTML Report.

Operations:-

What asset inventory reports are available?

The Asset Inventory & Reporting Tool include the following Report range:-

• Vendor Reports :Range of reports covering all Vendors or a specific vendor.
• Type Reports :Range of reports covering all types or a specific device type, e.g., Switch report, MAC address report, IP address report
• Subnet Reports :Range of reports covering all subnets or a specific subnet
• Devices Reports: Report covering a selected device
• Discovery Summary Report : provides a summary report covering the last discovery run.
• Discovery History Report : When running multiple discoveries on the same network, this report will highlight changes, listing the new devices found and the earlier devices that are not included in the latest discovery runs.
• Port Usage Summary : Report provides count per used and unused ports
• Chassis Asset Report : Vendor neutral Report, covers devices that support the Entity-MIB, displays serial numbers for the chassis, module, port, power supply, fan, cpu etc. Entries displayed cover any Modular devices that provide the discovery with serial numbers for components. The Report also shows which components are replaceable For full range of information you can drill down from this report to view the devices Physical Entity Report.
• Cisco Asset Report : Report focuses on Cisco devices, includes Chassis and Card serial numbers
• Installed Software Report : Report lists software discovered along with the PCs that have it installed.
• VoIP Asset Report : Report covers all the VoIP devices.
• Subnet Population Report : Report provides count per subnet of used and unused IP addresses
• VLAN Report : Report provides a breakdown of the discovered VLAN information
• Cisco CDP Report : Report focuses on information obtained from Cisco Discovery Protocol including Information on Cisco Phones.
• Nortel DP Report : Report focuses on information obtained from Nortel Discovery Protocol

Report range at software version 6.90

For full details see Help entry titled About Reports

What format can I create asset reports in?

HTML, .CSV, .TSV and .XML (Excel)

Can I see some asset report examples?

The help facilities include an entry titled Report Examples.

HTML Example

You can also look at a sample HTML report, by following the instructions below:-

1. Down load report files - Click here to download example HTML Report

2. Unzip file into a folder

3. Click on Index.htm to open report

.CSV and .TSV Examples

You can also look at sample CSV and TSV reports, by following the instructions below:-

1. Down load report - Click here to download example CSV and TSV Reports

2. Unzip file and open report

.XML Example

You can also look at a sample .XML report, by following the instructions below:-

1. Down load report - Click here to download example XML Reports

2. Unzip file and open report

Can I identify used and unused ports

The Toolbox has an embedded SNMP facility that can be used to identify used and unused Ports. This feature helps to consolidate the ports/slots per device and save equipment costs (Equipment rationalization).

The information is available in the IfTable branch of Mib-2, in the ifOperStatus/ifLastChange fields. These fields shows the ports in use and how long the operating system was running prior to the status change.

Ports for example that are DOWN, will show how long they have been in that State.

Display when SNMP Browse window is open and displaying the interface status information :-

Using HTML Asset Report

The HTML Asset Report can also identify used or unused Ports. It also includes a report covering Port Usage, which can assist in equipment rationalization.

Can I identify the software and hot fixes installed on devices?

Yes - Information on the installed software and hot fixes can be retrieved using SNMP and WMI (Windows Management Instrumentation).

Can I provide information on disks, monitors and processors?

Yes - This information can be retrieved using WMI (Windows Management Instrumentation).

Can I  see switch serial, chassis and card numbers.

Yes -  but it will be subject to the device type:-

1. The device must have a private MIB that supplies this information.

2. The Codima Discovery Engine must include a procedure to obtain the information

Example of the Cisco Asset Report - showing Serial number, Chassis numbers

Example showing part of an asset report for a Router, covers Serial number for router and cards:-

Can I show duplex status for Switches?

Visio View display showing duplex status:-

What type of network should I use the Codima Discovery Engine on?

The Codima Discovery Engine (CDE) is designed to map and provide asset inventory for managed enterprise networks. The CDE does not install its own Agents to obtain information for the network inventories, it makes use of the Agents on the network, it is therefore essential that the network you are running the inventory on has a sufficient number of devices that are:-

1. SNMP compliant
2. Have SNMP Agents activated

Is discovery process scalable to use on larger enterprise networks?

Yes it is. The discovery process will extend beyond firewalls (if Host PC is set up as a trusted user), enabling Visio views to be created covering the Enterprise wide topology. However, if planning to use the discovery tools on larger networks the following should be considered: 

• Do you have all the information required for the discovery?
• Have you allowed sufficient time for the discovery?
• Do you need to fine tune the discovery process?

• Would the network discovery be best served if split into smaller discovery runs?.

For example: 

• To save time/get quicker more manageable results

• To enable end results to be “viewable” for example if the Layer 2 Topology drawing had over 100,000 objects in it, it would just be too complex to visualize. It is a much more realistic approach to produce a database for each network subnet, or divide up the discoveries according to your subnets

• To handle situations where you have multiple private networks with the same subnet.

• Should you make use of the Micro discovery facility, undertaking multiple discovery runs and merging discovery results prior to the drawing production?,

For example: 

• To handle firewalls that you are not allowed to breach, i.e., you can do an initial discovery run which stops at the firewall, then move the Host PC to the other side of the firewall and restart the discovery run adding the results to the same database.

• To handle devices with different SNMP Read community strings

What do the Asset Inventory & Reports and the Mapping Tools deliver?

• Microsoft® Office Visio® drawings for a range of network topology views .vsd and .htm file formats.

• Inventory reports – HTML, Excel

How are SNMP, WMI and unknown devices displayed in Visio Views?

Below is a display example, shown how Visio Views can display nodes and associated links

What layers of the OSI Model does the Codima Discovery Engine address?

The inventory applies to information obtained from Forwarding and Routing tables, so the layers involved are layer 2 (Link) and layer 3 (Network)

Why is some connection information and port information missing?

Why does discovery not cover 100% of network?

Missing Devices, Ports, or Links - Check List

There are several reasons why a discovery may not cover the complete enterprise network. The following check list covers some areas that should be investigated:-

Missing asset Information - Check List

There are several reasons why a discovery may not show all the expected asset information. The following check list covers some areas that should be investigated:-

1. Devices may be not responding to SNMP - SNMP Agents may not be available or may not have been activated, the discovery engine must have the correct
   • Read community string - SNMPv1 and v2
   • Authentication and Privacy settings - SNMP v3
2. Devices may not be responding to NetBIOS
3. WMI information may not be being provided - To obtain this information the discovery engine must be run from a Domain Administrator account and will identify all the Windows 2000, XP and 2003 machines logged on that Domain.

If you do not have the correct permission, it means that the workstation you are running with the correct WMI Credentials or the workstation you are trying to discover is not logged on to the same domain. Either way windows has not given permission for you to access the WMI RPC services on the remote workstation.

