Abstract
The lack of current network dynamics studies that evaluate the effects of new application and protocol deployment or long-term studies that observe the effect of incremental changes on the Internet, and the change in the overall stability of the Internet under various conditions and threats has made network monitoring challenging. A good understanding of the nature and type of network traffic is the key to solving congestion problems. In this paper we describe the architecture and implementation of a scalable network traffic moni-toring and analysis system. The gigabit interface on the monitoring system was configured to capture network traffic and the Multi Router Traffic Grapher (MRTG) and Webalizer produces graphical and detailed traffic analysis. This system is in use at the Obafemi Awolowo University, IleIfe, Nigeria; we describe how this system can be replicated in another environment.
Highlights
The rapid growth of the Internet in size, complexity and traffic types has made network management a challenging task
As soon as the upgrade is done the congestion problem will improve for a while and later gradually deteriorate as the users change their behavior in response to the upgrade
The alternative solution to this problem is to deploy a scalable network traffic monitoring and analysis system, in order to understand the dynamics of the traffic and changes in the internet and overall stability of the network
Summary
The rapid growth of the Internet in size, complexity and traffic types has made network management a challenging task. The ability of a monitoring system to provide accurate information about the nature and type of the network traffic can not be over emphasized. A typical solution to congestion problem is to upgrade network infrastructure, i.e. replace servers with high end servers and increase the bandwidth. This solution is expensive, short term and does not scale. The alternative solution to this problem is to deploy a scalable network traffic monitoring and analysis system, in order to understand the dynamics of the traffic and changes in the internet and overall stability of the network. Collecting long term network traffic data will provide valuable information for improving and understanding the actual network.
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Free) 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a call
