contents overview 1 1. 2. troubleshoot a slow applicationnetbrain trial workbook dynamic mapping 101...

NETBRAIN TRIAL WORKBOOK |0

Trial Guide

Contents

Overview ............................................................................................................................... 1

Launch NetBrain Workstation .................................................................................................. 2

1. Instantly Create Network Diagrams ................................................................................... 3

1.1 Search, Then Map ......................................................................................................................... 3

1.2 Instantly Analyze Network Design ................................................................................................ 4

1.3 Monitor Network Performance .................................................................................................... 7

1.4 Collect Batch CLI Output ............................................................................................................... 8

2. Troubleshoot a Slow Application ...................................................................................... 11

2.1 Map the Application Path ........................................................................................................... 11

2.2 Monitor Network Performance .................................................................................................. 12

2.3 View Historical Application Path ................................................................................................. 15

3. Discover Your Own Network ........................................................................................... 18

3.1 Create a Local Workspace ........................................................................................................... 18

3.2 Launch Network Discovery ......................................................................................................... 19

4. Automate Change Management ...................................................................................... 22

4.1 Define Network Changes ............................................................................................................ 22

4.2 Benchmark the Network before Execution ................................................................................ 24

4.3 Execute Network Changes .......................................................................................................... 26

4.4 Benchmark and Compare ........................................................................................................... 27

4.5 One-Click Documentation ........................................................................................................... 30

5. Customize Your Own Automation .................................................................................... 32

5.1 Qapp input and loop .................................................................................................................... 33

5.2 Define Canvas to retrieve and parse data .................................................................................... 33

5.3 Export data to table ...................................................................................................................... 36

5.4 Define output ................................................................................................................................ 36

5.5 Save and run Qapp ........................................................................................................................ 37

NETBRAIN TRIAL WORKBOOK Dynamic Mapping 101


Overview This guide will walk you step-by-step through 5 key benefits of NetBrain’s trial software. Throughout your trial, you can

test these features either on our dedicated trial lab (shown below) or on your own network. The guide is divided into 5

main sections. The first four sections cover the benefits of automated diagramming, troubleshooting, network discovery

(to try NetBrain on your own lab), and change management. The final section introduces customizable automation which

allows users to create repeatable automation ‘procedures’ which can accelerate troubleshooting, verification, compliance,

and more.

Physical Topology of NetBrain’s Instant Trial Lab



Launch NetBrain Workstation

NetBrain Instant trial server trial.netbraintech.com

Port 80

Get the license and link to

download software

http://www.netbraintech.c

om/trial/

Instruction:

1. Enter username and password If you don’t have a

username and password,

go to

http://www.netbraintech.

com/trial/form.php to

create an account.

2. Select a workspace Select Server Workspace

(NetBrain-Trial) option

http://www.netbraintech.com/trial/

http://www.netbraintech.com/trial/

http://www.netbraintech.com/trial/form.php

http://www.netbraintech.com/trial/form.php



1. Instantly Create Network Diagrams Dynamic diagrams are created on-demand and embedded with configuration data. This section will get you started

creating your first dynamic diagram and help you interact with it to visualize network configuration and performance.

1.1 Search, Then Map

In this section, you will search for a network device and

instantly build a layer-3 network diagram from the

search results.

Step 1

To get started, type a hostname(e.g. Bos-WAN) into the Search box under the Home tab. Tip:To minimize your search results, check the box next to ‘Exact Match Only’.

Step 2

Under the Search Results tab, hover the cursor

over the device and click the icon for a Layer-3 preview map.

Click View Larger Map to open a new Qmap centered on the search result.

Tip: To open the map full-screen, right click the map tab and click ‘Move to Previous Tab Group’.

Note: Make sure the map displays the L3 Bos-WAN tab at the bottom left of the map.



Step 3

Any device in the map with a icon has neighbors not currently displayed on the map. To display

the neighbors, click and then double-click a device.

Tip: To select multiple neighbors simultaneously, use the CTRL key followed by ENTER.

Step 4

Repeat Step 3, extending neighbor devices, until you have a network map satisfying your area of interest.

1.2 Instantly Analyze Network

Design

You can interact with the map to access network

configuration and design data. In this section you will

instantly annotate routing protocol on the map. When

you’re done, you canexport the diagram to Microsoft Visio

with one-click.



Step 1

To visualize interface configuration such as routing protocol, multicasting, ACLs, etc., simply zoom into the map (using the wheel of the mouse).

Step 2

The configuration data driving the map label is accessible directly from the map. Just hover the mouse cursor over a label to see it.

