SNMP devices
SNMP is suited to switches, routers, printers, storage appliances, and hosts where installing an Agent is not appropriate. Add the device from Onboard Device or use Set up SNMP from a discovered Hardware resource. Configuration is stored on its managed Server record.
Authentication versions
- SNMPv1 uses a community string and offers no encryption. Use it only on trusted isolated networks when the device requires it.
- SNMPv2c uses a community string but does not encrypt it on the wire. Prefer a restricted read-only community and a protected network path.
- SNMPv3 uses a username and authentication protocol; privacy encryption can also be enabled when supported by the device.
The supported protocol choices depend on the selected collection path and installed release. Never put credentials in the device name, description, or a check target. Saved secrets are masked and delivered to collectors only when needed.
Configure polling
- Open the managed Server's Settings → SNMP tab.
- Enable polling and enter the device address and UDP port (normally 161).
- Choose the exact SNMP version configured on the device.
- Enter the v1/v2c community or the v3 username, authentication, and optional privacy settings.
- Select Auto or an appropriate device profile and save.
Only metrics exposed by the device's MIBs can be collected. The generic profile and compatible pollers can read standard CPU, memory, uptime, and storage counters; vendor metrics require a supported profile/OID. Unsupported counters remain unavailable rather than being guessed.
Automatic detection and profile status
With Auto, enabled profiles are matched against standard SNMP identity information. A Local Network Collector periodically performs this detection and saves the result for a subsequent poll; detection runs initially, every six hours, when the registry changes, or when you request re-detection. The poll that performs detection uses the previously effective profile. When an identity response is received but is ambiguous or does not meet any enabled profile's confidence threshold, automatic selection falls back to generic-host. If the identity probe is unavailable, the last effective profile is retained; on first detection this is normally generic-host.
Profiles marked Experimental are available for explicit manual selection but excluded from automatic matching. This status means a profile has not been enabled for general automatic selection; its vendor OIDs or coverage may still need validation. Disabled profiles cannot be selected or matched. See Local Network Collector for collector-specific polling limits.
Troubleshoot
- Confirm UDP/161 is reachable from the selected worker or LNC.
- Confirm the collector's allowed CIDR includes the target when using an LNC.
- Check version, community, username, auth/privacy protocols, and context against the device configuration.
- Inspect the Server SNMP tab for last poll time/error and the collector task history for LNC jobs.
See Local Network Collector for private-network polling and Metrics and history for interpreting n/a values.