Latest NPM, NCM, NTA Server specs

Question

Hi Solarwinds,

We are currently in the process of raising a PO for the Solarwinds software and 2x servers from our local vendors. License is as follow for Solarwinds:

- Orion Network Performance Monitor SL2000
- NetFlow Traffic Analyzer Module for Orion NPM SL2000
- Orion Network Configuration Manager DL200

We will be using Windows 2003 Standard 64bit and SQL 2005 or 2008.

I would like to know what are Solarwinds recommendation for server spec base on the license number (possible upgrade to NPM/NTA SLX in the future) on both 1st server running Solarwinds Application (listed above) and 2nd SQL Server.

Maximum of 30 users will be viewing the Orion Web Console constantly (mostly internal but some number overseas) with minimum delay.

We have location throughout Asia, Japan, Europe and Middle East polling (100 location, 6 servers 1 interface per location, 2 routers 60 interfaces per location, 1 APC temp sensor per location). The Solarwinds server will be hosted in our Sydney Data Center.

Thanks

Peter

pvaldes · Answer

Hi,

Thanks for the reply. I read the details on the doco. It doesnt state NPM, NTA and NCM combine as one cluster. We have 70 location possible increase to 100 in the next 2 years. Each location has 1 Cisco 3800 with average 50 interface. We need to monitor this interface using NTA with no plans yet for polling engine per region. This is all on the central location.

Estimated element license:

6 servers (1CPU, 2 HD)                          : 6 * 2 = 12 elements
1 data router with average 50 interfaces  : 50 elements
1 voice router with average 3 interfaces. : 3 elements
Total for 1 site, 65 elements.
For 100 sites, it will be 100 * 65 = 6500 elements

Server spec (im not sure if this is enough to cover our requirements or too over kill for our requirements)

Server 1:
Hosting: Solarwinds NPM, NCM, NTA application
CPU 4GHz or faster
RAM 4GB or more
Hard Disk 70GB or more RAID 10, 10k RPM or more
OS Windows 2003 (32 or 64, depending on the RAM)
512MB with BBWC

Server 2:
Hosting: SQL 2000, 2005 or 2008 standard
CPU 4GHz or faster (Internal cache 12 MB)
RAM 8GB
Hard Disk 70GB or more RAID 10, 15k RPM
OS Windows 2003 64bit
512MB with BBWC

Thanks

Peter

neilmborilla · Answer

You can find it here on page 10-12 http://www.solarwinds.com/support/Orion/docs/OrionAdministratorGuide.pdf

Requirements

Requirements for Orion NPM vary based upon the number of elements managed, the polling frequency, and the number of simultaneous users, among other factors. The following tables provide general guidelines for the software and hardware required for a minimum configuration.  Software

Requirements   Operating System  Windows 2008 Server (32-bit or 64-bit, running in 32-bit mode) Windows 2003 Server (32-bit or 64-bit, running in 32-bit mode) R2 IIS must be installed. SolarWinds recommends that Orion NPM administrators have local administrator privileges to ensure full functionality of local Orion NPM tools. Accounts limited to use of the web console do not require administrator privileges. Note:   SolarWinds does not support installation of Orion NPM on Windows Vista in production environments. Web Server  Microsoft IIS version 6.0 and later. DNS specifications require that hostnames be composed of alphanumeric characters ( A-Z, 0-9), the minus sign (-), and periods (.). Underscore characters (_) are not allowed. For more information, see RFC 952.

Note:   SolarWinds neither recommends nor supports the installation of Orion NPM on the same server or using the same database server as a Research in Motion (RIM) Blackberry server. .NET Framework  Version 3.5 or later  SNMP Trap Services  Windows operating system management and monitoring tools component  SQL Server  The following database servers are supported as the Orion Network Performance Monitor datastore: SQL Server 2005 SP1 Express, Standard, or Enterprise SQL Server 2008 Express, Standard, or Enterprise Your server must support either mixed-mode or SQL authentication. Use the following database select statement to check your SQL Server version, service pack or release level, and edition: select SERVERPROPERTY ('productversion'), SERVERPROPERTY ('productlevel'), SERVERPROPERTY ('edition') The following x86 components must also be installed (if the components are not found on the target computer, the setup program downloads and installs the components): SQL Server System Common Language Runtime (CLR) Types Microsoft SQL Server Native Client Microsoft SQL Server Management Objects Notes: For improved performance, Orion NPM uses secure SQL CLR stored procedures for selected, non-business data operations. If you are using SQL Server 2005 SP1 Express Edition on a Windows XP operating system, enable the following protocols: Shared memory, TCP/IP, and Named Pipes. ESX Server  Version 3.5 Note:   Required only if Orion NPM monitors VMware ESX Servers. Web Console Browser  Microsoft Internet Explorer version 6 or later with Active scripting Firefox 3.0 or later