Today ' s Satellite Systems
Bounteous satellite system projects these days impinge satellite uplinks with hundreds or feasibly thousands of receivers in the network receipt content from them. Traditionally, if these networks are monitored, the planners rely on SNMP traps for fat troubles and disposition for round - robin polling and pinging to dispose the health of the receivers and other devices.
Orderly monitoring systems, due to of polling speed, within an hour or two NOC ( network operations seat ) personnel can know system status for all devices. For example:
is device alive
can I ping it
is the receiver on the condign channel
signal smooth
locked for the transmission
error rates
As to the traps, a little secret: bounteous of the devices do not support traps and if they do traps can be irretrievable thanks to they are sent as UDP traffic with no assured delivery. Requirements for today ' s ace satellite systems have evolved to the point locality NOC personnel need exceeding information and they need it deeper fast. Representative are teleconference, distance learning, and media adjustment systems.
For these untrodden systems the requirements for monitoring have moved out of a strictly concervation need to both a prolongation and operational requirement.
Teleconference and distance learning have an almost interactive need for status and data:
1. Is the receiver is on the virtuous channel?
2. Is the feed prime? Are error rates low and the signal leveled high?
3. If the signal is low in Milwaukee, what ' s the weather like?
4. Are all of the correct materials downloaded to the receiver?
5. Are keypads and other data entry devices ready?
Media standardization systems for broadcast and digital cinema have teeming of the same needs and some others:
1. Is there potent space on the device to hold the huge files used in these operations?
2. What is the progress of the transfer ( it takes a sustained time to transfer multi - gigabyte files )?
3. Did the digital rights management ( DRM ) keys break through?
4. If it is a playout device, did the relevant immunity record come out?
5. Can we get the playback logs as events privilege?
6. What about continuation logs, do we have to SSH into each apparatus and access them manually, or bequeath the system automatically reunite and check them for us?
These lists are marked of information the NOC needs to arrange apt turmoil of the network. First and aid siring monitoring systems don ' t plane instigate to broach mob and reporting the new types of information needed to reliably dispense these systems.
Interrogatory Engendering Network Monitoring
Satellite network monitoring systems charge have analogue bevy processes in order to have sufficiently further data to be of rate to the NOC. For umpteen types of operations media content occasion be tracked. You could hold forth that media is not part of network monitoring and in consummation today ' s NOC needs this information to make safe proper operation. A ultramodern reproduction of devices are out there delivering media content. Real time, or near real time reporting is needed to ensure proper operation of these systems. Youthful ways to visualize the network to tuck along with these newfangled data sets is also required.
It ' s a dissimilar merriment in the network monitoring world: network monitoring software has to stratagem to the touching unbroken, including being media - aware, to accommodated the needs of todays NOC for information.
Mike Griffin is Chief Technology Lion for MTD Systems a network monitoring technology provider. MTD Systems provides equal mass, media - aware network monitoring systems bringing NOC personnel a supplementary information well-heeled view of the network.