How can I see SNMP statistics for a node in the Visio View?

See help entry titled:-

• How to view SNMP information

or you can gather/view long term SNMP history statistics using the Bottleneck Analysis tool (included in Codima Toolbox All in One and IT Engineer Toolbox)

- SNMP

What should I check to ensure system is ready for SNMP operations?

Quick Check List

• IP address of Host PCs Network adapter - check it is suitable for the network you are connected to.
• Ability to run active operations - check that Toolbox has been deployed correctly for active operations, if you are connected only to a mirror port for example you will not be able to run active operations. For more information, see :-
  • Codima Toolbox Deployment Guide
• Check that you can communicate with the device you wish to browse, e.g., Ping the device.
• Check that device your are browsing is SNMP compliant, i.e., has an SNMP Agent installed.
• Check Firewall access for all devices involved, they must be set to allow incoming and outgoing access to SNMP UDP ports.

Note: XP Service pack 2 machines using the XP system embedded firewall default to not allowing incoming or outgoing access.

• Check the SNMP settings to be used in the discovery
  • Read community - SNMPv1 and v2
  • Authentication and Privacy - SNMP v3

Notes:

1. The SNMP Log covers most SNMP activities and can provide useful diagnostic information
2. The discovery process does not use the SNMP Module interface, it has its own dialog for setting SNMP information.

 

 

Are there any issues with SNMP operation on XP service pack 2 machines that are using the XP system embedded firewall?

 

Yes -  you have to manually open the UDP SNMP-agent (161) and SNMP-trap ports (162) to get the agent to respond to SNMP polls and to forward traps. 

 

These functions are essential to enable the Codima Discovery Engine to operate and to allow operations of other SNMP functions need for example for Bottleneck Analysis.

 

This should not affect the larger network installations that Codima services, as they generally do not use the XP embedded firewall solution. 

 

 

Do Linux systems support SNMP? - Can I see what software is installed on a Linux server?

 

SNMP support on Linux systems is not usually very good. You can use the SNMP SIM Generator facility, to do a MIB walk on the Linux system to establish the available SNMP support.

 

WMI and SNMP are used by the asset inventory to show what software is installed on a platform, so the ability to see what software is installed on a Linux server for example, is very much subject to its SNMP Support. The SNMP agent has to be enabled and the agent needs to support the HOST-RESOURCES-MIB hrSWInstalledTable.

 

MIBs :-

 

What is the SNMP SIM Generator?

 

This is a tool to automate the MIB Walk process and email results back to Codima, it is specifically designed to obtain information for the customization of the Codima Discovery engine.

 

For more information, see Help entry titled "How to run SNMP Sim Generator"

 

Notes:

1. To provide a successful MIB walk you must use the correct community strings for the device you are browsing.

2. The SNMP SIM Generator automatically emails the results to Codima so the Host PC must be able to send emails. If it is not you will need to manually copy out the files, which have the extension .gz and are stored in the ..\Program Files\CODIMA\Express\snmp\Record\ folder when the simulation is completed.

 

 

How do I run a MIB walk?

 

The easiest way to obtain a MIB walk is to use the SNMP SIM Generator, this runs the MIB walk and automatically emails the results to Codima.

 

1. To provide a successful MIB walk you must use the correct community strings for the device you are browsing.

2. The SNMP SIM Generator automatically emails the results to Codima so the Host PC must be able to send emails. If it is not you will need to manually copy out the files, which have the extension .gz and are stored in the ..\Program Files\CODIMA\Express\snmp\Record\ folder when the simulation is completed. When you run a new SNMP SIM the files are overwritten.

 

 

How do I export a MIB walk?

 

The SNMP Sim Generator will do the Mib walk and email results automatically.

 

 

 

When should I abort a discovery run?

 

You can abort a discovery run, the process will take a few minutes, but you should avoid situations where you abort the discovery unnecessarily. The discovery progress can take a number of hours to complete on larger networks, so should be left to run. Information on the length of time a discovery should take is covered in Technical Support Bulletin 11 - Appendix 1.

 

To help you make a decision on whether or not to abort, please review the following document:-

• Guidance on monitoring the status of a discovery run - Click here to obtain a copy

 

 

If I stop/abort discovery - do I keep the information in the database and can I use it?

 

If you abort a discovery on a large network discovery it may take some time to complete this process, so please allow for this. The information up to the point where the discover was aborted is kept in the database. Please ensure that you make a back up of the mdb file after the abort completes. The information in an aborted mdb file can not be used initially on the Toolbox, it needs to be processed (the final stage in the discovery), so the database needs to be fixed by Codima before you are able to use the discovery database file to produce drawings.

 

 

autoMap tree branch – Scope/Applications :-

Can I discover non-SNMP devices?

 

Yes.  All you need to discover and show a device is an IP address.  Non-SNMP devices, e.g. Windows workstations, will be found and associated with a switch port or segment.  Essentially you will see the IP address, the MAC address, manufacturer (of the network card) and the switch port for non-managed (i.e. non-SNMP) devices.  You also have configuration options that will enable WMI information and NetBIOS information to be made available.

Can I discover IPX, DECnet and Appletalk devices?

 

Yes, if they support IP.  Otherwise not, as the discovery process is solely IP-based. 

 

Alternatively you can use the functions accessible via the autoAnalyzer/Map of Segment tree branch, which has a passive discovery mechanism that will show all active stations, regardless of the network architecture used in its Segment Map display.  This means placing an Toolbox on the switch or segment concerned.

 

 

Can I discover Wireless devices?

 

Wireless devices will be found using the Codima Discovery engine, however like the other devices in the discovery, the range of information available will be subject to the devices protocol support, i.e., if device supports SNMP, WMI, etc.

 

Can I see which stations are connected to which switch ports?

 

Yes.  The port number is shown as a tool tip (i.e. pop-up label) on the connector line in the Layer 2 Topology View, and as a tabular summary of who is attached to which ports for each switch.

 

Display showing tooltip with Port information - the port number is provided in the description field:-.

 

 

Display showing Asset View - Port tables:-

 

 

Can I identify all devices running specific software?

 

Yes. The discovery process will identify the software installed on devices using SNMP and WMI. Following the discovery the Visio View/Asset View search facility can be used to select the software you wish to locate, e.g., Adobe Reader 5.0. The Visio view will highlight the devices that have that software installed:-.

 

 

To get this information using SNMP, the SNMP agent has to be enabled and the agent needs to support the HOST-RESOURCES-MIB hrSWInstalledTable.

 

Can I drill-down from a Visio View to access other functions?

Yes,  you can use a Visio views as a central point to select the devices to run other operations.

