Spiceworks Network Monitor - Review 2022

Spiceworks Network Monitor (which is free) continues Spiceworks' long tradition of providing high-quality infrastructure management and network monitoring software. Plus, the visitor does it for costless, as long as you don't mind some ads in the corners of Spiceworks Network Monitor's user interface (UI). Sometimes even more than valuable than the Spiceworks software is the fact that, past downloading it, you can sign upwards to go role of the Spiceworks community. Sure, that can include excited engineering fans and an orange dinosaur named SpiceRex, but it besides includes an amazing and surprisingly responsive network of experts to help in case you become into any kind of Information technology problem or need assistance getting the most out of the Spiceworks platform. (If the orangish dinasour comment just now is throwing you, then but enquire the Spiceworks community almost "SpiceRex."). Though Spiceworks Network Monitor is fantabulous software, it doesn't win our Editors' Choice in our infrastructure direction service roundup, a designation that instead goes to MMSoft Pulseway.

Similar Products

Compared to platforms such equally LogicMonitor (which wins our Editors' Option in our network monitoring software roundup), Spiceworks Network Monitor isn't the most complete network monitoring product bachelor. However, Spiceworks Network Monitor is remarkably complete for a gratis product. The functions are well-chosen and everything works solidly for the virtually part, which is in sharp dissimilarity to some of the network monitoring solutions we've recently seen, such as Datadog. Better, if you lot have questions about Spiceworks Network Monitor, there's more just a tech support number available: the Spiceworks community is there to help every bit well. So is Spiceworks for that matter since the production does get a full range of tech support despite its status every bit a free software parcel.

Previously, Spiceworks Network Monitor was a Windows-merely product; even so, that's changed with the introduction of support for several Linux distributions, including Arch, Debian, Fedora, RedHat, SuSE, and Ubuntu. In addition, information technology as well works with a full range of network devices as long as they support the Simple Network Management Protocol (SNMP) versions 1 or ii.

Spiceworks Network Monitor tracks infrastructure devices such equally switches and routers for the nuts, including input/output (I/O) rate, packets per second, and packet loss. Information technology too tracks servers (and equally a bonus, Windows 7 and Windows 10 workstations) for CPU utilization, disk utilization, network data rate and package loss, and retentivity utilization. Y'all can likewise drill downward to brandish those parameters graphically in expanded views. However, Spiceworks Network Monitor does not monitor or manage other devices, most notably mobile devices.

You'll notice that, while Spiceworks Network Monitor provides excellent basic monitoring, there are features that aren't present, such as support for SNMP version 3. Spiceworks also has in-app advertising from partner companies (which is how it makes its coin), with products that will integrate seamlessly into the Spiceworks Network Monitor application. Just, if all you need is the basics, and so it's all gratis.

Getting Set Up

For this examination, I used Spiceworks Network Monitor to spotter the action on the Cisco IOS (originally Cisco Internetwork Operating Organisation)-based switches in my lab and to monitor the health of some Windows computers. While the company says Spiceworks Network Monitor works with Windows Server, the fact is, the product is also capable of handling most operating systems (OSes), including Windows 7 and Windows ten machines and many flavors of Linux. For the monitoring to piece of work in either case, you demand to enable SNMP or Windows Management Instrumentation (WMI) on the machines you wish to monitor.

I was also able to have Spiceworks Network Monitor provide information on a Ruckus Wireless ZoneDirector 1200 and a D-Link DGS-3627 switch. Spiceworks Network Monitor volition also connect with some network devices that may not practise yous a lot of adept. For example, I was able to monitor the wellness of an APC SmartUPS 1500 uninterruptable power supply (UPS). Only, since the Spiceworks Network Monitor doesn't include the ability to monitor ability supplies, the only thing y'all'll larn is that information technology's notwithstanding alive. Y'all tin can as well now monitor the presence of any device that responds to HTTP(Southward), Ping, or SIP, and while it tin't tell you most the operation of such a device, it can tell you whether that device however alive, as well.

