Sun Microsystems Sun Fire X4200 - Manual (Page 22)

2-2 Sun Fire X4100 and Sun Fire X4200 Servers System Management Guide • December 2005
■ Manage serial-over-LAN connections – Via the Intelligent Platform Management
Interface (IPMI).
To learn more about this suite of powerful data center management tools, see
http://www.sun.com/software/products/system_manager/ .
2.2 About SNMP
The Sun Fire X4100 or Sun Fire X4200 server supports the Simple Network
Management Protocol (SNMP) interface, versions 1, 2c, and 3. SNMP is an open
technology that enables the management of networks and devices, or nodes,
connected to the network. SNMP messages are sent over IP using the User Datagram
Protocol (UDP). Any management application that supports SNMP can manage your
server.
2.2.1 How SNMP Works
Utilizing SNMP requires two components, a network management station and a
managed node. Network management stations host management applications,
which monitor and control managed nodes. Managed nodes are any number of
devices, including servers, routers, and hubs, which host SNMP management agents
responsible for carrying out the requests from management stations. The
management station monitors nodes by polling management agents for the
appropriate information using queries. Managed nodes can also provide unsolicited
status information to a management station in the form of a trap. SNMP is the
protocol used to communicate management information between the management
stations and agents.
The SNMP agent is preinstalled and runs on the service processor, so all SNMP
management of the server should occur through the service processor. To utilize this
feature, your operating system must have an SNMP client application. See your
operating system vendor for more information.
The SNMP agent on your service processor provides the following capabilities:
inventory management, and sensor and system state monitoring.