NetBrain Technologies, Inc.

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NetBrain POC Walk-Through

For OE 4.1

• Dynamic Documentation

• Visual Troubleshooting

© 2004-2013. All rights reserved

Install and Launch NetBrain Workstation

• The administrator should have already set up the shared workspace and the shared data is stored in Enterprise Server.

• The end-user logs in to the server and the workspace data will be automatically downloaded to the workstation from the server.

• The workstation is used for documentation, troubleshooting, and design.

1. Download and install the workstation software

Enter http://<IP or domain name of your Gateway Server>/netbrain in your web browser and select “Install Workstation”.

2. Setup the NetBrain server address

Launch Workstation and select Change Server option from the Login window.

3. Enter username and password Ask your administrator for the username and password. The default username/password is admin/admin.

4. The system will automatically download the shared workspace data from the server

Instruction:

Common Workflow

1. Search Enter a keyword such as IP address, configuration keyword or model in the Search box and press the Enter key. Tip: check the Exact Match Only option or put double quotes around the keyword for exact matching.

2. Map the search results

Mouse over a search result such as an end system. Select L3 Page or L2 Page and click on the map to create a dynamic Q-map.

3. Analyze from the map

Click on the blank space, a device or a path on the map and select the various operations from the map floating menu.

Instruction:

All-in-one Search Mapping Analyze From Map

Search NetBrain workspace, database and Visio maps on your PC using:

• IP address or device hostname • Text inside maps • Configuration keywords • Model, serial number, MAC, etc.

From the search results, • Create a dynamic Qmap (L3 and L2)

instantly • View the relevant Visio diagrams

Directly from the map, • Visualize the network design • Monitor • Analyze configurations and routing • Compare historical data

Introduction – Dynamic Documentation

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Dynamic Documentation

NetBrain’s dynamic network mapping capability allows you to instantly visualize any aspect of your network. Dynamic maps are data-driven and contain rich details such as IP addresses, subnet masks, routing protocols, multicast groups, and access-lists. This means that you can zero in on a problem area and start working with an interactive network map in seconds.

NetBrain can instantly index and search your network for the information you want. Search for IP address, hostname, inventory data (e.g. serial #), or any keyword, and create a map instantly from the search results. L3 and L2 devices can be grouped in many different ways to help you manage your network easier using dynamic device groups, link groups, sites, or switch groups. The Map Center is a central repository to share Qmaps and Visio maps among team members. Maps can be scheduled to be automatically updated. In addition to maps, you can create asset reports and Word documents instantly with NetBrain.

Key Features – Dynamic Documentation

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Dynamic Documentation

Map around a Device

View and Annotate Design Details

Visualize L3 Design

Create Visio Map Instantly

Map L2 Connection for an IP

Map L2 Connections of a LAN Segment

Define and Map a Dynamic Device Group

Discover Switch Groups

Manage Sites

One-IP Table

Map Center

Auto Update Maps

Import Configuration Files

Asset Report

Question: Which features are most relevant to you and your team in this Proof of Concept?

Map around a Device

Objective: • Map L3 connections around a device

Sample Use Case: • Troubleshoot a problematic router • BGP neighbors are down

1. Search the device Enter the IP address or device name in the Search field and press the Enter key. Tip: check the Exact Match Only option or put a double quote around the key word for exact matching.

2. Map the search result Mouse over a device in the searched result. Click the View Larger Map link.

3. View the neighbors Click on the red plus sign to open the neighbor window.

4. Draw the neighbors Double click on All Neighbors or one specific neighbor to draw the neighbor(s) on the map.

5. Draw the neighbor(s) of the neighbor(s)

Repeat steps 3 and 4 for more neighbors till all neighbor devices you are interested in are drawn on the map.

Instruction:

View and Annotate Design Details

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Objective: • Zoom in on the map to view details • Browse and annotate the design

Sample Use Case: • Create a design map for routing, multicasting, etc

1. Zoom in on the map Scroll the mouse wheel forward.

2. View the configurations of a network object

Mouse over a network object such as routing protocol, interface, or ACL.