 

For example you can access:-

• Internet tools - to use DNS Lookup, Telnet, Trace Route, Web Browser

• SNMP functions - to use the MIB Browser

• Bottleneck Analysis - to view SNMP History Statistics and Status and Path Analysis.

• Asset Inventory  - to view Asset information and facilities to export the information.

 

 

Can I change the layout of the Visio drawings?

 

Yes - the drawings are created using Microsoft® Office Visio®, so can be manipulated using the standard Microsoft® Office Visio® functions, i.e.,  you can move the items in the drawing by hand. However to make more dramatic changes to the layout, you can use a special layout option which automatically changes the layout for the currently selected Visio View, (e.g., from a wheel layout to a tree layout).

 

Can I run multiple discoveries and highlight what has changed?

 

Yes, the changes will be highlighted in the Visio Views associated with the latest discovery run and in the latest asset overview table?

 

Display examples from a Visio View - before and after.

 

Display example from Asset Overview:-

 

 

 

You can also obtain an HTML Asset Report listing devices that are added or removed between discovery runs, see :-

• FAQ - Can I track changes between different discovery runs?

 

 

What is the difference between single site and multi-site discovery, when would I use multi-site?

 

The discovery scheduling facility can be used for :-

• Single site discovery - applies to a single network, user may also select to run scheduled discovery runs on the site.

- uses a Microsoft Access Database to store the results of running a scheduled discovery an on individual site

• Multi-site discovery - applies to situations where for example an MSP (Managed Service Provider) or NOC (Network Operations Centre) need to run scheduled discovery over multiple customer sites.

  - uses multiple MySQL Databases to store the results of running scheduled discoveries on multiple sites, see FAQ:-

  • Can I schedule discovery runs from a central point and cover multiple sites?

 

 

Can I schedule discoveries and automatically produce Visio drawings and Asset Reports?

Yes, the discovery scheduler can be set to automatically:-

1. Start the discovery engine at a preset range of times
2. Load the SQL database when discovery is complete
3. Open selected Visio Views to present the discovery results as Microsoft® Office Visio® drawings
4. Save the drawings to a predefined network drive (.vsd and html file format).
5. Create HTML Asset web reports
6. Save HTML Asset reports to the predefined network folder

 

The discovery scheduling facility can be applied to:-

• Single site discovery - using a Microsoft Access Database to store the results of running a scheduled discovery an on individual site
• Multi-site discovery - using MySQL Databases to store the results of running scheduled discoveries on multiple sites, see FAQ:-
  • Can I schedule discovery runs from a central point and cover multiple sites?

 

Can I apply the discovery to multiple sites and control from a central point.?

Can I schedule discovery runs from a central point and cover multiple sites?

Yes, it is possible to schedule discovery runs for more than one site. Multi-site discovery uses MySQL as the database server.

To use this facility:-

1. You should have installed and configured MySQL Servers
2. You should already have new MySQL databases for each of the sites you plan to include in the multi-site schedule.
3. You should have completed a successful discovery run on each of the sites and established from this exercise:-
   1. How long a discovery takes
   2. How long it takes to generate the range of Visio drawings required
   3. How long it takes to create the associated HTML report

   This information is then relevant when setting the schedule interval per site.

Note: Information covering how to obtain the latest free MySQL Community Server, as well as installation instructions are provided in Technical Bulletin 12 and the help entry titled "How to use multi-site scheduler"

The discovery scheduler can then be set to automatically:-

1. Start the discovery engine at a preset range of times
2. Load the SQL database when discovery is complete (database type must set to  = MySQL)
3. Open selected Visio Views to present the discovery results as Microsoft® Office Visio® drawings
4. Save the drawings to a predefined network drive (.vsd and html file format).
5. Create HTML Asset web reports
6. Save HTML Asset reports to the predefined network folder

 

This facility allows:-

• MSP (Managed Service Provider) to provide scheduled, automated, Web based, Visio View drawings and Asset Reports to their clients from a central point of access. This gives the MSP another chargeable service that an MSP can provide to a client. i.e. Network Topology Maps and Asset Reports of a clients network that can highlight the network changes over time.

• A NOC (Network Operations Centre) to provide scheduled, automated, Web based, Visio View drawings and Asset Reports on various parts of their global\enterprise networks. By breaking down what might be a large complex network into more manageable discovery setups, and so highlighting changes over time.

 

Multi-site scheduler deployment example:-

 

See also FAQ titled:-

• How does the License process work when using the multi-site scheduler?

 

Can I have some guidance covering how to install and operate the Multi-site scheduler and associated MySQL Databases?

 

Yes - This is provided in Technical Bulletin 12 and the help entry titled "How to use multi-site scheduler".

 

Can I show the paths between selected devices or subnets?

 

Yes, this drawing display can be set up to show each available path (one after another) or all paths.

The paths are provided by object count, so you can easily identify the shortest path.

Example showing excerpts from a range of  Visio Views:-

• Covers when user selects to show individual paths in view - examples applies to paths with 3, 4 and 5 objects
• Covers when user selects to show all paths

 

 

For a more active method of Tracing Routes, you should use the Trace Route facility.

 

Can I show Subnets and associated devices?

 

Yes, you can have a subnet view that allows you to drill down and produce drawings covering devices attached to each subnet,  it can also produce views where each subnet is allocated a unique color, enabling you to easily see the devices associated with each subnets.

 

Display showing unique color for each subnet and associated edge devices (Wheel layout used)

 

Display showing unique color for each subnet and associated edge devices (Tree layout used)

 

 

Display showing Subnet devices following a drill down

 

Can I view VLAN Topology

 

Yes, a VLAN Topology view is available.

 

Display showing unique color for each VLAN group, and the associated VLAN edge devices

 

Can I view Network Infrastructure Topology?

 

Yes, the Network Infrastructure Topology view is available. The Network Infrastructure Topology view will include all devices that provide services to customers on the network.

 

Display showing Network Infrastructure Topology (Wheel layout)

 

Display showing Network Infrastructure Topology (Tree layout)

 

Can I view WAN Topology?

 

Yes, the WAN Topology view is available.

 

Display showing WAN Topology View

 

You can also color highlight the WAN links by using the Advanced Find facility (running a Show WAN Devices and Links on the Network Infrastructure Topology View).

 

Display showing WAN Links highlighted

 

 

Can I show link Media - WAN, Ethernet, Token Ring, FDDI, Wireless links etc ?

 

Yes, you can color highlight the Link Media by using the Advanced Find facility (running a Link Media Query on the Network Infrastructure Topology View).

 

Display showing Media Links highlighted

Color key when "Show Link Media" query is applied:-

 

Can I view Spanning Tree Topology?

