Simple Network Management Protocol (SNMP)

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Simple Network Management Protocol (SNMP) is an Application Layer protocol within the Open Systems Interconnection (OSI) Model stack. It is used for monitoring and managing network devices on a Local Area Network (LAN) or Wide Area Network (WAN).

The purpose of SNMP is to provide network devices, such as Routers, Servers and printers, with a common language for sharing information with a Network Management System (NMS).

SNMP's client-server architecture has the three following components:

an SNMP manager;an SNMP agent; anda Management Information Base (MIB).The SNMP manager acts as the client, the SNMP agent acts as the server, and the MIB acts as the server's database. When the SNMP manager asks the agent a question, the agent uses the MIB to supply the answer.

SNMP is so popular that most network devices come pre-bundled with SNMP agents. To make use of the protocol, however, network administrators must first change the default configuration settings of their network devices so SNMP agents can communicate with the NMS.

SNMP is part of the original Internet Protocol (IP) suite as defined by the Internet Engineering Task Force (IETF). Multiple versions of the SNMP protocol exist. The most recent version, SNMPv3, includes security mechanisms for authentication, encryption and access control.

Source: https://www.techtarget.com/searchnetworking/definition/SNMP