3. Annotate a network design

Click on the Display on the Current Map icon in the tip window.

Instruction:

Visualize L3 Design

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Objective: • Visualize the network design such as routing, MPLS VRF, and multicasting • Analyze the configurations of a network design

Sample Use Case: • Visualize the routing design for a core network • Determine if a network is QoS/VoIP ready

1. Highlight routing protocols Select Highlight > Routing Protocols from the map floating menu.

2. Open Design Reader pane From the menu under the Home tag click the Design Reader option.

3. View the configurations of two devices such as BGP neighbors

Select two devices on the map and their configurations will be displayed at the bottom.

4. Select a design filter Select a design filter in the lower left pane such as “All BGP Configuration”

Instruction:

Create Visio Map Instantly

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Objective: • Export NetBrain Q-map to Visio format

Sample Use Case: • Share a map with someone without access to a NetBrain Workstation • Generate static Visio maps for inventory or compliance reasons

1. Create a Visio map Click on the Export to Visio icon from the map floating menu.

Instruction:

Note: • Microsoft Visio must be installed for this feature to work. • There is a limitation on the trial license for this feature. You can

only export a map with 50 or fewer devices to Visio.

Map L2 Connection for an IP

Objective: • Find the switch port connected to an IP address and map out the connection

Sample Use Case: • Block the traffic from a virus infected server

1. Search an IP address Enter the IP address in the Search field and press the Enter key.

2. Create an L2 map from the search results

Mouse over a device in the search results pane. Click on L2 Page. Click the View Larger Map link.

3. Draw other switch neighbors

Click on the red plus sign of the switch to extend its neighbors.

Instruction:

Map L2 Connections of a LAN Segment

Objective: • Map the L2 connections for a site

Sample Use Case: • Document a data center

1. Search the LAN segment

Enter the LAN segment subnet address (e.g., “192.168.1.0/24”) in the Search field and press the Enter key.

2. Create an L2 map from the search results

In the search result pane, mouse over a network segment. Click on L2 Page. Click the View Larger Map link.

3. Highlight the LAN segment

Click on the blank space of the map and select Highlight > Highlight LAN Segment from the map floating menu.

4. Highlight Spanning Tree

Click on the blank space of the map and select Highlight > STP Blocked Ports from the map floating menu, choose All Vlans and click OK.

Instruction:

Define and Map a Dynamic Device Group

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Objective: • Define device groups dynamically so that their devices and maps can be automatically updated Note: The NetBrain system automatically defines and creates some commonly used dynamic device groups for you.

Sample Use Case: • Share and auto update the maps for network sites

1. Create a new device group

In the Workspace pane, right-click on the Shared node under Device Group and select the New Device Group option.

2. Select devices dynamically

Click on the Dynamic button in the Device Group Properties window.

3. Define the search criteria

Define search criteria using the device type, hostname, IP address, etc.

4. Search the devices Click on the Search button.

5. Map the device group Right click on the device group you just created in the Workspace pane and select the Topology Map option.

Instruction:

Discover Switch Groups

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Objective: • Examine L2 topology of switch groups in the Workspace. Note: The NetBrain system automatically defines and creates these switch groups for you.

Sample Use Case: • Differentiate between data centers in the network

1. Enter the switch group list

Select the L2 Topology pane and navigate to the Switch Group drop-down list.

2. Select a switch group Click on a switch group in the list and click the Map button.

3. Investigate details Mouse over switch ports to see details like VLANs permitted, duplex modes, and speeds.

Instruction:

Manage Sites

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Objective: • Create a high-level view of the network

Sample Use Case: • Overview the entire network

1. Open Site Manager Click on the Site Manager button in the ribbon menu under the Workspace tag

2. Define a child site of a parent site

Select a parent site (initially there is only one site—Entire Network-Site) and click on the Define Child Site button.

3. Add devices to the child site

Either click on the Search button to define a search criteria or the Add button to add devices manually.

