Question

Network Management

Purpose

To enrich your view of network management architectures (centralized, distributed or hierarchical) with focus on benefits of distributed of network management.

Introduction

Network management can be centralized, distributed or hierarchical. Currently, computer networks have become large-scale distributed systems and network management has developed towards the distributed management.

Topic of Discussion

Discuss the benefits of implementing the network management functions through the Distributed Network Management model.

Answer 1

Network management is the process of administering and managing computer networks. Network management performs different types of functions such as performance management, fault management, security management, configuration management, accounting management.

Network Architecture is the complete framework of an organization's computer network. The diagram of the network architecture includes hardware components used for communication, cabling and device types, network layout and topologies, physical and wireless connections, implemented areas and future plans.

The three network management architectures are:

• Centralized Network Management.
• Distributed Network Management.
• Hierarchical Network Management.

With a centralized architecture a single management system installation monitors the whole network. With a distributed architecture, multiple installations of management systems are used to monitor the whole network. With a hierarchical architecture, multiple installations of management systems are used to monitor the whole network. As initially it exactaly same as distributed architecture, except that the hierarchical architecture adds an additional layer, the Manager of Managers (MoM). This Manager of Managers sits at a higher level and requests information from domain managers. There is no communication between domain managers, information flow follows the hierarchy.

There are lot of disadvantages of centralised architecture like problem of traffic, failure of server etc as centralized network is not scalable and flexible enough. So we need a better framework to improve the management services of a network in a more precise way. This leads to the management of network in distributed way.

In a distributed network management architecture, a dynamic set of NMs manages sub-domains of the network, once again communicating with each other. In a distributed network architecture there are multiple systems that all interact with each other but are also capable of functioning on their own. There is a one main system which have control over other systems. However, each system can also able to work independently. Each system has an administrator, and the central node control over the tasks of each system. Each of the sites on the distributed network can vary in size,Regardless of the size of each site, all the devices can ultimately be connected back to the center.

Low scalability and flexibility of client server introduces moving toward distributed or decentralization of network system.

Benefits of Distributed Network Management Model:-

1 In  distributed network architecture there is also a single central control system, but the load can be distributed among several local sites.

2.In distributed system the load is shared among the different systems which makes networking quicker and more efficient. As there is no worry of server got overloaded and goes down.

3. if the central server experiences any problems there is no loss of configuration.

4. If any update or change is there on central server it can be seamlessly integrated with the whole distributed network without a problem.

5. Distributed Network Management Model can be easily scalable.

6. It uses less bandwidth and can tolerate hardware or network failures much better than a single system. Therefore it is more reliable.

7. It is more robust also because if files on one system get corrupted, it doesn’t affect the entire system,  and can work efficient without depending on continuous communications between the network management systems and network elements

8. One of the example of distributed management architectures is mobile agent technology, have been recently proposed to answer the scalability limitations of centralized models and the flexibility problems of different network models

9.Mobile agents decentralize processing and control thereby reducing the management traffic around the management station and distribute processing load.

10. The mobile agent enviornment  architecture is distributed in nature as it provides for multiple managers acting simultaneously. It is rendered dynamic by the utilization of mobile agents for the implementation of network management functionalities.