Course Description:
The Simple Network Management Protocol - SNMP - is an open standard for administering network nodes of all kinds from a central point. It describes an architecture consisting of a Management node communicating with multiple agent nodes using a common database called the Management Information Base, or MIB. In a typical implementation, an SNMP Agent will implement certain standard MIBs and custom MIBs relevant to the particular application. This course describes all the steps necessary to develop and deploy a new SNMP Agent.

Overview:
Developing a new SNMP Agent is a complex task, requiring knowledge of the protocol and structures of SNMP. This course is very much hands-on. Using an open source agent (net-snmp) on an embedded platform running Linux*, students will develop and test their own MIB, adding functionality step by step. Different MIB structures will be introduced and viewed using a MIB browser, including simple data objects, textual conventions and tables. A network analyser is used to see the encapsulation of the protocol into network packets, including the sending of traps from Agent to Manager. We will consider the implications of security inherent in basic SNMP v1, and look at how SNMP v3 improves security.

Finally, we will look at extensible agents using the SMUX and
AgentX protocols.

* Other operating systems and toolkits may be accommodated at
extra cost.

Course Objectives:
• To get real-world grounding in SNMP
• To develop an SNMP Agent
• To understand the issues of security and compatibility

Delegates will learn:
• The SNMP naming structure using OIDs
• How the standard MIB II works and how to integrate it into a new platform
• How to design a new MIB from scratch in SMI
• How to design effective traps
• How to use SMUX and AgentX to create an extensible framework for application development.

Who Should Attend:
• Engineers wishing to develop or maintain SNMP agents
• Engineers who want to get a good grounding in SNMP.

Pre-requisites:
A good knowledge of 'C'.

Duration:
Three days.

Course Materials:
Student workbook.

Course Workshop:
The course presents SNMP concepts using a Linux development environment consisting of a standard PC running Red Hat Linux 7.3 or 9.