4. Create a site map Select a site in the Workspace pane and click on the Map button.

Instruction:

One-IP Table

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Objective: • View and search all subnets and devices in the workspace

Sample Use Case: • Find a connected device and instantly create a Qmap Note: You need admin rights to resolve DNS in the One-IP Table

1. Open the One-IP Table In the ribbon menu under L2 Topology, open One-IP Table.

2. Resolve DNS name Click on Resolve all DNS to resolve all. Alternatively, highlight an entry or multiple entries, right click the selection and choose Resolve DNS.

3. Search for an IP, MAC or DNS name

Choose an option from the Filter drop-down menu then input search data.

4. Create map from search result

Drag and drop the result to the map area to create L2 map.

Instruction:

Map Center

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Objective: • Save all maps to the Server so other users can view them

Sample Use Case: • Use the Map Center as a central repository of updated network maps that team members can view, search, edit and share

1. Open the Map Center On the Workspace Pane, click on Map Center.

2. Create a folder on Server Right click on the main Server node in Map Center and choose Create Folder.

3. Save maps in the folder

Right click on the folder and choose Add Maps Files.

4. View existing Visio maps If Visio maps have been indexed, open one and try the different options.

Instruction:

Auto Update Maps

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Objective: • Validate a map against the current network state • Auto update NetBrain Qmaps and Visio maps

Sample Use Case: • Automatically create and update maps for data centers

1. Open an old map In the Map Center pane, find and open an old map.

2. Validate the map against the current baseline

Click on the Map > Validate > Highlight Changes in the menu.

3. Regenerate the map Click on the Regenerate Map button to update the map.

4. Schedule Map Update Click on the Schedule button in the menu under the Map tab to set up a schedule to update the maps.

Instruction:

Import Configuration Files

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Objective: • Add network devices by importing configuration files

Sample Use Case: • Some network devices are not accessible from NetBrain but you have their configuration files • Analyze the configuration change of your design

Instruction:

1. Prepare configuration files

Collect the configuration files (e.g., the output of show run or show configuration CLI commands) and save them in a file folder.

2. Import configurations

In the ribbon menu under the Workspace tag, click on the Import Configuration icon.

3 Select the file folder Click the From Folder… button in the Import Configuration Files window. Select a folder containing configuration files.

4. Select device configurations to import

Select the device configurations to import. By default, only devices not in the workspace will be selected. You can select multiple entries using the Ctrl or Shift key.

5. Import configurations

Click the Import button.

Note: • You can drag-and-drop configuration files into a Workstation and create a map. However these devices are not saved in the shared workspace. • You need to set the device setting for the imported devices to retrieve data from these devices. You can tune live access for this purpose.

Asset Report

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Objective: • Create an inventory report for all devices or a device group

Sample Use Case: • Document a network • Feed inventory data into other systems

1. Open the Asset Report window

Click on the Asset Report button in the ribbon menu under the Home tab.

2. Select a site, device group, or device type

Select a site, device group, or device type.

3. Create an asset report Click on the Create Asset Report button. Select the applicable options.

Instruction:

Note: There is a limitation on the trial license for this feature. You can only create an inventory report with 50 or fewer

devices.

Introduction – Visual Troubleshooting

20

Visual Troubleshooting

NetBrain is also a powerful troubleshooting tool. It employs a unique three-step methodology referred to as MPH. Using NetBrain, quickly Map the problem area and begin Probing for issues such as link error, delay, jitter, memory utilization, etc. Finally, compare route tables and configuration information to Historical data to understand where a problem occurred.

1. Map the problem area with a dynamic Qmap

2. Probe network connectivity and performance using the ‘Monitor’ function

3. Historical Analysis reveals what has changed to cause the problem

Key Features – Visual Troubleshooting

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Visual Troubleshooting Map an Application Path

Map L2 Connections along a Path

Monitoring

Log in to a Network Device

Benchmark Customized Show Command Data

Compare Show Command Results

Compare Configurations and Routing

IP Accounting

NetFlow Traffic Analysis

IP SLA

One-Click Word Document

Map an Application Path

Objective: • Discover and map the application path (L3 and L2) between two end points

Sample Use Case: • Troubleshoot a slow application • Document critical applications

1. Enter the source and destination IP addresses

At the ribbon menu under the Home tab, enter IP addresses in Field A and B.

