Cisco launches network analysis tool

Cisco has launched a Network Analysis Module that fits into its Catalyst 6000 family of switches.

Cisco has launched a Network Analysis Module (NAM) that fits into its Catalyst 6000 family of switches.

The company said NAM simplifies the management of multi-service networks by gathering information about voice and data flows up to the application layer, while monitoring multiple switch ports and virtual Lans simultaneously.

Steve Broadhead, analyst at NSS, said that this type of technology should have been included with the switch itself. "These products are an afterthought.

"Typically, vendors don't put network management and monitoring first when creating a product because it's not their forte; they're focused on the hardware," he said.

Cisco said the NAM complements the RMON SwitchProbe family and is a component of its end-to-end network management portfolio. "It helps network administrators in identifying applications flows and protocol distribution, but also performs trend analysis and capacity management," a spokesperson said.

The NAM adheres to industry standards, including full RMON-1 and RMON-2. It complies with the Switch Monitoring protocol in Lan environments and High Capacity RMON for different RMON tables.