Network Monitoring Software

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By Penny Turner on September 26, 2008

Network monitoring software tracks the activities of a computer network. It monitors against failures or defects of devices and connections. It can be as simple as a ping application that ensures a connection is live by sending a low-bandwidth message between the two computers, or fairly extensive, covering servers and enterprise-wide networks.

Server monitoring software monitors the hardware and software of servers, and constantly watches for all sorts of issues, from the hardware to the operating system, and delivers notifications of any risks.
Security monitoring software varies in type, features, and type of monitoring it performs. They all help you maintain the stability and safety of your computer network, however. Some software, like packet sniffers, captures chunks of information and analyzes them. This helps detect not only dangers from within the network, but also dangers from without in the form of intrusions. Viruses are a form of intrusion, by the way.
When you set out to buy network monitoring software, you have to make sure the software monitors the things you want to know about Other features to look for in monitoring software include ease of installation, ease of use, effectiveness and support. You will also want to choose an application that records only the activity or activities you’re interested in knowing about. Too comprehensive a package will give you too much information if you only want to know about something specific such as emails or file transfers. A lot of software is out there that is tailored directly to a specific niche.

Through security network software, not only is the network kept running smoothly and efficiently, but the privacy and safety of those on the network is also maintained. You may want to monitor people’s activities within the network, however. Are you interested in monitoring your employee’s email? If you are, be aware it may be encrypted. There is one primary way to circumvent encryption and monitor employee activity, and that is with a keystroke reader. Email uses encryption software that is generally easier to use than software intended to encrypt files, because email encryption software is basically under the hood rather than in your face. Various kinds of encryption software employ different ways of distributing the keys that scramble and unscramble data.

If you are interested in keeping track of downloads, you have a lot of software to chose from. This can be especially useful in keeping employees from downloading junk and keeping your kids from downloading porn and illegal music and software. FTP software transfers files from one computer directly to another over a network. To access file transfer, FTP users log into an FTP server and select the files they wish to download. P2P involves filed stored on individual users’ computers that is downloadable by other users on the network. Some software makes uploading mandatory, while other software doesn’t mandate anything but encourages you to contribute to a file sharing community with incentive systems.

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