2. Select the path direction Click the arrow icon to select the path direction (default is roundtrip).

3. Select the discovery option Click on the Expand icon. Select an option: Via Live Network (live path) or Via Cached Route Table in Data Folder (historical path).

4. Discover and map the path Click on the Find Path button.

5. View the configurations of any potential issues

Click on any alarm info such as ACL to view detailed information.

Instruction:

Map L2 Connections along a Path

Objective: • Map L2 connections along an L3 path

Sample Use Case: • Troubleshoot a slow application • Document critical applications

1. View L2 path Right-click an L3 path curve and select View L2 Path from the drop-down menu. A new L2 map will be created for the L2 path.

2. View port configuration along the path

Mouse over a switch port and view its configuration in the tip window.

Instruction:

Monitoring

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Objective: • Visualize the device/interface status and performance data on the map

Sample Use Case: • Identify a down/unstable device or interface • Identify any interfaces with high bandwidth or devices with high CPU or memory usage

1. Turn on monitoring Click on the Monitor button in the map floating menu.

2. View the historical data Right click a data point and select the View Chart option.

3. Turn off monitoring Click on the Monitor button again.

Instruction:

Note: • If the interface delay or bandwidth usage is not visible, you can zoom in on the Qmap or drag the link longer to make it visible. • To change monitor settings such as frequency and threshold, right click on any blank space on the map and select Monitor > Define option.

Log in to a Network Device

Objective: • Work on the old CLI window and the map side by side.

Sample Use Case: • Disable a switch port connected to a virus infected server • View the output of BGP routing table of a router and its topology map side by side

1. Search the device Enter the device hostname in the Search field and press the Enter key.

2. Create a Qmap around this device

Mouse over a device in the search results and click the View Larger Map link.

3. Login to the device Select a device on the map and click CLI > Telnet/SSH from the map floating menu.

Instruction:

Note: The system uses the credentials in the local CLI settings to login to a device. Click Workspace > Setting within Local CLI Settings to enter the local CLI settings.

Benchmark Customized Show Commands

Objective: • Benchmark any customized show command output which may be affected by the change

Sample Use Case: • For dynamic routing configuration change, benchmark the relevant show commands

Instruction:

1. Benchmark the show commands from the map

Select a device on the map, from the map floating menu, click on Benchmark and then select Execute Show Commands….

2. Enter the show commands to be executed

In the Execute Show Commands window, click the Add via Template… button. Check the EIGRP Command Template checkbox or any other template. Click OK to add all show commands in this template.

3. Select a Data Folder to save the data

Check the In Map radio button and select a DataFolder or create a new folder (eg, “before change” for folder name). Note: The Map DataFolder is automatically saved in the map file, while the Local DataFolder is not.

4. Start executing the show commands

Click the Start button.

5. Run show commands again

If you make network changes, repeat steps 1-4 and save results in “after change” folder.

Compare Show Command Results

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Objective: • Compare the show command outputs before and after a change

Sample Use Case: • To QA the change for dynamic routing configurations, compare the change of the relevant show command output to analyze the impact of the change on the routing neighbors, routing protocol table, etc.

1. Compare show command outputs

On the map from previous slide, from the map floating menu, click on Compare > Compare Show Command.

2. Select two data sources

Select a device, two DataFolders, and a show command, and then click on the Compare button.

3. View the show command output changes

Click on the Next arrow in the NetBrainDiff window to view the next difference.

Instruction:

Compare Configurations and Routing

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Objective: • Compare configurations and routing for all devices on the map

Sample Use Case: • Find any missing routes after implementing a network change • Identify configuration changes that may cause a network problem

1. Compare configurations and routing for all devices on the map

From the map floating menu, click on Compare > Compare Config & Routing.

2. Select two data sources Select two DataFolders and click on the Compare button.

3. View the routing change statistics and the routing changes

Double click an entry in the Batch Compare Routing Tables pane to view the route changes for a router.

