Customer Reviews

Red Hat Linux Network Management Tools (CD-ROM included)

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This incredibly useful book explains clearly in a hands-on practical way everything you need to know about SNMP and MIBs to do network device monitoring, including tutorials/overviews/references for awesome Linux tools to gather and display network information. This book and CD-ROM is now a crucial resource in our small corporate lab which tests and monitors routers and DSL network devices, such as DSLAMs.

Particularly cool tools I didn't previously know about are:

- ethereal : GUI-based sniffer (captures and decodes network protocol traffic over ethernet)

- MRTG tool : monitor and graph network traffic from SNMP networking devices, such as routers, switches and DSLAMs (web output)

- tkined : GUI-based full featured network monitoring program. Can dynamically discover network devices. Has a network topology diagramming tool.

- tkmib : GUI-based MIB browser (GUI front end to Linux SNMP tools)

The explanations and reference material for SNMP flavors and MIBs is the first really practical, *clearly explained* and complete-enough-for-our-needs guide to these areas that I've seen yet. Finally I feel confident in being able to test the MIBs in the DSL device we are adding features to (we have no SNMP experts in our group).

The MRTG tool has saved us from having to develop a program to collect and report router statistics.

The CD-ROM contains the collection of valuable tools, which saves time over finding them online and downloading them.

Red Hat Linux Network Management Tools is practical. You can immediately put to work the tools listed in this book. This includes common tools (with a good understanding of their options) such as tcpdump, netstat, traceroute, arp, ping, ifconfig and others. Ignorant about Networks? This book explains all the way through. SNMP (and so much more) will no longer be a grey area for you. It gives you tools to SEE what's "really" going on in your network. The CDs contain NTOP, Ethereal, Arpwatch, and a score of other tools that make your life as a network manager easy. PLAY with these utilities - at work or at home (just log into the internet). You'll be comfortable (and competant) with networks in no time.

Although this book is based on the 2.2 kernel, a lot of it is still very useful. I've been using Linux for more than 5 years now but I always knew that I need to improve on my networking side of things. I have just started reading this book but I can already see that I will really benefit from this book. The book covers such tools as nmap and tcpdump and also networking concepts in general. A must have for anyone interested in Linux networking.

This book presents both basic and advanced information in a practical, common sense format. It is apparent that the author has invested a lot of time and thought into the presentation of the information. I actually enjoyed reading this book and find it an invaluable reference. The CD is pretty cool, it has Red Hat 6.1, Red Hat Power Tools, and most of the other tools discussed in the book.