Tip: To save this configlet to the map, click the save

icon .

Step 3

To visualize certain design criteria at-a-glance, you can instantly annotate the map with routing, multicasting, and MPLS VRF.

From the map’s floating menu, select Highlight Routing Protocol…



Step 4

Devices and interface links will be color-coded, with a legend, so you can get an instant glanceof the routing configuration.

Step 5

To export the annotated diagram to Visio format, click Export Visio Map from the map’s floating menu.

Microsoft Visio will open automatically and a static replica of the diagram will be created in seconds.

Note: Microsoft Visio must be installed for this feature to work.



1.3 Monitor Network

Performance

Visual network monitoring in NetBrain is different from

traditional network monitoring. In this section, you will

visualize real-time data and alarms on the map, such as

interface up/down status, link error, delay, packet loss,

etc.

Step 1

From the map’s floating menu, click Monitor and select “Overall Health Monitor” to begin SNMP polling. The dynamic diagram will switch to ‘Heatmap view’, displaying live performance metrics.

Step 2

Device and interface statistics are displayed in blue on the map. Performance measurements over threshold are highlighted in red.

Tip: To define alarm thresholds, right-click blank map space, and select MonitorDefine…



Step 3

To view a chart of monitored data over time, right click the data of interest and select View Chart.

Step 4

The chart opens on the bottom of the screen.

Note: Monitoring statistics are collected on-demand. The chart will only display data collected since monitoring started.

1.4 Collect Batch CLI Output

To quickly query the status of the network, you can

collect show-commands in a batch, rather than one at a

time. In this section, you will kick off a batch, annotate

the results, and save them to the map.



Step 1

From the map’s floating menu, select Run Execute CLI Commands…

Step 2

Click Add… to specify one or more show-commands. By default, they will be run against every device in the map.

Tip:For enhanced organization, specify a Destination DataFolder (at the top of the screen) where the output will be stored.

Step 3

Click Start to kick off the batch. Once all commands have been successfully executed, click View Outputs to view the results.

Tip:You can take notes and make highlights to callout any discrepancies or observations in the output.



Step 4

When you’re done, you can create a hyperlink to important results. Click Create Hyperlink from the CLI Command Output Browser.

Tip:Hyperlinks can be saved directly to the map, or within the built-in Notes tab.

Step 5

All map data is accessible from the Map Data tab. This tab is located to the left of the map.

Tip: Configuration files, recorded monitoring data, and attachments are accessible from the Map Data tab as well.



2. Troubleshoot a Slow Application This section will walk you through a real-world troubleshooting scenario of a slow application, leveraging NetBrain

visualization and automation.

2.1 Map the Application Path

Documentation is critical when troubleshooting a slow

application in real-time. In this section, you will create

layer-3 and layer-2 maps between two endpoints (i.e. a

user and multicast server).

Step 1

To get started, specify a source and destination address under the Home tab and click Path.

If using NetBrain Lab:

Source: 10.30.10.10

Destination: 10.10.12.10

Tip: To map the roundtrip path, ensure the two-

way option is selected ( )

Step 2

NetBrain will begin drawing the roundtrip L3 path between source and destination hop-by-hop.

Tip: To customize the map layout, move map icons with the mouse. Alternatively, right-click the blank map space and select Auto Layout.



Step 3

In this example, the roundtrip path takes an asymmetric route (following a different return path).

Note: The forward direction path is a different color than the reverse.

Step 4

To see the L2 path (in the reverse direction) right-click the dotted path arrow and select View L2 Path…

Step 5

A new Layer-2 map tab will open displaying in-bound and out-bound switch port connectivity from 10.10.12.10 to 10.30.10.10

You now have detailed layer-3 and layer-2 diagrams of the problem area.

2.2 Monitor Network Performance



Trying to find congested links or dropped packets with NetBrain is easy. In this section, you will turn on live monitoring to

view link status, bandwidth utilization, packet loss and more.

Step 1

From the L2 map’s floating menu, click Monitor and select “Overall Health Monitor” to begin SNMP polling. The dynamic diagram will switch to ‘Heatmap view’, displaying live performance metrics.

Step 2



Device and interface statistics are displayed in blue on the map with port up-down status. Any measurements over threshold are highlighted in red.

Tip: To define alarm thresholds, right-click blank map space, and select MonitorDefine…

Step 3

Turn on monitoring on the layer-3 map as well to see if any measurements are over threshold.

Step 4



To view a chart of monitored data over time, right click the data of interest and select View Chart.

