Create an SNMP custom monitoring service

If you need to access SNMP information not retrieved by an existing N-able N-central service, create a SNMP-based custom service. With a custom service you can tailor it to the specific information you need to know.

SNMP uses unique Object Identifiers (OIDs) to identify managed objects containing information on a device. Management Information Bases (MIBs) define what this information on a particular device or class of device means. If a device has multiple values for an object, an index number is also added (for example, a PC may have four disk drives, each with its own value for description, storage size, storage used). This means you can uniquely select an instance of the value, or leave off the last number to retrieve all values.

You can use a SNMP walk tool, such as iReasoning's MIB Browser, to connect to a network device and retrieve the OIDs for the specific devices you want to monitor.

  1. Click Administration > Service Management > Custom Services.
  2. Click Add > Service > SNMP.
  3. Enter a Name and Description.
  4. On the Queries tab, click Add and enter a name for this query.
  5. Double-click the default OID Name and enter a name.
  6. Double-click the default OID To Query and enter the OID value. Click Add OID to add more OIDs as needed.
  7. Use only numeric OIDs. Textual OID paths are not supported, and will generate an error similar to "205 Device IP not reachable ".

  8. In the SNMP Index Options section, select to either:
    • Use custom SNMP index and enter the custom SNMP Index.

    • Query OID with specific value to retrieve SNMP index and enter the OID number and the Value from the MIB for the number to monitor.

  9. Click the check box for Enabling editing of this field in N-able N-central. This makes the discovered property visible on the service and service template.
  10. Click Save.
  11. Click the Data and Thresholds tab, click Add Metric.
  12. Enter a name for the first Metric you want to use.
  13. Create the metric using the OIDs you selected above and click Save.
  14. Click Configure Thresholds in the Action column.
  15. Enter the ranges that define Normal, Warning and Failed states for this metric.
  16. Click Save, then Save again.

The new service appears in the Custom Services list. You can now add this service to a template or to any Windows server or workstation. For information on applying the custom service, see Apply custom monitoring services.

For further assistance, contact N-able Technical Support.