 

A spanning tree view is one of the default Visio Views provided. The view highlights the Spanning Tree Groups, Root bridge and shows connection status, i.e.,:-

• Blocking

• Forwarding

• Learning

• Disabled etc

 

(Subject to the information in the discovery database populated during the discovery run)

Example Spanning Tree Topology view - shows:-

• A Spanning Tree Group
• The Root Bridge
• The devices connected to the Spanning Tree Group
• The connection status

 

 

Visio views are updated in real time - they are based on the status at the time the discovery operation took place, so view will not show STP status changes.

 

Can I produce hierarchical Visio Views? (using drill down facility)

 

Yes, there are a number of default Visio Views covering the network topology, from these top level views you can select to drill down and produce views covering selected sectors of the network, for example all the L2 devices associated with a switch or router or all the devices in the same subnet.

 

Display showing topology drawings and drill down examples:-

 

 

Can I easily identify the unmanaged sectors of the network?

 

Yes.

 

Toolbox includes a facility to troubleshoot the results of running a discovery, it involves running the "Show Discovery Troubleshooter" query, which will highlight the unknown sectors of the networks. The user can for example establish if additional management should be provided on the network, for example by activating an SNMP Agent on a key device

Example - Layer 2 Topology view : before running "Show Discovery Troubleshooter" query

Example - Layer 2 Topology view : after running "Show Discovery Trouble shooter" query

Example - Tree layout after running "Show Discovery Troubleshooter" query

All the unknown aspects are highlighted, e.g., unknown links, unknown devices, unmanaged devices and Layer 2 Broadcast domains.

Color key when "Show Discovery Trouble shooter" query is applied:-

 

Using Asset Inventory & Reports Tool

The Discovery Summary Report will provide a discovery rating and information on the device response, i.e., will show if information is obtained from:-

an SNMP response, a WMI response, a NetBIOS response or if device is known only because it responded to a Ping or was in an ARP table.

 

Excerpt from an example Summary Report

 

 

 

Can I see Link Operational Status

 

Yes, you can by running a Link Operational Status Query on a Topology View following a discovery run.

 

 

 

Can I produce topology drawings with my company logo and the keys in the local language?

Can I add my company logo to HTML Asset Reports?

Yes, guidance on this process is provided in a technical bulletin

 

Click here to obtain your copy.

• Bulletin 8 - Customizing Reports - Changing Company Logo

 

 For additional information see Help entries titled:-

• How to provide a logo for a Visio View

• How to customize the summary display in a Visio View

 

 

 

How much information does the discovery provide me on VoIP phones?

 

The information can include the following:-

• Phone IP Address

• Phone Name

• Description (Manufacturer, Model and software version)

• Call Server used by the Phone

• Hardware Serial number

• Location

• System up time

 

The discovery incorporates a special VoIP phone discovery process that is designed to gather as much phone information as possible from as wide a range of phones as possible. It does this by using several methods to acquire the phone information. The range of information in the discovery

will be subject to the method that worked for the selected VoIP Phone, for information on the different methods used see FAQ

• Can I see IP Phones in Visio View

 

 

 

Can I see IP Phones in Visio View?

Can I identify IP Phones?

 

To view IP Phones in a Visio Views or have them listed in the Asset inventory, the discovery engine needs to be able to identify them as VoIP phones, it does this using SNMP and SIP so the Phones need to:-

• Respond to SIP Queries (specifically a SIP Options packet)

or

• Support SNMP

  • Have SNMP enabled

  • Be included in the Codima Discovery Engine device type list

For a list covering some of the SNMP enabled  VoIP Phones supported, see FAQ entry titled:-

• What VoIP Phones, VoIP Gateways and Servers with SNMP Support can the Codima Discovery Engine identify?

The above information applies only to the discovery process, however the Codima Toolbox can also identify SIP phones using another method, this method is available to users who have the Codima Toolbox All in One, for more information on this, see FAQ entry :-

• Can I see SIP Phones that do not respond to SNMP or SIP Queries during the discovery process?

 

Display showing Toolbox facilities associated with identification of SIP phones:-

 

Asset Report excerpt showing SIP Devices (information obtained using SIP Queries):-

 

 

Asset Report excerpt showing IP Phones (information obtained using SNMP):-

 

 

 

What VoIP Phones, VoIP Gateways and Servers with SNMP Support can the Codima Discovery Engine identify?

 

The discovery process learns about any SIP Devices that responds to SIP Queries, but can also make use of SNMP to obtain information. The following list covers some on the SNMP enabled IP phones supported by the Codima Discovery engine. The list is subject to change.

 

 

Can I see IP Phones in Visio View or Asset View if the phone does not support SNMP?

Can I see other SIP devices?

 

SIP devices that do not support SNMP, e.g., SIP Phones, SIP Servers or SIP Gateways, can be identified during the discovery process if they response to SIP Queries (i.e., respond to SIP options packets). Including SIP Queries in the discovery process is a configurable option.

 

See display below

 

Can I see SIP Phones that do not respond to SNMP or SIP Queries during the discovery process?

 

You can identify SIP phones from the passive analysis of the SIP frames on the network, but  you will need a Codima Toolbox All in One to do this. The VoIP Monitoring tool will be monitoring the phones as they register with their Registration servers and after the Mapping Tool has completed a discovery run but prior to the drawing production, the VoIP devices tracked by the VoIP Monitoring tool are cross referenced with the ip addresses found during the discovery and subsequently displayed as phones or servers in the Visio View topology drawings

Display showing Toolbox facilities associated with identification of SIP phones:-

 

Note: To ensure the best discovery results when using the Toolbox, do not start your discovery until the VoIP dashboards have picked up phone names and phone descriptions. This approach will ensure that as much information as possible is available for inclusion in the Visio Views and Asset Views.

 

 

Do I get any extra functions if I use Microsoft® Office Visio 2007 (Professional) or 2010 (Professional or Premium)?

 

Yes, you have the following :-

1. Real Time update – using Data graphics

• VoIP phones identified by the VoIP Monitoring Tool can be included in Visio View topology drawings, the display can be updated in real time to show Phone status. This is a special facility that requires the user to have the Codima Toolbox All in One. I

• The results of the Bottleneck Analysis can be shown in the Visio View topology drawings, the display is updated in real time. This is a special facility that requires the user to have the Bottleneck Analysis tool.

• Pinger status can be shown in the Visio View topology drawings, the display is updated in real time to show if devices have responded to echo tests or not.

2. Link Data to Shapes

• This facility in Visio 2007 enables data from an external source, e.g., Excel workbook or SQL database to be linked to the shapes in the Visio View drawings once they have been saved as .vsd files.

3. Visio 2007 Connector for MBSA

    

   • This allows you to visualize MBSA scan results on a Visio network diagram.
      

