Learn More About Network Management Tools
What are Network Management Tools?
Network management tools enable network administrators to monitor and control the entire network (on-premises or cloud) to address service needs and business objectives. A network is created when two or more devices communicate with each other through the transfer of data. Devices come in many forms but the important network devices are clients, servers, switches, routers, firewalls, and access points. These network devices above allow common devices such as computers, phones, smart watches, IoT, and others to connect to each other. Devices can be connected physically, virtually, and wirelessly via LAN, WAN, VPN, and different types of networks.
All of these connections and devices are complex to manage manually. With network management software, IT managers can track what devices are connected and how they connect. Network management tools use network topology to visually lay out device connections. With this map, users can provision the network system by changing device configuration, resource allocation, and security settings to meet their IT objectives. Different network management solutions may have other network management protocols but most use simple network management protocol (SNMP).
Good network management software also allows IT teams to automate manual network management tasks, such as inventory assessments, device discovery and mapping, system backups, remote access, etc. The goal is to let the network management software automate these traditionally time-consuming tasks so users can focus on other things, like winning new customers and working on new business objectives.
What Types of Network Management Tools Exist?
Free or open-source software
Free network management tools perform simple internet protocols and provide basic network performance data. Since many of them require manually loading the device, free tools are perfect for small networks with fewer devices. A good rule of thumb is that if the user can map all of their devices’ topologies on a whiteboard, they should try these free tools before the paid software. Small companies or individual users are the perfect fit for this type of software.
Specialized network management software
Specialized network management software is good at doing one job—network management. This software can manage a range of functional areas: auto-discovery, inventory, performance, reliability, and security. It provides technical reports and graphs of the network system. Some more advanced tools can offer root cause analysis and machine learning to solve specific problems. These tools are excellent for organizations with other existing monitoring and management tools for their website, database, hardware, etc.
One-for-all software
Top vendors provide comprehensive network management solutions for enterprises. These tools not only do everything that a specialized network management software ca do, alsothey have additional capabilities that manage cloud infrastructure, web network traffic, and IT assets. Some even cover container management, Kubernetes control, and application monitoring. Since they are designed for enterprise-size networks, there is no limit to the scalability of the number of devices. An experienced user can automate a significant amount of manual tasks with this type of software on numerous devices. This type of software is a great fit for large organizations that have their IT infrastructure in multiple locations.
What are the Common Features of Network Management Tools?
The following are some core features within network management tools that can help users manage their network:
Device discovery: Network management tools need to automatically discover new and existing devices and update this information in the device inventory. If there is no auto featuusers mustd to manually enter this information into the system.
Network topology: Another name for this feature is network mapping. Network management tools should map all devices in a graph to show how they are connected. This saves users time from constantly mapping their network manually on a whiteboard. They can see the entire network from network maps.
Configuration management: Users can set up their network configurations such as IP address and firewalls on Microsoft Windows, Linux, or website (SaaS) using API.
Network monitoring: Network performance should be monitored to show the status of the network such as bandwidth usage. Essential metrics must be covered in the following: bandwidth (maximum data transmission rate), throughput (data transmission rate), latency (delay between device request and delivery), packet loss (number of data packets dropped during transmissions), availability (uptime of the network), and connectivity (the types of connection between devices).
IT alerting: If there is a performance problem, tools that have alerting capability will notify the help desk so IT staff can start troubleshooting the network configuration. IT alerting should be integrated with the network monitoring system. For example, if remote wireless networks fail to operate, IT pros won't know there is a problem unless the network monitoring solution notifies them.
Root cause analysis: Just having the status of the network is not enough for modern-day network management practice. When there are hundreds of devices, users waste time trying to search which device is causing a network performance issue. The software should alert the user which device is causing the problem so the user can fix the issue fast. This feature is core to performance management.
Reporting dashboard: If every device is being tracked automatically, their performance information should be reported in real time in a central dashboard. It is unrealistic to expect network managers to check the performance of every device one by one. Also, different users have different technical knowledge of the network system. Therefore, reporting tools should be customizable according to the level of technical details.
Automation: Network management tools should automatically track network inventory, run scheduled reports, device software updates, load balance based on need, alert users of issues and where to find them, and so on. The more IT teams can automate these processes, the more time they save from doing these tasks manually. With the rise of machine learning and AIOps, these new technologies assist users in accurately determining the device at fault so users waste less time trying to find the problem.
How to Buy Network Management Tools
Requirements Gathering (RFI/RFP) for Network Management Software
The company’s needs when searching for network management solutions often relate to specific network performance issues. For example, the user may be most interested in monitoring and improving performance for downtime. Buyers should make a ranked list of the network management features that most directly address the problems they’re trying to solve, then reference G2 reviews to find the right fit.
Prioritizing the desired feature set can help narrow down the potential pool of network management solutions, allowing teams to then apply further considerations for budget, ease of integration with other systems, security requirements, and more. This holistic approach empowers buyers to move forward with a focused checklist, which can be used in conjunction with G2 scoring to select the best network management product for the business.
Compare Network Management Tools
Create a long list
Buyers should start with a large pool of network management software vendors. Keeping the desired must-have features in mind, buyers must perform consistent inquiries during demos so they can effectively compare the pros and cons of each software.
Create a short list
It helps to cross-reference the results of initial vendor evaluations with G2 reviews from other buyers, the combination of which will help narrow it down to three to five products. From there, buyers can compare pricing and features to determine the best fit.
Conduct demos
Companies should make sure to demo all of the products that end up on their short list. The basic step of the demo is to start with downtime management. It’s important to know if the product tracks network uptime, device operational status, and performance metrics like packet and bandwidth data. It’s also helpful to test the configuration and reporting function. It is also important that the selected product fully reflects the entire enterprise network ecosystem and topology.
Selection of Network Management Tools
Choose a selection team
Regardless of a company’s size, it’s important to involve the most relevant personnel when beginning the network management software selection process. Larger companies may include individual team members to fill roles such as system owners, IT professionals, and developers who will be working with the software closely. Smaller companies with fewer employees might overlap roles.
Negotiation
Many companies offer full network-related platforms that go beyond network management to include application performance monitoring, cloud infrastructure monitoring, and more. While some companies will not budge on the configurations of their packages, buyers looking to trim costs should try to negotiate down to the specific functions that matter to them to get the best price. For example, a vendor’s pricing page where network management functionality is only included with a robust all-in-one monitoring package, whereas a sales conversation may prove otherwise.
Final decision
After this stage, it is essential to perform a trial run with a small selection of IT professionals or developers. This will help to ensure that the software of choice integrates well with an IT administrator’s systems setup or a developer’s day-to-day work. If the tool is well-liked and well-utilized, the buyer can take that as a sign that their selection is the right one. If not, reevaluation of the options may be necessary.
