Monitoring using SNMP Traps

Introduction

Simple Network Management Protocol (SNMP) is an internet standard protocol that allows you to exchange management information between network devices. Usually, the network devices come with in-built SNMP agents that you can enable and configure to initiate the communication with the network management system. SNMP operates using a manager-agent model that exchanges the following types of messages between them:

• TRAP
• GET
• GET-NEXT
• GET-RESPONSE
• SET

SNMP TRAP is the most commonly used SNMP message. The main advantage of using TRAP is the instantaneous trigger in the event of any issue in your device.

OpsRamp platform as part of monitoring your resources lets you monitor your SNMP devices using SNMP Traps Configurations. You can create SNMP Trap monitors and receive traps for the desired devices.

SNMP trap

An SNMP trap indicates a specific condition that is defined in the Management Information Base (MIB) and is expressed in variable bindings that include a trap message. OpsRamp processes these traps and translates them to alerts. The SNMP agent sends Trap messages directly to the SNMP agent without waiting for the approval of the SNMP manager.

OID 

Object Identifier (OID) in SNMP is an address that identifies the devices and lets you track the status of each device. The SNMP OID is in the form of numbers. For example, 1 . 3 . 6 . 1 . 4 . 1 . 1452 . 1 . 2 . 5 . 1 . 3. 21 . 1 . 4 . 7.  You can either include or exclude OID while creating SNMP Trap monitor in the OpsRamp platform.

Setting up SNMP traps

You can create an SNMP Trap for each client and then define the resources to receive traps.

Creating SNMP trap monitors

You can create a filter for trap monitoring, where users can define a list of traps to monitor from target SNMP enabled devices.

1. Go to Setup > Monitoring > SNMP Traps Configuration.
2. From SNMP TRAP MONITORS LIST screen, click the + icon to add a monitor.
3. From CREATE SNMP TRAP MONITOR screen, provide the following:
   • Client Name: Refers to the name of the client that you want to configure the SNMP Trap Monitor.
   • Monitor Name: Refers to the name of the monitor.
4. Perform the following steps for OIDs:
   1. From the options displayed, select one of the following options: 
      • Exclude OID: Refers to the OIDs that you do not want to receive the trap from.
      • Include OID: Refers to the OIDs that you want to receive the trap from.
      • OID: Refers to the OID to include or exclude for a particular event.
        Note: Enter at least one OID to save the monitoring.
   2. Click + if you want to add more OIDs.
5. Select one of the three options available for Devices.
   • If you have selected Receive traps from specified devices only, select devices from the Available Devices section and move to the Selected Devices section.
   • If you have selected Discard traps from specific IP addresses, provide the list of IP addresses of devices from which you do not want to receive SNMP Traps. Note: Discard trap option works only when Gateway is used as the trap receiver.
6. Click Save. SNMP TRAPS MONITORS LIST screen displays the created SNMP TRAP.

You can view the newly configured SNMP Trap monitors in SNMP TRAP MONITORS LIST.

After creating the SNMP Trap monitor, you can perform one of the following:

• Edit: Click name of SNMP Trap Monitor to modify the existing details.
• Delete: Select check box of an SNMP Trap monitor and click the Delete icon.
• Export: Select check box of an SNMP Trap monitor and export as CSV or PDF file.

Viewing SNMP trap monitor lists

After creating the SNMP Trap monitors, you can view the configured details in the SNMP TRAP MONITORS LIST page. Refer to the following table to view the SNMP Trap Monitors.

Scenarios

Do not receive specific SNMP traps

A user does not want to receive SNMP traps from specific OIDs.

Solution
Create an SNMP trap monitor by excluding the OIDs from which you do NOT wish to receive the trap. 

Receive all SNMP traps

A user wants to receive SNMP traps from all the resources.

Solution
Create an SNMP trap monitor by selecting the option Receive traps from all devices.

Receive specific SNMP traps

A user wants to receive SNMP traps from specific resources only.

Solution
While configuring the SNMP traps, select the option Receive traps from specified devices only, and select the devices that you need to receive the SNMP traps.

Discard SNMP traps

A user wants to discard SNMP traps from specific IP addresses.

Solution
Create an SNMP trap monitor by selecting the option Discard traps from specific IP addresses.