User guide

1-10 ExtremeWare EPICenter Software Installation and User Guide
EPICenter Overview
Extreme Networks Switch Management
TheEPICentersoftwareusesSNMP tomonitor andmanagethe devices inthenetwork.To
avoid the overhead of frequent device polling, the EPICenter software uses a mechanism
called SmartTraps to identify changes in Extreme device status and configuration.
When an Extreme switch is added to the EPICenter database, the EPICenter software
creates a set of SmartTraps rules that define what events (status and configuration
changes) the EPICenter server needs to know about. These rules are downloaded into the
Extreme switch, and the EPICenter server is automatically registered as a trap receiver.
Subsequently, whenever a status or configuration change takes place, the ExtremeWare
software in the switch uses the SmartTraps rules to determine if the EPICenter server
should be notified. These changes can be changes in device status, such as fan failure or
overheating, or configuration changes made on the switch through the ExtremeWare CLI
or ExtremeWare Vista.
The EPICenter server does a “heartbeat” check, by default every five minutes, of all the
devicesit is managingto determine if the devices are still accessible.It alsodoesa full poll
of each device at longer intervals. This interval for this less frequent status polling can be
adjusted on each individual device. The EPICenter software also gives you the ability to
gather device status at any time using the Sync feature in the Inventory Manager applet.
Extreme Networks Device Support
Extreme Networks devices running the ExtremeWare software version 2.0 or later, are
supported by most features in the EPICenter system, including the VLAN Manager and
the graphical display features of the ExtremeView applet. Some features, such as ESRP, or
the Policy Manager, require more recent versions of the ExtremeWare software.
See the ExtremeWare EPICenter Release Note and Quick StartGuide or the Extreme Networks
web site for the most current information on device support in the EPICenter software.
Third-Party Device Support
Any device running a MIB-2 compatible SNMP agent can be discovered by the EPICenter
Inventory manager, and saved in the Inventory database. All devices in the database can
also appearon a topology map.The EPICenter alarm system canhandleSNMP traps from
any device in the inventory database, including RMON traps from devices with RMON