Network Management Functions

Task 1 Unit 5 (P4)

Explain the functions of network management.

Network Management Functions Configuration

Network configuration is the process of maintaining and organising the information of the network components. If the network needs repairing, any modifications, expansions or upgrades the network manager can refer to the NCM database and to decide what the best course of action is. The database contains the locations and network addresses of all hardware devices; it also contains information about the programs, versions and updates installed in network computers.

Network configuration is a major aspect of setting a network up, the network will be regularly tweaked to improve performance and solve any issues that arise.

Fault Management

Fault management is the process and technology that the administrator uses to avoid faults within a networked system, this is so that the possibility of downtime is reduced, and this is done by detecting, isolating and fixing any malfunctions that occur. Network fault management can be monitored though programs that send an alarm to the administrator if the network starts to deteriorates in any monitored areas, this is useful as it can reduce the impact of a fault as the problem can be found and dealt with.

An example of a fault could be if a router was set to be monitored and an alarm went off to indicate that there was a problem the administrator could then run configurations on the device in the evening when everyone is at home so it doesn’t affect work and the system is kept running at its maximum.

Network account management

Account management is the process at where the administrator of the network can set what user has access to what type of file, however this can be a long process and most users have access to similar content, this is when account management software comes into use as the administrator can set groups of users that can access certain files and have privileges over others. The other benefit of using this is that it if a group of users need access to use a program it can be set on the console and will affect everyone straight away.

Performance variables

A network needs to be constantly monitored so that the administrator of the network can see if the network needs optimising. The network administrator can monitor the performance of the network, this is done through visual charts, and this can then be compared to the previous results to see if there are any improvements or if the administrator needs to go and reconfigure or change some of the network.

Security

The security of a network is very important as threats can come from many different directions and in many different forms some of these include internet (External) or even staff (internal). Keeping a network secure is hard work as there are lots of hackers and virus with the intent to do harm to you and your users, however with the right knowledge you can avoid such attempts on a network. Some programs can help reduce the chance of attacks these include an anti-virus program and a fire wall which block unwanted programs and people from accessing important information on the network.

 Data logging

Data logs are useful within a network as it records all the data and interactions that pass through a certain point in a system, usually between communications points such as a keyboard and display. This is useful as if there is a system failure, the administrator can go to the log and see what might have caused it.

Checking performance and traffic

When managing a network you need to be aware of the traffic that is passing through the system, this is easiest done by using software such as ‘network monitor’ this software allows the user to visually see in real time what the statistics of the networks usage is.

Reporting

This is possible the most useful tool as it allows the administrator to get a detailed report on the performance and usage of the network in an easy to read report, the report can be obtained through the networks operating system such as Windows server, this would include application response time, traffic analysis, packet analysis and device performance.