SNMP Alarm Monitoring for Legacy Sites Without Installing New Equipment at Every Remote Site

What do you do when you need to implement SNMP monitoring at remote sites where you can't cost-effectively replace legacy gear? This was the problem faced by equipment reseller Robert Lane.

His clients were switching to all-SNMP monitoring, but some of their remote sites were reachable only by helicopter, and installing new equipment was out of the question.

Lane solved this dilemma by providing his clients with a SNMP-legacy integration solution using the TMon/IAM Remote Alarm Monitoring System.

Robert Lane of ARCOM implemented SNMP alarm monitoring at his clients' remote sites without replacing legacy equipment.

Problem: SNMP monitoring of legacy equipment that can't be replaced

Lane is a sales manager for ARCOM Telecom Ltd., an telecom equipment and EFI service provider based in Dartmouth, Nova Scotia. Lane's clients have remote sites scattered over the rugged coastal terrain of Newfoundland, Canada's most northeastern province.

These sites are isolated and virtually inaccessible, so they can't be managed without remote network alarm monitoring. Because it's so difficult to reach these sites, they're full of legacy equipment that for all practical purposes can't be replaced.

“Alarm collection is tremendously important here because the clients don't want to dispatch technicians. Dispatch to these sites often involves using helicopters, and that costs a lot of money,” said Lane.

“These sites are full of old equipment, old transport, old multiplexers,” Lane added.

It's expensive enough to get to these sites for maintenance and repairs; the mobilization costs of replacing legacy equipment were simply impossible. Add the cost of new equipment at all the sites and replacement is simply cost prohibitive.

Solution: TMon integrates legacy and SNMP alarm monitoring

“DPS Telecom provided an alarm solution that monitors our clients' legacy equipment, as well as new equipment, and converts the alarms to SNMP format for presentation at their Network Operations Center,” Lane said.

DPS Telecom provided Lane with a solution for integrating the legacy sites to SNMP alarm monitoring that didn't require new equipment at remote sites, avoiding the enormous costs of putting in new equipment at each and every remote site.

The DPS Telecom solution had two parts:

• Mediation of legacy alarms to SNMP: TMon mediates alarms from new sites and old sites to a single stream of SNMP traps that are forwarded to SNMP masters at the Network Operations Center. TMon can monitor alarms from legacy switches, multiplexers and other transport equipment, as well as from a variety of legacy RTUs. No new equipment is needed at the remote sites.
• SNMP-based RTUs for new and legacy sites: The NetGuardian 832A can be installed at both old and new sites for reporting discretes, analog and ping alarms as SNMP traps. Equipped with both LAN and dial-up connectivity, Lane can install the NetGuardian at any site, regardless of what transport is available.

Results: A total solution for integrating legacy and SNMP alarm monitoring

“When we were looking around the marketplace for different solutions, we found that DPS had the best value and the most flexible product for our needs,” said Lane.

This value is enhanced by DPS Telecom's ability to create custom-design solutions specifically for his client's needs, Lane said.

“Our client's NOC technicians wanted a ‘keep-alive' signal on the NetGuardian. We requested that DPS incorporate this feature, and they implemented it. Our customers are extremely happy with that flexibility,” Lane said.

Best of all, said Lane, DPS Telecom offers solutions for all his clients' monitoring needs. “The valuable part of DPS Telecom's solution is that it offers an end-to-end solution, not just one piece or building block. Our customers can approach DPS for any part of their alarm gathering, transport, and presentation requirements.

Learn More About Legacy-SNMP Integration Solutions

Option 1: Request a TMon/IAM Web demo

Option 2: View TMon/IAM Remote Alarm Monitoring System product data

Option 3: View NetGuardian 832A product data

Option 4: Call 1-800-693-0351 and ask about legacy-SNMP alarm integration

Give Us a Call!

To find out more about this and other DPS applications, give us a call at our toll-free number and talk to one of our network specialists. They'll help you put together a perfect fit solution for your network!