Real Time update – using Data graphics

VoIP phones identified by the VoIP Monitoring Tool can also be included in Visio View topology drawings, the display can be updated in real time to show Phone status and QoS information. This is a special facility that is available only to users of Microsoft® Office Visio 2007 (Professional) or 2010 (Professional or Premium), it requires the user to have the Codima Toolbox All in One.

 

 

Display example when user has Codima Toolbox All in One  and Microsoft® Office Visio 2007 (Professional) installed:-

 

 

Bottleneck Analysis results can be shown in the Visio View topology drawings, the display is updated in real time. This is a special facility that requires the user to have Bottleneck Analysis tool

 

Pinger status can be shown in the Visio View topology drawings, the display is updated in real time to show if devices have responded to echo tests or not.

 

 

 

See also :-

• Can device specific external data be shown in a Visio View drawing?

 

 

 

Can I run Microsoft® Baseline Security Analyzer from a Visio View?

 

Yes. The Visio Views can operate with Microsoft® Baseline Security Analyzer. The Visio 2007 Connector for MBSA allows you to visualize MBSA scan results on a Visio network diagram.

 

The scan can also be run after you have saved the Visio View to a .vsd file.

The URL below can be used to download Microsoft Baseline Security Analyzer and Microsoft Office Visio 2007 Connector

This database is provided as an example with the Toolbox software downloads, it can be loaded from the autoMap/data folder.

 

How does the discovery process use the device type list? - covers device type list  and Expert procedures (Network Object Procedure)

 

Discovery device support

 

The discovery process used by the Toolbox will involve browsing mib-2 on any devices it finds during its discovery, so if the devices support mib-2 we will take the asset information from there - the System and Interfaces branch of the mib-2 tree for example provide information describing the system and the port connections.

The device list is used to identify a device. It contains the MIB-2 system group sysObjectId. This is like a vendor’s model number for a device. The discovery engine can identify the device using this, to give the device:

1) a product name e.g. Catalyst 2650

2) a vendor name e.g. Cisco

3) and we then can assign a type to it e.g., switch.

All SNMP agents support this variable. The device type list contains everything the discovery engine can currently identify.

A separate process "Network Object Procedures" allows custom procedures to be applied to devices, for example to find out where in the vendor part of the SNMP MIB tree to get serial numbers for a device. Codima can implement the custom procedures and apply them to the discovery, see entry below titled Adding new devices.

If the device also supports WMI we can get even more detailed info on the device (not controlled by "Network Object Procedures").

For information on how the discovery process works in simplistic terms, see entry titled:-

• How does the discovery process work?

 

Adding new devices

 

You can add some basic information on new devices immediately following a discover run, just before drawing production, using the Device Library, see Help entry titled

• How to use device library

 

If a new device procedure has to be added, i.e., to obtain more detailed information from the device, then it is essential to get a MIB walk for the device. See entry titled:- 

• What information do I need to supply to have a new device type added to the discovery engine?

            - Using SNMP Sim Generator

 

Once Codima have the MIB walk and the inclusion of the device has been agreed they can usually produce an updated device type list with a new procedure for it in approx 5 man days. This device type list is then downloaded via the standard software update service ready for the users next discovery run on the network. See entry titled:-

• How do I obtain the latest database of supported device types?

 

Changing device type

You can change the device type, using the Device Library, see Help entry titled

• How to use device library

 

How does Codima Discovery Engine deal with firewalls?

 

The Codima discovery engine interacts with fire walls in much the same way as other management applications. 

 

Ideally a firewall should be configured so that the Toolbox Host PC is set up as a trusted device that is allowed to communicate through the firewall. In order for the  discovery to work the Host PC needs to transmit and receive ICMP, SNMP, NetBIOS and WMI traffic.

 

What is the active/polling part of the discovery?

 

The discovery engine relies on SNMP, WMI and NetBIOS to query devices on the network and learn about additional equipment e.g., by inspecting ARP, Routing tables and Forwarding tables.

 

What is the passive/listening part of the discovery?

 

The discovery engine is 100% active, which is why a starting point is required to get the first range of addresses from the ARP, Forwarding and Routing tables of the start point device or devices. The Mapping Tool interrogates devices to obtain information. The only time the discovery makes use of passive analysis, is when it applies to the Codima All in One Toolbox, that toolbox includes the VoIP Monitoring tool, which uses passive analysis to identify VoIP devices. This information is passed to the Discovery Engine.

 

What is the utilization (bandwidth) associated with running the discovery engine?

Each device takes a maximum of 64kbit/s, i.e., one ISDN channel. Note that this is a maximum, and the average is more around 30kbit/s.

Each device is actually assigned one process, and each process is tuned to use up to 64kbit/s maximum.

Therefore, the number of parallel processes determines the number of devices that may be processed at the same time. And this determines the maximum bandwidth that will be used.

 

For example, if the number of parallel processes is set to 10 and there are 10 devices in the inventory stack, the discovery engine will process those 10 devices in parallel. And will use UP TO 640kbit/second.

 

 

Codima Discovery Engine – Operation :-

 

How do I improve discovery efficiency?

 

There are a number of methods to improve the efficiency of the discovery Process. Technical Bulletin 9 describes them, they include:-

 

§          Running with default Settings

§          Providing multiple address ranges in the Seed List – will act as multiple start points

§          Limiting the IP Address range covered by the discovery process – will focus discovery so it does not try to gather information on addresses that do not exist on the network or are not part of the discovery requirement.

§          Ensuring that you have SNMP Agents activated.

§          Ensuring that you have access to the network, i.e., are not blocked by Firewalls

§          Ensuring that the Host PC running the discovery is suitable.

 

 

Codima Discovery Engine – Scope :-

Can the Discovery Engine see the VPN on either side of an MPLS cloud?

The Codima Discovery Engine can map the network of a L3 VPN on the other side of the MPLS cloud. Why, because to all intents and purposes it is the same as a private network and all the routing tables to access the different parts of the VPN are held in the local PE (provider-edge) router to access the remote parts of the VPN.  Unless there are access lists or firewalls in place (unlikely in this scenario) then the ICMP and SNMP traffic associated with the discovery process will be routed as normal.

 

Background information

MPLS is basically an efficient transport and administrative mechanism implemented by many xSPs and used in particular for the delivery of MPLS VPNs, also known as IP or Layer 3 VPNS. The Toolbox will see throughout the VPN as the VPN is configured at the relevant egress and ingress points of the provider MPLS cloud to provide a seamless virtual private network to a particular customer.  How this is done is defined in RFC 2547.

