NMS Setup

This article discusses the initial setup of NMS (Network Monitoring System) in the Kentik portal.

Note: For an overview of the initial Kentik setup tasks, see Getting Started.

About NMS Setup

Kentik’s NMS (Network Monitoring System) discovers and monitors devices within your infrastructure. Setup is managed via the NMS Setup Wizard, which configures the Universal Agent to collect metrics and transmit them to the Kentik SaaS.

Access the NMS Setup Wizard

New/Trial Customers:

• Go to the Welcome to Network Observability page during onboarding.

• NMS setup is listed as one of the setup tasks on the left.

Existing Deployments:

• From the main portal nav menu, open the NMS Devices page.

• Select the Manage dropdown in the subnav and click Discoveries to open the NMS Discoveries page.

• Click Discover Devices to open the wizard.

How NMS Polling Works

Unlike non-NMS applications involving SNMP, NMS requires the Universal Agent to be deployed within your network. The following default polling intervals apply:

Note: These intervals can be overridden by using Streaming Telemetry (ST) for supported devices (see NMS via Streaming Telemetry).

NMS Setup Wizard

The setup process is divided into three main steps: deployment, credentialing, and discovery.

Step 1: Deploy the Universal Agent

1. Navigate to the NMS Setup page.

2. Select your deployment method: Docker or Linux.

3. Copy the provided install command.

   • Optional: If using a web proxy, set the https_proxy variable as shown in the UI.

4. Run the command in the terminal on the host machine.

5. Once the agent appears in the Select an Agent list, click Use this Agent.

TIP: The SNMP/ST capability of the Universal Agent will be installed automatically by the wizard. To install other capabilities for it, or any other agent, see Install a Capability.

Step 2: Add Subnets & Credentials

1. In the IP Range field, enter a comma-separated list of IP ranges to scan.

2. From the Credentials dropdown, either select existing SNMP credentials or click New Credential and specify the following:

   • Type: SNMP version (v1, v2c, or v3).

   • Credential Name: Any user chosen name (no spaces).

   • Community: The SNMP community string configured on your devices.

3. Confirm the Collection Agent and click Start Discovery.

Step 3: Discover and Import

The agent scans the provided ranges. Results populate in real-time.

1. Review the Discovered Devices list.

   TIP: Click the customize button to choose which columns of information are shown in the list.

2. Uncheck any devices you do not wish to monitor.

3. Click Add Devices to begin data collection and open the NMS Devices page.

Manage NMS Discoveries

Device discovery may take time depending on network size. You can monitor progress via the status indicator in the main navbar or by clicking Manage Discoveries on the NMS Discoveries page.

Discovery Status Types

• In Progress: Scanning is active; an estimated time remaining is provided.

• Finished: All IPs have been scanned.

• Started/Completed: Timestamps for the discovery window.

NMS via Streaming Telemetry

Streaming Telemetry offers a modern alternative to traditional SNMP polling.

Notes:

• Kentik also has limited support for collection via ST of data for the Kentik Data Engine (see SNMP and ST KDE Support).

• For information about differences between SNMP and Streaming Telemetry, see SNMP vs. Streaming Telemetry.

Comparison: SNMP vs. ST

• Efficiency: ST uses a subscription model, reducing CPU load on devices.

• Granularity: Supports sub-second data collection (defaulting to 30s in Kentik).

• Accuracy: Data is timestamped at the source, eliminating transit-time jitter.

• Data Availability: Some vendors (e.g., Juniper) are making new data types available only via ST.

Note: For assistance with any obstacles to your adoption of ST, contact Kentik (see Customer Care).

Supported ST Protocols

Implementing ST (Two-Phase Process)

To use ST, a device must first be discovered via the NMS Setup Wizard to map its SNMP components.

1. Device Config: Configure your hardware (Cisco, Juniper, or Arista) for gNMI Dial-in (see Kentik’s Configuration Repo for vendor-specific examples).

2. Kentik Portal Config: Navigate to Device Settings > Streaming Telemetry and enable Dial-In from Universal Agent.

What Changes After Enabling ST?

Once enabled, the Universal Agent stops polling SNMP for CPU, memory, and interface stats, switching to ST intervals:

• Default Metrics: 30-second collection.

• CPU Metrics: 2-second collection (visible as live updates on the NMS Devices page).

  Note: SNMP polling continues for non-telemetry data such as hardware make/model and BGP monitoring.

View Results

ST data is normalized into the same schema as SNMP. You can view integrated results in the NMS Dashboard, Metrics Explorer, and NMS Devices pages. To verify if a device is actively using ST, check the Dial-In from Universal Agent checkbox status in the device's Settings dialog (see Device ST Settings).

NMS Discoveries Page UI

The Discoveries page provides a list of NMS discoveries, ongoing or completed, initiated from the NMS Setup Wizard, and includes the following:

• Discover Devices (button): Opens the NMS Setup Wizard to deploy agents, discover devices in specified IP ranges, and turn on monitoring for those devices. Discoveries started in the wizard are be listed on the Discoveries page.

• Discoveries (list): Lists a card for each discovery, including the following UI elements:

  • Discovery status: The status of the discovery:

    • Finished: All IPs specified in the NMS Setup Wizard have been scanned.

    • In progress: The scan of IPs has not completed. An estimate is provided of the time remaining.

  • Started: The date-time at which the scan began.

  • Completed: The date-time at which the scan finished (if completed).

  • Completion percentage: A horizontal bar and accompanying numeric indicator of the percent of the IPs that have been scanned.

  • IPs scanned: The number of IPs scanned.

  • Devices found: The number of devices found.

  • View Details (button): Opens the Discovery Details Page for this discovery.

  • Dismiss (button): Removes the discovery from the list.

    Note: Discoveries stay on the list unless manually dismissed.

Discovery Details Page

The Discovery Details page provides details about a discovery on the NMS Discoveries page, and includes:

• Information Pane: A set of indicators about the discovery. Click Dismiss to close the pane if desired.

• Device List: The list of devices discovered so far, including:

  • Search: Click to enter search terms by which to filter the devices list.

  • Monitored device count: The number of devices selected for monitoring.

  • Add Devices: Click to initiate NMS monitoring for the selected devices.

  • Select all: A checkbox to toggle selection of all devices on or off.

  • Select device: A checkbox to select an individual device for monitoring.

  • Columns: Information about each listed device (see Discovery Details Columns).

  Note: By default, the Select device checkmarks for all found devices are on.

Discovery Details Columns

The following columns are shown in the Device list for each discovery:

• Status: A set of lozenges indicating the status of the device:

  • Up: Indicates the device is intended to be operational.

  • Down: Indicates the device is intentionally not operational.

• Name: The device name specified during registration or editing.

• IP Address: The IP address(es) from which the device sends data to Kentik.

• Object ID: The device's globally unique identifier used in SNMP (sysObjectID).

• Vendor: The device manufacturer.

• Model: The device model number.

• Device ID: The Kentik-assigned device ID.

• Monitoring Template: A dropdown to select a monitoring template for the device:

  • Select one of Kentik’s presets (e.g., Everything, Minimal) or one of your own custom templates.

  • Click Create NMS Template to open the dialog to create a new template.

  • Click Manage Templates to open the Manage Templates page.