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What are the Different Types of Network Monitoring Software?

Troy Holmes

Last Modified Date: February 04, 2024

Computer networks are a complex organization of telecommunication devices that allow computers to communicate to each other. This communication orchestration requires proactive monitoring and planning to ensure overall stability within an organization. Network monitoring software is specialized computer software that is designed to track and alert an organization on issues and risks. This software collects critical data within an enterprise to enable the tracking of trends, surges and errors.

Network monitoring software covers a wide area of protocols and devices. These include the networks that support emails, websites and instant messaging protocols. Each protocol has specific monitoring processes that are unique to the type of information that is transmitted over a network. This network software is managed by network administrators. These individuals are responsible for ensuring stability and availability of a network within an organization.

Administrators may need to manually check issues found through network monitoring.

Email is used widely within most organizations. This information uses the protocol named simple mail transport protocol (SMTP). This protocol is the standard format for how email messages are sent over a network. SMTP was introduced in 1982 by John Postol. This process is now widely accepted as the primary method for sending emails to mail servers throughout the world. A network monitoring tool typically includes SMTP monitors, which track the stability of mail servers for both traffic and errors.

Network monitoring software is specialized computer software that is designed to track and alert an organization on issues and risks.

There are multiple forms of instant messaging services available within most companies today. These services allow users to send instant messages on cell phones, smart computers, and other portable devices. Special network monitoring software is available to support instant messaging products.

The network monitoring software can inspect and monitor the instant messaging traffic of an organization. It can also be used as a means of policy enforcement. These tools have the capability of inspecting messages and traffic locations to limit inappropriate behavior.

Another benefit of network monitoring software is the ability to track surges and trends. This software identifies network traffic from specific locations. This allows the network manager a means of managing surges by reducing network traffic from specific incoming messages. This network traffic management includes all types of messages.

Communication networks require proper management and storage of old messages. This storage is typically managed on a real-time basis. Each new message requires appropriate logging and storage for future inspection. This process requires proactive monitoring of storage capacity within the network. Most network monitoring software also manages the capacity of message storage servers to ensure enough space is available to store audit logs.

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Discussion Comments

AndreasT

December 12, 2013

You can look up a lot of free network monitoring software, e.g., EasyNetMonitor or others. You cannot get source codes from them, but these programs are very primitive.

barryherne

November 6, 2013

I still think that the main function of network monitoring software is to protect the whole system from unauthorised entrance and attacks, even. If you have chosen a reliable tool and follow what happens and how it works, you are not likely to have any problems, as you get a full control over the whole network of the company. I like the software with troubleshooting that is able to tell you how to deal with this very trouble.

everetra

January 21, 2012

@SkyWhisperer - Our administrator is always monitoring the bandwidth on our IP connections. He uses network performance monitoring software to do so.

It’s similar to the broadband speed tests you find on the Internet. Anyway he discovered that the biggest hog of bandwidth came from employees who were streaming video from the video sharing sites.

First of all that’s against company policy. Second of all it’s clearly not work related. He put a stop to that right away. He told the employees to stop, and the company made an announcement that they would not permit this kind of activity any longer. It’s tough to continue doing it when you’ve been nailed once, and you know you’re being watched.

SkyWhisperer

January 20, 2012

@David09 - I’ve heard about some of the IP network monitoring software tools used for intrusion detection. This is basically a means of figuring out if someone has attempted to break through the company firewall and attempt an attack on the network.

Intrusion detection is part art, part science. Some companies also add something called a “honey pot,” which is like a lure for hackers. They go to what they think is the company’s site, only to be redirected to a fake site where their traffic can be sent out of the network.

I think it’s clever and a way to be one step ahead of the hackers.

David09

January 19, 2012

I think it’s clear that computer network monitoring software is in use in companies everywhere for security purposes. With that in mind, you can forget privacy.

Anything you say in an email or IM can be logged and used against you. Some employees bristle at this notion. Somehow they think they enjoy the right to privacy everywhere they go, but this is simply not so.

When you use company resources, they can track how those resources are used. My advice is that if you don’t want your personal email message broadcast to the whole world – including the company president – then keep email communications professional and limited to business purposes.

Remember also that simply deleting an email may not protect you, as the company may have an archive of past messages in its servers.