 

Troubleshooting:-

If you have any problems discovering a remote site across an MPLS cloud. The likely cause is that the next hop router (the MPLS one) is not accessible to the discovery and the discovery therefore stops. A way around this is to put the non-virtual ip addresses of the edge routers (usually ospf ones) into the list of seed start points ip addresses. This means the discovery process can then continue on the remote site(s). 

 

Note: You will need SNMP access rights on the "far side" Router. A Toolbox SNMP recording of the local edge router would help if there is still a discovery problem with the virtual routes.

 

Can I improve discovery to better handle Virtual routing and forwarding (VRF) & MPLS?

Yes - discovery can be improved by putting in the real ( not virtual ) ip addresses of the edge routers controlling the links into the discovery start dialog seed list.

Note: You will need SNMP access rights on the "far side" Router. A Toolbox SNMP recording of the local edge router would help if there is still a discovery problem with the virtual routes.

 

Does the discovery use Microsoft® Access®?

 

The discovery engine uses only the Microsoft® Access® driver which is configured during the Toolbox Installation.

What about support for infrastructure vendors who are not Cisco, Nortel, Extreme or Enterasys?

 

The discovery function supports literally hundreds of vendors and devices and indeed has some specific functionality for some vendors who are not Cisco, Nortel, Extreme or Enterasys.  We will find most vendors and show their products just like any other switch or router using MIB 2 information.  What we have found is that it is principally these 4 who have invested the most in proprietary schemes (and who together represent the vast majority of the enterprise market) and it is here where we have focused initially to add the most additional value.   As new products and vendors enter the market we continually update our database of products so that we can show additional information on these.  If we find that we need to provide additional proprietary support for specific vendors’ devices we will endeavour to do so depending on customer requirements.

 

How many manufacturers are supported by the discovery engine?

 

Over 11,000 NIC vendors are identified - discovery operation takes this information from the NIC MAC addresses.

Over 34,000 Manufacturers are identified - discovery operation takes this information from the private MIBs.

 

What SNMP MIBs are supported by the discovery engine?

 

The MIB list is updated on a regular basis, to obtain a list of MIBs supported at version 6.40 for example, click on entry below:-

• Codima Toolbox SNMP MIB List

 

 

What device types are supported by the discovery engine?

 - Device type list

 

Over 8000 device types are supported. The device type support is enhanced on an ongoing basis and users can manually add information on devices classed as unknown to the Device Library.

 

The following link will enable you to obtain a file that covers the device type list, however for the most up to date listing, it is recommended you access the Device Library

• Click here to obtain a list of the Supported Device Types - provides a zip file containing an .xls file listing the supported device types at the point of the above release level.

 

For information on how to access the Device Library, see Help entry titled:-

• How to use Device Library

 

For guidance on updating device types as a means of extending the capability of the discovery engine, see:-

• How do I obtain the latest database of supported device types?

 

The following table in the autoMap.mdb file will show the latest list of supported device type on your system.

• ntxarefsysobject

 

File location

 ..\Program Files\CODIMA\Express\automap\data

 

What type of database is used to store discovery results - can I access it with other applications

 

The discovery process defaults to use an Microsoft® Access® database to store discovery results. Microsoft® Access® databases are 100% open, so SQL queries can be run on them. The installation program installs and configures an Microsoft® Access® database connector to the discovery database. Users of version 5.00 or later can also store results in MySQL databases.

 

Will the discovery operate on small networks without Routers? - Lab/Test Networks

 

The discovery engine has been designed to operate in real life environments and address large infrastructures. The general rule is if a network is managed, then it is large enough for our technology, however it should be highlighted that the discovery engine is not so suitable for small test/lab networks.  

 

Issues with Test/Lab networks.

 

The discovery engine is designed for use in a live network where tables are populated naturally with the live traffic flow. Using this tool in a lab environment where the tables that are browsed to get information are just not being populated to the same extent that they would be in a busy live environment is not going to be ideal.

The Visio View topology drawings are created after a process called the "Topology calculation" is undertaken using the information in the discovery database, the port fowarding tables for example are vital for a good topology result.

On a Test/Lab network you may find speed anomalies in the topology drawings that are caused by the discovery engine not having port forwarding data from key devices, and having to use ARP table data instead, which gives the discovery virtual link information instead of physical link information, this can be resolved for Cisco devices if the engine has CDP information to work with, but to get this CDP must be on and running for long enough to give the tables a chance to be populated with link information. It also helps to have some live applications running on the Lab/Test network to get traffic flowing between devices.

On a Test/Lab network you may also find that the default setting to fine tune the Topology calculation is unsuitable. The default setting for the Topology calculation has a value of 5%, which works well on networks with plenty of traffic that have been up and running for some time, this however would be too high for a test/lab environment and subsequently cause the byte matching algorithm to give false matches.  

Discovery process

 

What ever the configuration of the network is, the discovery engine will identify the routers and explore all their interfaces, finding new routers and so on, using SNMP.

 

A starting point is required to allow discovering remote networks. If the local subnet/gateway was the only starting point possible, it would not be possible to explore a remote office/site. Using the local host as starting point would require having SNMP enabled on it. We cannot guarantee this is the case. See What device should I use as a start point?

  

 

 

Does Codima Discovery Engine and Visio View drawing facility support Link Aggregation (MLT, EtherChannel, ISL etc)?

The IEEE 802.3ad standard defines how two or more Gigabit Ethernet connections can be combined to load share, load balance and provide better resiliency for high-bandwidth network connections.  This is an industry wide standard, however some vendors have used proprietary techniques to group together multiple slow-speed ports to get a faster point-to-point logical link. This means the discovery has to look in the vendor part of the MIB tree to find out if the links are bundled, so to fully support this feature some customization may be required.

Can I see port connection information?

Yes, see below:-

Can I obtain Asset reports?

Yes. The discovery process used provides both asset and topology information, you are able to access the full range of asset information as HTML Reports.

 

Can the Codima Discovery Engine support NAT'ed IP ranges ? - i.e., to look for shareable applications in this domain

 

Due of the nature of NAT networks the Codima Discovery Engine will retrieve the ARP table from edge NAT router but will not talk to any of the devices in the NAT subnet.

 

There are 2 solutions

1. Deploy the Toolbox Host PC so that it is within the NAT subnet and do a discovery for that subnet. You can use the Merge facility, to combine the discovery information with an earlier discovery.
2. Create a VPN connection from the remote Toolbox PC to the NAT subnet this will discovery all the devices in the NAT

 

Toolbox retrieves (using WMI) the installed applications, Services and tasks running on all PCs within a Domain as long as you are the domain administrator.

 

 

 

What is a L2 Broadcasts domain and  how are they handled by the Codima Discovery Engine?

The Codima Discovery Engine makes allowance for layer 2 broadcast domains, see below.

