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This chapter describes how to configure and manage your switch by accessing Management Information Base (MIB) objects with the Simple Network Management (SNMP) protocol. This short introduction to this type of management provides the following information:
The MIB files contain variables that can be set or read to provide information on the switch. The MIB files also contain information about the traps generated by the switch.
The following MIB files contain the MIB and trap information for the switch:
You can obtain a copy of the MIB files in the following ways:
You can obtain each MIB file with the following procedure:
Step 1 Use FTP to access the server ftp.cisco.com.
Step 2 Log in with the username anonymous.
Step 3 Enter your e-mail name when prompted for the password.
Step 4 At the ftp> prompt, change directories to /pub/MIBs.
Step 5 Use the get README command to display the readme file containing a list of available files.
Step 6 Use the get MIB_filename command to obtain a copy of the MIB file.
CCO serves a wide variety of users through two interfaces that are updated and enhanced simultaneously: a character-based version and a multimedia version that resides on the World Wide Web (WWW). The character-based CCO supports Zmodem, Kermit, Xmodem, FTP, and Internet e-mail, and it is excellent for quick access to information over lower bandwidths. The WWW version of CCO provides richly formatted documents with photographs, figures, graphics, and video, as well as hyperlinks to related information.
You can access CCO in the following ways:
For a copy of CCO's Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ), contact cco-help@cisco.com. For additional information, contact cco-team@cisco.com.
The switch MIB variables are accessible through SNMP, an application-layer protocol facilitating the exchange of management information between network devices. The SNMP system consists of three parts: SNMP manager, SNMP agent, and MIB.
Instead of defining a large set of commands, SNMP places all operations in a get-request, get-next-request, and set-request format. For example, an SNMP manager can get a value from an SNMP agent or store a value into that SNMP agent. The SNMP manager can be part of a network management system (NMS), and the SNMP agent can reside on a networking device such as a switch. You can compile the switch MIB files with your network management software. The SNMP agent can respond to MIB-related queries being sent by the NMS.
An example of an NMS is the CiscoWorks network management software. CiscoWorks software uses the switch MIB variables to set device variables and to poll devices on the network for specific information. The results of a poll can be displayed as a graph and analyzed in order to troubleshoot internetworking problems, increase network performance, verify the configuration of devices, monitor traffic loads, and more.
As shown in Figure 6-1, the SNMP agent gathers data from the MIB, which is the repository for information about device parameters and network data. The agent can send traps, or notification of certain events, to the manager.
The SNMP manager uses information in the MIB to perform the operations described in Table 6-1.
| Operation | Description |
|---|---|
| get-request | Retrieve a value from a specific variable. |
| get-next-request | Retrieve a value from a variable within a table.1 |
| get-response | The reply to a get-request, get-next-request, and set-request sent by an NMS. |
| set-request | Store a value in a specific variable. |
| trap | An unsolicited message sent by an SNMP agent to an SNMP manager indicating that some event has occurred. |
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