Net Mobile-Cop: A hybrid intelli-agent framework to manage networks

More than a decade ago, MA(mobile agents) were introduced for NM(network management) of distributed computer networks in tandem with the design paradigm of code-shipping the agents to remote node, where they are programmed to collect, analyze and process data locally. However, even today, most networks employ SNMP (simple network management protocol), an inherently client-server based stable and proven protocol, which uses the paradigm data-shipping. It suffers from the major drawback that when the network traffic increases, the manager is overloaded due to excessive processing. Real synergy could be achieved if we adopt a hybrid approach that brings the best of both paradigms. In this paper we present Net mobile-cophybrid NM framework, prototyped on Aglet mobile agent system and AdventNet SNMP Package, which imbibes this synergy. We also introduce a novel method to dynamically configure managed nodes using intelligent agents. We also provide quantitative evaluation leading to useful tips to the sys-admin as to when to toggle between SNMP and MA usage.