Step 5

The chart opens on the bottom of the screen.

Note: Monitoring statistics are collected on-demand. The chart will only display data collected since monitoring started.

Having potentially found some congestion, you are ready to see what might have changed to cause it.

2.3 View Historical Application Path

You can analyze historical configuration, route tables, and

more in NetBrain. In this section you will visualize the

application path as it looked last week, using historical

benchmark data.

Step 1



Cleanup the map by turning off monitoring and deleting the dotted asymmetric paths (select and delete).

Step 2

Redraw the application path, this time using benchmark data from last week.

Under the Traffic Path interface, select the icon to change the path discovery method.

Step 3

Instead of ‘Via Live Network’ select ‘Via Cached Route Table in Data Folder’ and select ‘Last-Week’. Then click OK.



Step 4

Again, click Find Path to draw the application path as it looked last week.

Note: The roundtrip path was symmetric last week.

It is evident that something has changed since last week. To determine what problems might exist on the current reverse

path (not in use last week) you can drill-down with Automation Procedures.



3. Discover Your Own Network Your NetBrain trial allows you to experience the benefits of dynamic mapping on your own network. This section will help

you create a local workspace and then launch a network discovery.

3.1 Create a Local Workspace A local workspace in NetBrain allows you to customize a dedicated environment for your own network topology and

design.

Step 1

Click the NetBrain button to open the main drop-down menu. Then select Local Workspace New Local Workspace.

Step 2

Define your workspace name, description, and the number of nodes to reserve (maximum of 200).

Then click Next.

Step 3



In the Network Settings screen, specify any and all Telnet or SSH login credentials (for both Privilege and non-Privilege mode) using the Add… button

Note: Picture is for reference only. Enter login credentials foryour own network.

Step 4

Under the SNMP String tab specify any and all SNMP Community strings.

Note: Picture is for reference only. Enter SNMP credentials of your network.

3.2 Launch Network Discovery

NetBrain builds a rich model of the network (topology and underlying design). To populate its database, NetBrain relies on a

comprehensive network discovery. The discovery is quick and efficient.

Step 1

From the Workspace Wizard (Step 2 of 2), there are three options for discovery:

1. Discover via Seed Router

2. Scan IP Range

3. Import IP List

Step 2



The simplest and most efficient method is option 1: Specify a single Seed Router.

Simply enter the IP address of a core router or switch and click Discover. NetBrain will login to the device and then traverse the network from there.

Note: Picture is for reference only. Enter an IP address of a router in your network.

Step 3

The Live Network Discovery window will populate with a list of discovered devices.

Note: The status at the bottom of the window indicates the method NetBrain uses to access the device.

Step 4

A dialog box will indicate when the discovery is complete.

Step 5



The Start page and Workspace pane on the left of the screen both provide a breakdown of the discovered devices.

With the discovery complete, you are now ready to experience the power of network automation and visualization on

your own network.



4. Automate Change Management NetBrain’s Change Management module allows users to push configuration changes automatically. The impact of the

changes can be instantly analyzed and the entire process documented. This section will introduce you to the entire change

management workflow.

Note: The functionality of this feature is restricted for Instant Trial users operating on NetBrain’s trial lab network. In order

to successfully execute changes, you will need to discover devices on your own network.

4.1 Define Network Changes

In this section, you will define which devices will be

configured. This entails opening a Qmap, launching the

Change Management module from the map, and specifying a

configuration template.

Step 1

To get started, open a Qmap you created from a previous section.

Step 2

From the Qmap’s floating menu, select Run Define Network Change…



Step 3

The Change Management Task provides a comprehensive workflow where you can define changes, automatically execute them, analyze the impact (compare), and then document the entire process.

Step 4

Specify a configuration template for changes you want to execute in the Define Network Change portion of the workflow.

Note that ‘config t’ is required in the config template.

Tip: To define more complex configuration changes, use ‘$’ to define variables (e.g. for interface names) inside two brackets ‘<> ‘.

Step 5

Click Apply to apply the config changes to every selected device and interface on the left.

Tip: To make changes for only a specified device, select it from the list on the left.



4.2 Benchmark the Network

before Execution

In this section, you will benchmark the state of the

network. By running a benchmark before executing

changes, you will create a snapshot of the network

which you can reference for comparison later.

Step 1

Select the Benchmark Before button from the workflow along the top of the screen.

Step 2



By default, the benchmark will retrieve configuration files and route tables from every device.

You can also add customized CLI commands to the benchmark by selecting Add… under ‘Define CLI Commands’.