Assumptions

Switch Forwarding Databases

Each switch has a Forwarding database which holds information about ALL the MAC addresses in a particular Spanning Tree Groups, VLANs. Each switch has knowledge of the MAC addresses that are locally connected e.g. workstations or Servers. They also have knowledge of which MAC addresses are non-local i.e. learned through trunk ports from other switches.

MAC addresses

A MAC address can only have one connection to a switch port.

Rational

Working with these assumptions, we run a calculation on each switch forwarding database to find which addresses are not local to each switch. The MAC addresses left over can be seen on trunk ports, therefore they exist on an unmanaged or miss-configured switch/hub.


We create a Layer 2 Broadcast object, based on a MAC address having only one connection to a switch or hub. The result is a Layer 2 Broadcast device (with a set of MAC addresses present on a trunk port, that are not directly connected to any discovered managed switch).

The trunk ports where these MAC addresses appear are therefore connected to an unmanaged device.

Presentation

The only manifestation a user of Asset Inventory & Reports tool will see would be the list of layer2 broadcast addresses. These address are provided when the topology calculation is applied. The associated database tables would then be available for use when plotting the Microsoft® Office Visio® drawing, with layer 2 broadcasts devices being inserted into the view.

 

 

Can I control the Ping Scan range used in discovery?

The discovery can be configured to include a Ping scan for Class C networks.

You can also extend the scan range to cover Class B networks. Each Class B network found during discovery takes approximately 1 hour to ping scan. The Ping Scan facility is not used on any Class A networks found.

 

Microsoft® Office Visio®

 

Microsoft® Office Visio® has been integrated into the Toolbox. The help facility will not include documentation for all the Microsoft® Office Visio® facilities available, refer to your Microsoft® Office Visio® user manual for detailed/current information.

 

What versions of Microsoft® Office Visio® can I use, can I run with demonstration software?

Can I use Microsoft® Office Visio® Viewer?

 

The functions accessible via the autoMap tree branch require that you have Microsoft® Office Visio® 2007™ (Professional) or 2010 (Professional or Premium) installed on your PC.

 

Codima does not supply this software.

 

Please note that Microsoft® Office Visio® Viewer is not sufficient to display the results of the discovery process, you must have a fully (activated) copy of Microsoft® Office Visio® to generate Visio Views (though not to perform the initial discovery).

 

If you do not Microsoft® Office Visio® installed you will get an error message reporting this fact, unless you are running the  demonstration system, in which case you will be provided with drawing examples only.

 

Microsoft® Office Visio® Short cuts

The  information below covers mouse and key board operations that are useful when using the Microsoft® Office Visio® drawings associated with the Mapping Tool.

MOUSE AND KEY BOARD OPERATIONS

• Zoom in - Ctrl, Shift, Right Mouse Click

• Zoom out - Ctrl, Shift, Left Mouse Click

 

• Zoom in on a selected area - Ctrl, Shift, hold down left mouse button and drag box around to cover area you want to magnify. Release mouse button to view.

   

• Select Multiple items - Shift, Left Mouse Click

  

   

• Pan around drawing - Ctrl, Shift, hold down right mouse button (pointer changes to a hand) and drag.

Not all Microsoft® Office Visio® short cuts will apply when the drawing is running in the Pane 2 window, however after you save the drawing(s) (saved as a .vsd file) you can run the other functions.

 

How to run a Macro from an object in the Visio View (Visio Shape)

Once a drawing has been saved to a .vsd file you will be able to access all the Microsoft® Office Visio® facilities.

 

Software Updates

 

How do I obtain the latest database of supported device types?

 

Automatic installation Update Facility

The Toolbox will install a facility to automatically update your discovery database using a master database file set held on the Codima Web site. Access is provide via the Help Menu, where the option Check for Updates will open a Web page listing the available updates, which you can select to download.

The update facility will automatically update the template file that contains the device type information for your system amending it to reflect the latest set of devices and associated procedures. The device type list in the template is then used when you run a new discovery or load a database.

Database contents

To view information on what is included in the databases, see

• What device types are supported by the discovery engine?

 

 

What information do I need to supply to have a new device type added to the discovery engine?

- Using SNMP Sim Generator

 

Required Information - The following information is required:-

 

MIB Walk for SNMP compliant Nodes and description of the devices *
 

The MIB Walk is used to establish what SNMP support is required on the Network. A MIB walk from the device itself is essential, as it not always practical to get information from Vendors. Vendors do not always publish their private MIBs and users may not be running the expected version of software, for example Cisco have CatOS and I0S running on the same system but provide very different private MIBs. Providing a MIB walk is the safest and fastest method of customizing the Discovery Engine.
 

The SNMP Sim Generator will automatically run the MIB walk and copy the results to an email addressed to Codima, see Help entry titled "How to run SNMP Sim Generator"

* Example showing the range of description information required, e.g.,

• Vendor = Cisco

• Model = Catalyst 1000

• Chassis type = WS-1000

• Serial number = FAO1235758

• Module1 = WS-124

• Module1 Serial# = FAS76987

Next stage - The database updates, if approved, will be incorporated into the next automatic update, see entry titled

• How do I obtain the latest database of supported device types?

 

- Licensing

How are the Asset Inventory & Reports and the Mapping Tools licensed?

A standard license will control the number of Managed Devices that the Codima Discovery Engine is allowed to discover.

A PAYG license does not need to have set limits, but user will be charged for the number of Managed Devices the Codima Discovery Engine discovers during each month.

Other license issues

All the Tools in the Codima Toolbox are required to be licensed, the license files cover the following :-

1. Toolbox License (File name = LICENSE.TXT)

The Toolbox License controls the following:- 

• Tool structure, e.g., which tree branches are include in a toolbox.

• Discovery Device limits, e.g., 50 Managed Devices

• VoIP phone limits, e.g., 100 Registered Phones

• Expiry date

• MAC Address used to machine lock the software

• Discovery Engine Version, e.g., 3.0-CDE

• Software Release Version, e.g., 5.00 0001

• The Demonstration/Evaluation status

• The PAYG, i.e., user has a standard license or a PAYG license.

2. SNMP License (File name = LICENSE.KEY) 

This is the license file for the SNMP module, all tools in the Codima Toolbox™  are required to have this license.  

 

Error Message 

If you do not install the License.Key file, you will get a regular warning message reporting that you are using an evaluation version of the WinSNMP module 

Type of Licenses
Licenses fall into one of the following categories:- 

• Purchased tools from the Codima Toolbox™ assigned to a specific PC Platform - Machine locked license with no expiry date
• Short Term Licenses - Machine locked license with an expiry date
• PAYG Licenses - Licenses where user is charged by usage.
• Demonstration licenses - Not Machine locked, with a managed device limit and a Registered Phone limit, demonstration restrictions and an expiry date
• Evaluation licenses  - Generally Machine locked license, with a managed device limit  and a Registered Phone limit, with expiry date
   

How does the License process work when using the multi-site scheduler?