Adding devices or servers to the monitoring application is simple. To add a device, y'all need to click Add Switch on the dashboard. So you lot need to tell Spiceworks Network Monitor the host proper noun or the IP address as well as the community string which, on most devices, is "public." Once you lot tell the software to connect, y'all'll run across a short delay, and and so Spiceworks Network Monitor will first monitoring.

Calculation a new server (or Windows 7 or Windows 10 computer) is only slightly more than complicated. As in the example of a device, yous first by clicking the dashboard merely this time yous do so where information technology says "Add together Server," and so you enter the host name or the IP address. Then you'll need to provide the log-in name and password. The servers used in this test were running Windows Server 2022 R2, Windows Server 2022, and SuSE Linux Enterprise Server 11, and connected without a hitch. In fact, the Linux integration is notably seamless unlike the complications of some other network monitors.

Every bit you connect each server or device, a moving graphical display is added to the dashboard under the advisable heading. For servers, the graph displays disk action, memory use, CPU usage, and network activity. The switch display shows the input/output (I/O) charge per unit, packets per second, and packet loss. This collection of displays is called the Watchlist.

You can choose to look at specific devices in significantly more particular with what Spiceworks calls a Disquisitional Device Widget. You tin choose iii devices or servers to display more detailed graphs in boxes on the dashboard below the Watchlist.

If you need fifty-fifty more specific details, then yous tin click a specific parameter in the Critical Device window, and the graph for that parameter is expanded and additional details bear witness up on the screen with it. For instance, I was able to click the display for one of the Cisco switches and examine the exact numbers for the total switch bandwidth usage, complete with the stats at each point where the numbers changed.

You tin can do something similar with the Watchlist graphics. Hover your mouse arrow over any of the moving graphs and the graph is replaced past the actual number information technology represents. Click the name of any device or server and you'll get a full-page display of detailed numbers of the object's operation. This can be useful if a graph appears to prove a high number or level of activeness because yous can ostend the actual number. Considering the scaling of the graphs is automated, there can be times when a tiny number seems to generate a large movement on the dashboard's graphs.

Limitations

Despite the impressive capabilities of the Spiceworks Network Monitor, there are some limitations. Nonetheless, nearly of the major limitations have been eliminated. For example, alert thresholds are at present much more granular and you can change private settings. With its default settings, you may get emailed nigh events that aren't actually disquisitional. For example, I noticed a disk activity alert when one of the machines being monitored started doing backups, but this setting tin be adjusted to business relationship for such activity. In add-on, you tin control when Spiceworks Network Monitor sends out emails then, while such an alert may testify up on the dashboard, y'all do not need to get emailed nearly it. Plus, you can now decide whether or non an warning was actually critical and fine-melody the threshold.

Currently, you lot will see a number of references to the beta team displayed on the dashboard and elsewhere in Spiceworks Network Monitor. This is a released product and came out of beta in early June 2022. At this point, Spiceworks Network Monitor'due south development has been completed. The product will be included in a new cloud-based app to exist released in the hereafter, simply until that happens, it's still supported.

I found the Spiceworks Network Monitor to be a well-featured, easy-to-utilise product that will nicely meet the needs of most small to midsize businesses (SMBs). You do non need to exist a professional person network engineer to implement the product and you don't need to exist in the It section to utilise it. However, Spiceworks Network Monitor is watching how your network operates, so knowledge of networking and network events is needed to have total advantage of this product. That being said, the graphical displays are intuitive enough that someone who isn't an IT professional person should exist able to tell when a server or device needs attending. But the dainty thing is, this may be all of the network management you need—and it's gratuitous.

Source: https://sea.pcmag.com/networking-communications-software/8056/spiceworks-network-monitor

Posted by: mcwilliamssamalmot.blogspot.com

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