Step 3

Specify one or more show-commands, select OK, and then select Run CLI Commands.

NetBrain will quickly log into each device, issue the appropriate show-commands, and save the results to the benchmark data.

Step 4

The benchmark icon along the top of the timeline marks the benchmark data point which includes the route tables, config files, and CLI commands.



4.3 Execute Network Changes

In this section, you will automatically push the

configuration changes defined in Section 1.

Note: Instant Trial users operating on the NetBrain lab

will be unable to execute changes.

Step 1

Select the Execute button from the workflow along the top of the screen.

Step 2

Click Execute from the center of the window to kick off the configuration for all devices. You can watch the configuration roll out in real time.

Tip: You can pause or stop the configuration and even interact with the CLI at any point during the execution.



Step 3

The CLI icon along the top of the timeline marks the execution point with a time stamp.

Note: You can click each device to see the execution log at the bottom of the window.

4.4 Benchmark and Compare

After automatically executing the changes, you are ready

to capture another benchmark data point and then

compare it to the one captured before the execution.

Step 1

Select the Benchmark After button from the workflow along the top of the screen.



Step 2

Click Run CLI Commands once again to recapture config files, route tables, as well as the CLI commands identified in Section 2.

Note: When complete, another benchmark icon will appear along the timeline at the top of the window.

Step 3

To compare the two sets of benchmark data, first select the Compare button from the workflow along the top of the screen.

Step 4

In this window, specify the two benchmark data folders to compare.

Tip: You can right-click the benchmark icons along the timeline to set them as first and second data folders for comparison



Step 5

Click the Compare button on the right side of the screen to compare the two benchmark data points.

Step 6

The results are populated to the corresponding tabs for ‘Configuration Files’, ‘Route Tables’ and ‘CLI Commands’. The right-most column indicates whether the result has changed.

Step 7

Double-click one of the config file entries to view a diff-style comparison between the configuration files for the selected devices.

You can similarly analyze changes in routing tables and CLI commands using the other two tabs.



4.5 One-Click Documentation

The change management module allows you to document

the entire change process. You can save the change

management task as a qchange file and share it within your

group. You can also document the process with a Word

document with one-click.

Step 1

Click the Document button from the workflow along the top of the screen.

The click Yes when asked to save the task before continuing.

Step 2

Next, specify the information you want to export, using the template provided. By default, the following information is included:

Change history

Summary

Network map

Config change and results

Then click OK.



Step 3

A detailed Word document will be created automatically with the information you selected in Step 2.

This document can be shared as part of your change management process.



5. Customize Your Own Automation NetBrain offers customizable network automation which can accelerate virtually any task completed using the CLI.

Without any scripting experience, you can create powerful sample-driven scripts known as Automation Qapp.

This section will walk you through the process of writing an Automation Qapp to monitor device data.

Click the New Qapp under Qapp Tab. The New Qapp window opens.

Besides the General Qapp template, there are five built-in Qapp templates: Monitor, Inventory Report, Path

Analysis, Highlight Map and Neighbor Check. Double click the Monitor template. A new Qapp with the default

name monitor is created showing Execution Flow with three nodes: Input, Loop and Canvas.



5.1 Qapp input and loop

Double click the Start node to define the input for a Qapp. Under the Device Input tag you can define the devices

this Qapp is executed against. A monitor Qapp must be executed within a Qmap and we can keep the default

Single Device type and Auto option, meaning that the Qapp takes all devices visible in the map and run

independently on each device.

Double click the Loop node to define the frequency this Qapp is executed, for example, every 30 seconds.

5.2 Define Canvas to retrieve and parse data

Double-click Canvas node in Execution Flow to bring up the Canvas window. A canvas defines how to retrieve,

parse and analyze the data and usually includes five components: Device Queue, Device Selector, Command,

Table and Output.

Device Queue defines the devices this canvas is run on. For the canvas of a monitor Qapp the device queue is

usually created from the Qapp device input (the default option). By default the device queue includes only one



device column (this). The device queue can also include a pair of devices, the device (this) and its neighbors (nbr),

which will be covered in later section.

Double click the Command node to define how to retrieve and parse the data.

