Setting Error and Traffic Thresholds

You can set device and traffic thresholds for devices and connections so you can view errors and traffic flows in a meaningful way.

You can set thresholds for packet loss and response time for all devices on a map. You can also override default thresholds for a particular device.

For devices, you can set thresholds for:

As stated above, these statistics can be seen in the device's status window.

Setting Default Thresholds for a Map

You can set default device and traffic thresholds for a map. Use the Map Settings window, available from the Edit menu, to set default thresholds.

Setting Default Device Thresholds

Use the Device section of the Map Settings window to set default device thresholds for a map so that errors for all devices are reported at the same levels.

To set the default device thresholds for a map:

  1. In an editable map, choose Map Settings from the Edit menu. The Map Settings window appears.
  2. In the left pane, click Device. The default thresholds for the map appear in the right pane.
  3. Enter the settings you want to change, and click OK. The map uses the new threshold settings.

Setting Default Traffic Thresholds

Use the Traffic section of the Map Settings window to set traffic thresholds for a map. You cannot set traffic thresholds for a specific device.

To set the default traffic thresholds for a map:

  1. In an editable map, choose Map Settings from the Edit menu. The Map Settings window appears.
  2. In the left pane, click Traffic. The current traffic thresholds for the map appear in the right pane.
  3. Enter the settings you want to change, and click OK. The map uses the new threshold settings.

For more information on traffic threshold settings, see Map Settings Window.

Setting Thresholds for a Specific Device

You can set device thresholds for a specific device, with different values than the default map settings. You cannot set traffic thresholds for a specific network or link. You do this from the Info window.

Note: When setting thresholds for a probe group, you can set the thresholds only for an individual probe, or use the Map's default settings. For more information, see Setting Thresholds for Probe Groups(Pg 1) below.

Note: Only SNMP probes have thresholds for all three parameters (response time, packet loss and interface errors); a ping/UDP-based probe monitors only response time and packet loss, and a TCP probe monitors only response time.

To set the device thresholds for a specific device:

 

  1. With the map in Edit mode, right-click a device and choose Info window, or choose Info window from the Monitor menu. The Info window appears.
  2. In the Info window, click Thresholds. The Thresholds pane appears.
  3. Clear the Use Map Defaults check box.
  4. If you want to suppress alerts for the device when it goes down, select the Ignore Outages check box.

    Note: The Ignore Outages check box suppresses alerts only with respect to outages, not to other state changes, thresholds, or to any alerts triggers by probes attached to the device. This is useful if a device such as a laptop or mobile device goes up or down (or leaves the network completely) as part of its normal operation.

  5. Enter new values in the boxes you want to change, and click OK or Apply. The selected device uses the new values.

Setting Thresholds for Probe Groups

When setting thresholds for a probe group, you can set the thresholds only for an individual probe, or use the Map's default settings.

To set thresholds for a probe group:

  1. Double-click a probe group. The Info window for the probe group appears.
  2. In the left pane of the Info window, click Probes. A list of probes in the probe group appears.
  3. Right-click (or Ctrl-click) the probe for which you want to set thresholds, and choose Info Window. The Info window for the selected probe appears.
  4. In the left pane, click Thresholds. The threshold settings for the selected probe appear.
  5. Clear the Use Map Defaults box, then set the thresholds as needed and click OK. The thresholds for the selected probe are set.
  6. Continue setting thresholds for each probe as needed, then click OK in the probe group's Info window.