SNMP operation

The Avaya media server provides the following Simple Network Management Protocol (SNMP) services:

• receive traps or informs (alarms) from devices on the media server's control network,
• provide a means for a corporate network management system (NMS) to monitor the server, and
• send alarm notifications to a services agency, to a corporate NMS, or both.

This topic covers:

SNMP operation on the server

Alarm-reporting options for the system

Check or change SNMP status using the web administration interface

SNMP operation on the server

The server's SNMP service logs traps and informs generated by devices on the media server's control network, such as the Ethernet switches and UPS units.

1. Traps are alarms or notable events. These include potentially service-disrupting activities, such as activation of UPS power, or events such as when a new device is added to the control network.
2. Informs (inform requests) are acknowledged traps, which means that the receiver of the trap is expected to respond with an SNMP message acknowledging receipt of the trap. In this Help system, the general term trap refers to both traps and informs, unless specifically stated otherwise.

Each device on the media server's control network must have its own SNMP agent to generate traps for the device. Those agents are configured to send traps to the media server. Supported devices include:

1. IP-connect configurations: Ethernet switches or UPS units that are present in the control network and are controlled by the Avaya media server.
2. Multi-connect configurations: one or more Ethernet switches, plus a UPS unit for each control network.

SNMP service includes both receiving traps and responding to requests. Trap reception is always enabled. For the server to respond to requests, the master agent must be running, the subagent to which the query is directed must be running, and the SNMP ports on the Ethernet interface to the corporate LAN need to be enabled on the server. Activation of these services is described in the next section.

If request response is enabled, the master agent on the currently active Avaya media server "listens" on the SNMP port for incoming queries and commands (gets and sets). The master agent authenticates an incoming message, then passes it on to the subagent associated with the object requested or commanded, and the subagent processes the message. Because only the master agent listens on the SNMP port for incoming messages, stopping the master agent inhibits the SNMP capability on that server.

The two Avaya media servers operate independently with regard to SNMP service. Stopping the master agent or disabling SNMP service on the corporate LAN applies only to the server on which the operation is performed. These actions must be repeated on the duplicate server to enable or to disable SNMP service.

Alarm reporting options

The Avaya media server supports two methods for reporting alarms. You can use either method, both, or no alarm-reporting method at a given site.

1. OSS. The server's software applications and hardware devices under its control can generate Operations Support System (OSS) alarms. These alarms are recorded in the server logs, and  may be reported to Avaya's Initialization and Administration System (INADS) or another services support agency over the server's modem interface or through SNMP notifications.
   To activate OSS alarm notification: Each server requires a USB connection to a modem that is connected to a common analog line. The modem must be configured as described in Set Modem Interface, and enabled to send and receive calls using the Enable/Disable Modem screen. Configuration of the OSS alarming method can only be done using shell commands.
2. SNMP. SNMP traps may be sent in User Datagram Protocol (UDP) to a corporate network management system (NMS) using the Configure Trap Destinations screen. The OSS and SNMP alarm-notification methods operate independently of each other; either or both may be used.

To set up and activate SNMP service and alarm notification:   

1. Verify that SNMP service on the corporate LAN interface is enabled using the Set LAN Security screen. See Check or change SNMP status below for details.
2. On the Set LAN Security screen, click Advanced Setting.
3. Verify that SNMP port 162 is enabled.
4. Log in to the duplicate server, and repeat steps 1 and 2.
5. On either server, use the Configure Trap Destinations screen to set up SNMP destinations in the corporate NMS.

Check or change SNMP status on other screens

To check or change the status of SNMP processes or services, use the following screens:

The Set LAN Security screen shows if SNMP service to the corporate LAN interface is enabled. The SNMP ports must be enabled for this service to work. To check or change the SNMP settings on this screen:

1. On the main menu under Security, click the Set LAN Security link. When the name of the screen appears, click Advanced Setting.
2. Check that SNMP ports161 and 162 are enabled. The check box for both these services must be enabled for the media server to provide SNMP service.
3. The SNMP master agent listens on port 161 for incoming queries or commands (get or set messages).
4. SNMP traps are sent and received over port 162.

3. If you change any settings, click Set Security. When it refreshes to make sure that your changes are correct.

The View Process Status screen displays SNMP status as follows:

1. On the View System Logs screen, check that status of the SNMPManager and the MasterAgent. Status may be UP or DOWN. These processes appear on both the main and detailed views.
2. If the master agent is stopped, the snmpdm process is removed from the watchdog�s monitor list, and the screen lists the MasterAgent as DOWN. To change the status master agent status, use the Start/Stop SNMP Master Agent screen.

Note  You cannot change the status of the SNMPManager process.

The View System Logs screen displays SNMP trap activity in the system log as follows:

1. On the View System Logs screen, select the Linux syslog file. Choose the time interval you want to see, click View Log.
2. Check the log listing for trap messages that are generated by any devices on the control network that the media server controls.