1) Enter the CLI command show process cpu in field 1. 2) Click the Retrieve Sample button (field 2) and select a Cisco IOS device. The sample output is shown in field 3:

Bos-Core1-Tr#show process cpu

CPU utilization for five seconds: 4%/0%; one minute: 5%; five minutes: 5%

PID Runtime(ms) Invoked uSecs 5Sec 1Min 5Min TTY Process

1 0 7 0 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0 Chunk Manager

2 524 2105960 0 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0 Load Meter

3 279199 6692579 41 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0 OSPF-1200 Hello

4 96720685 4520964 21393 0.00% 0.68% 0.83% 0 Check heaps

5 8 1290 6 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0 Pool Manager

6 0 2 0 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0 Timers

7 0 1 0 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0 HRPC asic-stats

8 0 1 0 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0 Crash writer

3) Define the parser To retrieve the CPU usage data for 1 minute, highlight the value of 1-minute CPU usage (5% for this sample

output) and click the Define Variable option. The keyword Parser window opens with the following fields:



Sample: the line matching the value you highlighted.

Parser: defining keywords and variable. Here the system automatically creates a keyword parser:

minute: $percent:var1; five

This keyword parser contains the keywords “minute:” and “; five” which always stay same and define a

variable $var1 which will change. A variable always starts with $. To define a variable use the syntax

$<type>:<variable name>, where <type> can be string, int (integer), double (floating number) and

percent. For example, $percent:var1 defines a percent variable $var1. The parser “minute:

$percent:var1; five” asks the system to find the keyword “minute:” and assigns the word between

“minute:” and “; five” to the variable $var1. In the sample, $var1 is set to the value “5%”.

Hint: Highlight the value to be exactly what you want to retrieve and do not include the spaces before

and after this value. For example, if you highlight “ 5%” (the space before this value is also selected), the

system will create a parser as following:

regex[$var1]:one minute\:(.+?); five

Variable: displaying the variables defined in the parser. Often you should change the system auto

created variable name such as $var1 to a more meaningful name such as $cpu. To do so, just replace

var1 with cpu.

Result table: displaying the variable, value and type.

Click the Save Parser button to save this parser. The parser is displayed under Parser Tree in the right pane, where

you can double click a parser to modify its definition or add a new parser.



5.3 Export data to table

Double click the Export node in the Canvas flow to export the variables defined in the Parser to a table. All

variables defined in the Parser is listed in the left pane. In this example we have two variables, $_original_result

and $cpu under the single Value node (these variables have single value for a single device). The built-in variable

$_original_result is the original output of the command, i.e., the output of the CLI command show process cpu.

Select the variable $cpu and click the > button in the middle pane to add it to the table. Click the Apply button and

confirm that the variable $cpu is listed

5.4 Define output

Double click the Output node . All table variables are listed under the left pane Select items to monitor. In this

case there is only one variable cpu. The variables can be displayed as the Device items or interface items. Since



$cpu is a single variable, click the Device Items to highlight it. Then select the variable $cpu and click the > button

to add it as a device item. To display a variable in the map, select the item cpu under Monitor items’ table, select

Device Position 1 from the dropdown menu next to the Position field and click the Apply button. You may click the

icon to view the device and interface positions.

5.5 Save and run Qapp

Click the Save button at the top of Qapp editor. In the Dialog window, enter a file name such as Monitor CPU and

click … to select a location. You can save it in the Qapp center which can be managed by NetBrain DE or in your

local disk. Here I save the Qapp in the directory QApp under my desktop. From the dropdown menu select the

Qapp type as Monitor Qapp File (*.mapp). The Monitor Qapp is a specific type of Qapp used to display the

variable values in the map. Click the Save button.

Create a new Qmap (Qmap1) to map out a few Cisco IOS devices or open a Qmap. In the map floating menu, click

the Monitor button. The Run Monitor window opens.



Click the Browse local Qapps link to open the Qapp file you just saved and then click the Next button to go to step

2. In step 2, notice that all devices in the map are automatically selected under the Device Input. The frequency

and device input can be modified in this step.



Click the Run button to run Qapp. The map turns into the monitoring mode. The variable $cpu and its value are

displayed and are refreshed every 30 seconds, the frequency defined in the loop node.

The current device data is also displayed as the table format in the left pane under the Qmap. Select a data to view

its historical data chart. The chart shows how the variable changes with the time. The time scale can be changed to

to Last, 5 minutes, 30 minutes, 1 hour, 6 hours, 12 hours or 1 day. Click the Raw Data link to view the original CLI

output.



The floating Qapp control shows how long the Qapp has been running. Click the Stop button to pause running the

Qapp and the Clear button to clear all monitoring data in the map.

Note: For more details about how to write Qapp, please refer to our online document.

http://www.netbraintech.com/ftp/EE60/OnlineHelp/index.html?new_topic.htm

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