Frequently Asked Questions

General

1. What is an agent? What does SNMP Agent Toolkit do?

Agent is an entity of network management system that interface to the actual device being managed. The SNMP Agent toolkit generates the agent framework that is capable of managing any number of devices in the network.

For example, the managed objects of devices such as, bridges, hubs, routers, or any network servers can easily be managed using the toolkit without much of code implementation.

Questions

2. What are the different types of agents developed using SNMP Agent Toolkit? Where can I find the javadocs of these agents?

The AdventNet SNMP Agent Toolkit is used to develop SNMP agents, Multi-Protocol agents, and TL1 agents. The Javadocs for these agents are located at

SNMP agent:
http://www.adventnet.com/products/javaagent/help/snmp_agent/javadocs/index.html

Multi-Protocol agent:
http://www.adventnet.com/products/javaagent/help/mp_agent/javadocs/index.html

TL1 agent:
http://www.adventnet.com/products/javaagent/help/tl1_agent/javadocs/index.html

Questions

3. What are the basic steps involved in developing an agent to manage a device/application?

The basic steps involved in developing an agent are as follows:

Define the MIB/ TCS file using MIB Editor/ TL1 Message Builder.
Load the defined MIB/ TCS file or an existing MIB/ TCS file to the agent stub generator, such as MIB Compiler/ JMX Compiler/ TL1 Compiler.
Generate source files by choosing the appropriate options in the compiler. This constitutes the stub files of the agent.
Instrument the agent.
Compile stub files .
Deploy the agent to manage your device/application.

Questions

4. Does your agent support multi-threading? Is it thread safe ?

Yes, the java agent supports multi-threaded processing and is thread safe.

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5. What are the system requirements for SNMP Agent Toolkit?

Since the agent is developed in Java, it is platform independent. The agent can be used in any operating system that supports Java. AdventNet SNMP Agent toolkit is officially tested in Windows, Linux, and Solaris.

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6. How to install in different OS and what are its installation requirements?

The AdventNet SNMP Agent Toolkit Java Edition is distributed in a zip file (35,861,887 bytes) format suitable for Solaris and Linux platforms. You will need the unzip utility in order to unzip the file. For Windows NT/98/2000 platform, use the self-extracting exe (33,035,841 bytes) format.

Additionally, you require the Java Development Kit (JDK) for your platform to use SNMP Agent Toolkit. It is recommended to use JDK 1.2.x or JDK 1.3.

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7. What are the different technologies used by SNMP Agent Toolkit for building agents?

The technologies such as SNMP, TL1, and JMX are used for building SNMP agents, TL1 agents, and multi-protocol agents respectively.

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8. Should I have separate license for SNMP API and Java Edition?

Yes. SNMP API is a product used for developing a manager application, whereas SNMP Agent Toolkit is a product used for developing an agent application. The SNMP Agent Toolkit Java Edition product acts as a wrapper over the SNMP API product and only a portion of it is bundled with the SNMP Agent Toolkit.

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9. Does AdventNet have a discussion forum for this product ?

To enhance our product through customers' suggestions and queries, AdventNet has unleashed a new discussion forum. You can contact AdventNet Forum where our product experts will be eager to answer all your questions.

Questions