u1976turn

Congrats nluchetta​ !! Enjoy the copter!

@craig schnarrs hit the nail on the head when we wrote "Network management is not the main part of my job, in fact it’s a rather small part." It seems many times companies believe that the end users ONLY monitor networks. For many of us, network monitoring is a part of our job -- but not our ONLY job. As long as we have a…

DanielleH - once this contest ends, can we get some insight into the 4th week wager question -- Finding the first post (date) of Thwack. I'm sure there was a better way to find it that I did. thanks!

Thanks Thwack / Solar Winds !! 

I'm in a very similar situation as DirtySouth. Althought the orgainization I work for is very large, the network I'm responsible for is only the site's local pit (mining) mesh network. I use NPM to monitor the network, but nothing related to configuration. I have taken config backups from devices and have then saved -- and…

pony10​ -- I was also thinking "radio", but now am leaning towards "relax".

6/7 here also ... no projector, but still great information, fun and many points!

I have to agree with arjantim that there is a lot of knowledge shared here, and that there is a lot more information available. Being fairly new to network management myself, I'd have to say that the questions I need answered the most are the questions that I don't have yet just because of my lack of experience. I think…

Great point - many times we believe that just monitoring is actual network management. You pointed out that to manage, you must do backups, automate tasks, etc. That is where the management end is -- not just knowing the network status of up, down or in some other inbetween state.

Congrats to the winners, but also congrats (at least for me) for getting involved and getting more knowledgable of additional products!

Jfrazier is right on - with every new attack (hack) the general public is getting "trained" that everyone will be hacked at some point -- which then becomes the new "normal". At that point, we as individuals must put a value on our privacy and decide if we must use credit/debit cards for every transaction, or maybe we can…

These are the most "memorable" moments for me... At a previous employer, a data clerk would receive an email requesting information. She would print out the e-mail, then hand write was the person requested and fax back the e-mail printout to the person. I asked why she didn't just hit reply to the e-mail. She stated "With…

My favorite from a fellow co-worker not in the IT field, is "black magic". Anything she could not understand about technology is just "black magic" -- it just works.

I see that many times when systems are designed and deployed, it is about how the system will function, who interacts with it (users, accounts, permissions, etc.) and then when - not IF, but when - a problem occurs with the system(s), is when we get to the firefight mode. If we consider system monitoring during the design…

cureant -- I also ran into this on question 2 and 3 -- figured I'd give it a break and try back in a bit.

mcam‌ I also agree with you -- but o'well. Additional knowledge is always good -- the points are a bonus and the possibility of prizes is awesome!

Come on gaming chair -- I missed two the first week so I'm out of the running for the 1-year Loot Crate (which would be awesome!). Chair or no chair -- Happy New Year to everyone!

I can see both sides of the argument.... but in my case, I did network discovery manually when we installed NPM. This allowed me to discover only what I needed. My situation might be unique, as I only care about the backhaul and infrastructure, not the mobile equipment as it gets powered up, shut down and moves around. I…

Congrats blsanner​ on the weekly prize !

Although I'm new(er) to network managment, I can attest that having the data to backup your issue is huge. One of our vendor was trying to say it wasn't their issue, but once I ran several reports to clearly show that is was their issue, their demeanor changed and we worked better on the issue istead of the blame-game.…

maria.bungau‌ -- thanks! This is what makes Thwack / Solar Winds my product of choice -- they listen to the users and act upon suggestions from the user community group. Now, with that being said -- that doesn't mean we always get what we want -- S.W. listens though -- which is what really sets them apart. Many thanks (not…

I have our alerts setup to monitor node up/down status and server reboots. Although we do monitor some (not all) interfaces, we don't have any monitoring setup for interfaces. This is our next step in getting a managed network instead of a status update network. I think our group has moved from just wanting to know if…

Congrats jspeer‌ !!

arjantim is spot on in that many times we focus on the software because the software is what is driving the decision. The software manufacturer statesthat their product must run on this OS, have this much RAM, so on and so on. This is where my mind many times gets inadvertently shut off. We immediately stop at the bare…

mferrucci -- yep, I mis-typed it -- DOH!

I also don't have any first-hand experience, but it seems the majority of responses are leaning towards application based. I wonder if that is because virtual is such a new(er) technology and not everyone has moved to that design yet ?

I'd be willing to bet we have all learned (or will one day) that going to any meeting without data to backup the "all is good here" statement, ends in the fingers getting pointed your direction simply because you don't have the data to backup the comment. Now, before I go into a meeting, I'll get all the ducks I can find,…

Our deployment of Orion NPM is a little different than most in that my responsibilities include management of a dispatch system at a mine site andthe radio network that is required to make that operate. NPM has given me the ability to improve our network coverage, make real-time adjustments, monitor the status of the…

Although I agree with the single team monitoring -- there are real instances where a single team does not make sense. In my position, having our home office monitor my local pit mesh network really does no good. I get inaccurate ping times, inaccurate up/down status and our home office is annoyed that our entire site goes…

Congrats pknox‌ on the first week's prize !