Ipswitch WhatsUp Gold User Guide - Ipswitch Documentation Server

Ipswitch WhatsUp Gold User Guide
About Flexible NetFlow
Cisco IOS Flexible Netflow provides the next level of flexibility and scalability in monitoring
network traffic, bringing a new understanding to who is using the network, what applications
they are employing, when they are using the applications, and where the traffic originated.
Flexible NetFlow Components
Flexible NetFlow is implemented using flow monitors, the following is a definition of a flow
monitor and its components.
Note: A NetFlow flow monitor is a component used to implement Flexible NetFlow and
should not be confused with WhatsUp Flow Monitor, which is a NetFlow collector.
Flow monitors. Flow monitors are applied to interfaces to perform network traffic
monitoring. These flow monitors consist of the following components:
Flow records. A record is a combination of key fields, used to uniquely define a flow,
and nonkey fields, which are used to provide additional information about a flow, but
are not used to define the flow. In Flexible NetFlow, both key and nonkey fields can be
defined in the record definition, which allows for customized data collection.
Flow cache. Collects IP data flow records in a router or switch, analyzes this data and
prepares the data for export. Flexible Netflow tracks and monitors multiple NetFlow
caches, each configured to monitor specific information.
NetFlow exporter. Exports the data in the flow monitor cache to a remote system,
such as Flow Monitor, for analysis and storage. You can create more than one flow
exporter, each assigned to one or more NetFlow collectors.
NetFlow collector. An application that utilizes exported data from one or more
NetFlow enabled routers or switches, aggregates and filters the data, then performs
real-time visualization and analysis of the recorded and aggregated flow data. The
WhatsUp Flow Monitor is an example of a NetFlow collector.
Flexible NetFlow records
Flexible NetFlow can track packet information from Layer 3, as well as some Layer 2
information. The Flexible NetFlow record can be customized to monitor data based on your
specific monitoring needs. The information available includes:
Source and Destination MAC addresses
Source and Destination IP addresses
Type of Service
Differentiated Services Code Point (DSCP)
Packet and byte counts
Flow timestamps
Input and output interface numbers
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