The multi-Site scheduler allows the discovery to be applied to multiple sites, however the license count will not be per site, it will be a total count for all the sites.

See FAQ entry titled:-

• Can I schedule discovery runs from a central point and cover multiple sites? - multisite discovery using MySQL databases

What is a PAYG License?

Toolbox PAYG (Pay As You Go) licenses are provided to users who are being charged by usage. Usage applies to the number of managed devices counted during the operation of the Codima Discovery Engine and number of Registered Phones.

When a user has a PAYG license, it is important that they are connected to the Internet, to ensure that the Registered Phone and the managed device counts can be uploaded to the Codima PAYG servers and monthly usage reports created.  These reports are then used to bill clients.

 

How do I upgrade my Discovery Engine License to handle more devices?

 

Contact your Codima Toolbox supplier to obtain a License that allows for the discovery of more Managed Devices. There will be a cost associated with this upgrade as the standard Toolbox licenses for Mapping tool are based on the Managed Device count. You can also consider using a PAYG license.

The license limitations will be highlighted as follows:-

• Network discovery - managed device license limits will be listed in the Discovery Summary Report (provided in the Advanced Reports branch of the HTML asset report)
• Visio View drawing - drawing device license limits will be identified when you open drawings

 

You can also check the Discovery Engine License information using the Help Menu item titled "About Toolbox".

The standard license facility operates by counting the number of Managed Devices discovered, what constititutes a managed device?

Managed devices are any device the Codima Discovery Engine get management information from, i.e., not ones that are just addresses in the ARP/Routing/Forwarding tables or devices that we just know exist because they respond to pings and reverse DNS, but devices that give the system information, such as the type of device it is or in the case of SNMP and WMI provide a lot of internal information on configuration etc.

 

The Discovery engine uses a number of methods including SNMP, WMI, CDP, SIP Queries and NetBIOS to get management information.

Note: Users who also have the Codima Toolbox All in One installed will have access to extra information on VoIP phones. These VoIP Phones would also be included in the license count as they are devices where we have learned more that just the IP address and name.

When I have a limited license, can I ensure that the more important devices are included in the discovery?

 

If you wish to ensure that a license for a limited number of Managed Devices focuses on your key devices, i.e., switches and routers. You can use the Seed address device list facility to make all the key devices start points for the discovery process.

 

 

Are there any limits to the number of devices I have in a discovery?

 

Yes, if you have a standard Toolbox license (as opposed to a PAYG license), then the toolbox License will set the number of Managed Devices the discovery will include, see FAQs:-

• How are the Asset Inventory & Reports and Mapping Tools licensed?

• When I have a limited license, can I ensure the more important devices are included in the discovery?

• How do I upgrade my Discovery Engine License to handle more devices?

 

Unmanaged devices, i.e., devices that just respond to pings or a discovered because their MAC address is a table on a managed device are only limited by the range of IP addresses the discovery run is set to cover.

 

- Internet Tools

 

Can I trace routes and highlight route changes?

 

Yes using the Internet Tools Trace Route facility, which has a feature to save trace route results to logs and when a later trace route is run, it will show the changes to the route.

Trace route display example:-

 

- Path Analysis

The Path Analysis tool is used to find "hot spots" in the path used by VoIP traffic. You will need to have either the IT Engineer Toolbox or the Codima Toolbox All in One to use this tool.

Operation

1. User will be required to run a discovery on the network first
2. User will provide system with a start and end point for the path analysis
3. Path Analyzer system will draw the path and run real time SNMP browsing to obtain key information on the components in the path.
4. Path Analyzer system will highlight "hot spots" in the path, i.e., potential problem areas.

Devices in path

If devices = Router, hot spots it will be looking for are situations related to:-

• CPU overloading
• Lack of memory

If device = Switch, hot spots it will be looking for are situations related to :-

• Switch Back Plane overload

It will also look at the interface statistics to check for dropped packets, error packets and queue drops.

SNMP Support

The range of information available in the path analysis will be subject to the SNMP support of the device concerned and the Discovery Engines device support. Some information for example may only be available in private Mibs, so these MIBs will need to be supported by the Codima Discovery Engine. Over 4500 device types are supported by the Codima Discovery Engine. The supported device type list is constantly being updated.

 

 

- Mapping

 

What kind of Maps can I produce with the tools in the Codima Toolbox?

 

There are two methods which can be used to provide maps:-

1. Enterprise level topology maps (in Microsoft® Office Visio® format) provided when you use the Mapping tool

    

   Created using the Codima Discovery Engine to gather topology information and Microsoft® Office Visio® to present results.

    

   Visio View drawing examples - shows some of the Topology views available:-

   

 

           This type of map can be saved as a Microsoft® Office Visio® file (.vsd) or a Web page (.htm).

2. Real time Segment maps - accessible via the autoAnalyzer tree branch :-

Created by monitoring the frames on the Segment and using the name discovery facility.

 

Segment Map example (local segment):-

 

 

A Remote Manager can be used to view Segment Maps for multiple Toolboxes/Probes from a central point.

The Remote Manager tool is included in all the toolboxes.

 

Remote Manager view covering Segment Map for a local segment and a Probe (each probe is allocated a unique color):-

 

Devices in the Segment Map displays can be sorted and moved.

Support/Troubleshooting :-

 

When troubleshooting you should and make use of the Discovery Engine Check list and the Getting Started Guide :-

• autoMap tree branch - Getting Started Guide - A URL to access this guide is provided when you download software and is also included in the license delivery emails when you evaluate or buy the tools.

 

You may need to provide Codima Technical Support Department Tech_Support@codimatech.com, with a copy of the discovery database for analysis and possibly other evidence, click below to obtain a hard copy of the evidence requirements for the Toolbox.

• Evidence Requirements

 

How do I get the latest software version?

 

You should set up your PC platform so that it is able to access to the Web. Then you can use the Automatic Installation Update facility. This will automatically tell you if there is an update to the system available. You will also need to be authorized to receive updates.

 

You can also use the Help Menu, where the option Check for Updates will open a Web page listing the available updates, which you can select to download.

 

For more information see Help entry titled:-

• How to upgrade Software

 

 

 

Microsoft® Patch level :-

What is the latest Microsoft® Patch level that the Codima Toolbox software been tested with?

The process of testing with Microsoft® patches is an ongoing one, latest level tested is as follows :-

• Windows XP Service Pack 3

• Windows 2003 Server SP 2

• Windows Vista SP1

 

Toolbox FAQ Index - Click here to return to FAQ index

Toolbox FAQ index

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