4. View the configuration changes Double click an entry in the Batch Compare Config pane to check configuration change details for a device.

Instruction:

Note: You can select a local DataFolder as well as a server DataFolder, which begins with “::”. The server DataFolder is automatically created by the benchmark tasks on the server.

IP Accounting

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Objective: • Find the top talker via IP accounting

Sample Use Case: • Troubleshoot high bandwidth usage

1. Launch IP Accounting Right click on the bandwidth usage of an interface and select IP Accounting. Note: the interface must have IP Accounting configured.

2. Sort the IP Accounting results

Click on a field such as Packets per Second to sort the results.

3. Create the path Right click an entry and select Create Path to map out the path for this entry.

Instruction:

NetFlow Traffic Analysis

Objective: • Find the traffic type and port information for packets on an interface

Sample Use Case: • Troubleshoot high bandwidth usage

1. Launch NetFlow Right click on the bandwidth usage of an interface and select NetFlow. Note: The interface must have NetFlow configured.

2. Sort the NetFlow results

Click on a field to sort the results.

3. Create the path Right click an entry and select Create Path to map out the path for this entry.

Instruction:

IP SLA

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Objective: • View packet loss, jitter and latency between two Cisco devices across a LAN or a WAN link

Sample Use Case: • Troubleshoot VoIP

Instruction:

1. Open IP SLA Manager Click on the IP SLA button in the ribbon menu under the Home tag.

2. Refresh the operations Click the Refresh button to refresh IP SLA operations.

3. Select an IP SLA operation Select an IP SLA operation.

4. Start the operation and view IP SLA result chart

Click the Start and then Show Chart buttons.

5. Map the operation and view results on the map

Create a new map. In the IP SLA Result pane, click on the Find Path button (select Via Live Network and click OK in the popup window). Switch back to the IP SLA Result pane, then click on the Highlight In Map button.

6. Display the live IP SLA results on the map

Click on the Monitor button to turn on monitoring.

One-Click Word Document

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Objective: • Create a Word document instantly from a map

Sample Use Case: • Create inventory, design, or troubleshooting documents

1. Open the Network Documentation window

Click on the Word icon from the map floating menu.

2. Select the data to export

Select a template or click on the Advanced button to select which data to export. Click OK.

3. Select a target file Select a target file.

4. Create a Word Doc Click on the Finish button.

Instruction:

Note: • Microsoft Word must be installed for this feature to work. • There is a limitation on the trial license for this feature. You can only export a Word Document for a map with 50 or fewer devices.

Additional Features

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Design Reader

Traceroute Tool

Ping Tool

Design Reader

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Objective: • Dive-in and filter on specific technologies for the network design.

Sample Use Case: • Analyze a network design • Learn network skills for CCIE certification

1. Open the Design Reader From the Ribbon Menu under the Home tag, click on the Design Reader icon.

2. Compare device data Choose 2 devices on the map, and their configurations will be displayed in the 2 boxes in Design Reader pane. View and compare their configurations side-by-side.

3. Filter on routing protocol, ACL, multicasting, etc

From the left pane in the Design Reader, click on a technology filter.

4. View sample maps Click on the View Sample icon (magnifying glass) to see some sample maps and show commands.

Instruction:

Traceroute Tool

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Objective: • Traceroute to a device and quickly create a map

Sample Use Case: • Run a traceroute between two points and map out the results

1. Open the Traceroute tool From the Ribbon Menu under the Home tag, choose Traceroute > Traceroute to.

2. Choose Device to traceroute from

Choose the Device option and then choose a device from the dropdown list.

3. Input an IP to traceroute to Input IP and click Start.

4. Map out the results

Click on Map to create a Qmap of the traceroute result.

Instruction:

Ping Tool

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Objective: • Ping from and to a remote point

Sample Use Case: • Check connectivity between two points

1. Open the Ping Tool From the Ribbon Menu under the Home tag, choose Ping to > Ping to.

2. Choose Device to ping from

Choose the Device option and then choose a device from the dropdown list.

3. Input IP to ping Input IP and click Start.

Instruction:

Thank You

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