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Where's The Documentation?!?!?!

I'm at the beginning stages of setting up NCM 7.1 post-installation, and I've run into a problem, lack of documentation. I am not a Solarwinds Administrator, I am a Network Engineer, and I did not do the install. My Solarwinds Admin is completely clueless about NCM, leaving the setup to me.

Obviously, I have searched Thwack and Solarwinds for documentation. I have downloaded the admin guide, watched a few very unhelpful youtube videos, and I'm still scratching my head. The front-end web GUI, back-end appliance adds to the confusion. I spent more time than I should have trying to understand why the admin guide's instructions were useless before I realized that the guide was referring to the appliance installed on the actual server, not the web GUI. I had no idea about the appliance until I began asking questions.

I'm looking for easy to read, post-installation setup tasks to get me to a base functional level that I can expand on. As much as I would love to hang out on Thwack all day, scour posts, and vote about how I feel about the LucasFilm's/ Disney merger, I have a job to do, and the quantity/quality of documentation is sorely lacking.

Solarwinds competitors offer a decent documentation, both written and video. EMC's Ionix NCM, the last NCM I used, comes with hours of video that leads you through setup, post-installation tasks, best practices, and advanced tasks.

I'm not trying to dog on Solarwinds, or start a flame war. I am frustrated that Solarwinds cannot offer useful, easily attainable, step-by-step post-installation documentation. Where other companies provide useful documentation and a user community, I get an unuseful admin guide.

I'm an unwilling convert to Solarwinds NCM as my company refuses to look at other NCM solutions. They bought SWNCM when they bought NPM, so I have to deal with it.

Every shop I have worked at snorts at the mere mention of Solarwinds. This is my first experience with SWNCM, so I am willing to give SWNCM an unbiased shot.

Win me over Solarwinds, otherwise I am going to fight to acquire a better supported, easier to use NCM solution when budgeting rolls around next year.

If Thwack is the wrong venue to vent, then I ask the Moderators to send this over to Solarwinds.com.

Based on searches I see on Thwack, other users would benefit from what I am asking for.

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jeff.stewart

Did you see the Quick Start Guide for NCM?

http://www.solarwinds.com/documentation/orionNCM/docs/OrionNCMQuickStartGuide.pdf

Is there something specific you're trying to do?

Jeff

dixiewrecked

I did. It's not what I need. I need documentation to get NCM setup post-installation. I need instructions, and clear, concise examples, not Explore the Orion Web Console, or integrating the Solarwinds Engineer's Toolset.

I did notice that the documentation area for NPM is extremely robust. What gives with NCM? I don't want my NCM to be the vendors afterthought.

rharland2012

None of the tutorials or other supporting documentation in the Library & Support section for NCM helped you?

cvachovecj

Hi,

Could you please specify some post-installation topics you would like to learn about? Which NCM features?

Thanks,

Jiri

superfly

I think the NCM installation guide covers it all pretty well.

http://www.solarwinds.com/documentation/orionNCM/docs/orionNCMAdministratorGuide.pdf

from Chapter 3 onwards it explains how to get the whole thing up and running.

I too did not install NCM but I did configure it all up. I thought NCM is very easy to use and I didn't really refer to any documentation at all.

I've used other management systems (such as Ciscoworks) and even after reading the documentation, it was really hard to use. To make Ciscoworks useful I even needed to do a course. No such problems with Solarwinds NCM, it is so much more user friendly and intuative. Something as simple as comparing 2 configs, is a matter of a couple of clicks in NCM but in Ciscoworks it's a whole battle.

docwhite

SuperFly99 is steering you right. The most current documentation on installing and configuring NCM is in Chapter 2 of the NCM Administrator's Guide (v7.1.1):

http://www.solarwinds.com/documentation/orionNCM/docs/orionNCMAdministratorGuide.pdf

The installation flow for your specific deployment type takes you from installing the software to synching the two databases as the final post-installation task. Please let us know if you continue to lack the information you need.

I can see how dividing the tasks of installing and configuring the software could create confusion with using the guide, which is setup to run installation and configuration together. I'm taking your experience as indication that we might need a separate section on configuration for those who don't install the software; though the post-installation information would be the same in both sections, having two sections might better server the different users.

Thanks.

Doug