About logging SNMP data

"History" Shooters do the work of collecting and logging SNMP data. History Shooters poll devices periodical for SNMP data and store the responses into two different databases: the native Monitor one database and the RRD.

RRD is the Acronym for Round Robin Database. RRD is a system to store and display time-series data (i.e. network bandwidth, machine-room temperature, server load average). It stores the data in a very compact way that will not expand over time, and it presents useful graphs by processing the data to enforce a certain data density.

Monitor one can act as a front-end for RRD. A front-end is a program that acts as an interface for another! Monitor one History Shooters collect all kinds of SNMP data from network devices. In older versions, all this device specific SNMP information could only be saved in the native Monitor one database!

The native Monitor one history database versus the RRD

The reason for the usage of two different databases is to get the best out of both worlds. Generally spoken, the native Monitor one database allows better, more powerful and more flexible graphing and the RRD approach outclasses the native Monitor one database when it comes to long-term logging.

Both database structures support the exporting of logged SNMP data to flat *.txt files for reporting and further processing purposes. Although both databases are fed with the same data, the two databases handle the data differently. The native Monitor one database is able to handle all kinds of data, raw data as well as formula output and stores counter values "as is" without processing of any kind. Counter values are stored in RRD files as "per second" rates.