HP OpenVMS Systems

Options for network monitoring?

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The Question is:

 
We have a variety of VMS systems that access a variety of LAT terminal servers
 to talk to printers, process equipment, etc... This is all spread over a
 couple of square miles.
 
What I'd like to do is obtain the hardware (MAC) addresses of the terminal
 servers that these VMS systems connect to for the purposes of inventorying and
 management.
 
Since the VMS systems do talk to these terminal servers, presumably the MAC
 address is there someplace. How can I get to it?
 
 
 

The Answer is :

 
  Certain MOP-compliant devices can provide various configuration
  and maintenance information via the MOP SYSID message -- please
  see the DECnet MOP specifications (pointer in the FAQ) for details
  on the MOP SYSID, and please also see DECnet-related documentation
  on the MOP configurator surveillance.
 
  If the network devices do not provide MOP SYSID messages, then the
  detection and configuration will be rather more difficult.  This
  could involve monitoring LAT traffic for addresses using typical
  promiscuous mode network monitoring, of course.  Tools such as
  [NETMON]MONLAT.MAR (on the OpenVMS Freeware) may be of interest,
  as well as various commercial network monitoring packages.
 
  At the LAT protocol level, the terminal server devices are the
  initiators of an asymmetric betwork connections, and these devices
  have to be expressly configured to permit "reverse LAT" connections;
  connections from the host to the terminal server.  In other words,
  the default LAT configuration has the terminal server detecting and
  connecting to the host(s), and not the reverse.
 

  

     

     
answer written or last revised on ( 17-JUL-2000 )
     
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