This freeware monitor is great for checking whether your network's load-balancing is performing as
expected, for example, are two interfaces are getting about equal
traffic?
You can
also run a separate test to see how much network bandwidth your
applications consume.
Configuration - Straightforward if you take note of 3 instructions.
Key point - Know your network interfaces.
Set thresholds - See when usage becomes critical.
Combine business with pleasure - Examine your traffic.
Typical View of Traffic from the Real Time Network Monitor
Download is Easy
Install Was Straightforward Because the download
supplies an .msi
package the Bandwidth Monitor utility installs automatically. The
trickiest setting is the Community string, I typed in:
Public - the default SNMP community
IP Address You also need an IP Address, if you
happen to
know the machine's dotty, dot number, then end of problem.
However, if you
cannot easily find the numbers, just to get started try 127.0.0.1 (The
loopback IP). I also find that hostname works fine. For a
little more research try Ipconfig /all on the machine that you wish to
measure its bandwidth.
Crucial 'Settings' menu item Here is where you
can experiment with Polling intervals, just remember there are 1,000 ms in a second. The minimum value is half a second
- 500 ms.
Select Your Network Interface Either you know
your interface names and types already, or now is good time to
learn!
I have to say, the above GUI has a lovely balance between immediate
network traffic data in the middle, combined with buttons to seek related
data and configuration settings.
Video Explaining Real-time Network Bandwidth Monitor by
Josh Stephens, Head Geek at SolarWinds
Here is a good way to review SolarWinds' RTBM utility:
If you have a problem with 'Setting the Community String', try
'Public'. Also match the setting with SNMP service.
Launch your Windows 'Services' and then scroll down to SNMP. The truth is
that SNMP strings
are a whole new world, my advice is either use well-know simple
'Public', or else ask post you question on the
SolarWinds Thwack forum.
The best way of setting the 'The Hostname or IP Address' is to
research the network adapter settings on the machine you wish to
monitor.
What Next If You REALLY Like This Network Monitor?
Some people take to the freeware Real Time Bandwidth Monitor, but then feel
that they would like the utility to do more. No worries, SolarWinds have its 'Big
Brother', Network Performance Monitor. A common progression from
this completely free Bandwidth Monitor is to have a trial of the
Orion NPM.
Summary: Review of Real Time Network Monitoring
Real-time network monitoring makes it easy to troubleshoot an
interface because you can see the bandwidth usage in real-time.
With SolarWinds' Real-time Bandwidth monitor you can poll usage every
second. Furthermore, you can check multiple interfaces
simultaneously, and observe the usage in a graph.
Free and 30-day Trial Virtual Machine Software
My recommendations for additional handy
utilities. Many of these downloads are free, while others
are fully-functional, but time limited.
SolarWinds are happy to provide you with a free specialist tool, which is ideal for testing, and then
supply a more comprehensive suite for larger organizations. To let you
into a secret, for small networks, the free tool is all you'll ever need.
Guy Recommends:
SolarWinds' NPM - Network Performance Monitor
SolarWinds' performance monitor is designed for detecting network outages,
making it easy to see what's working, and what needs your attention.
This utility guides you through creating network maps; it also helps
identifying whether the
root cause is faulty equipment, or resource overload. Give NPM a try.
