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From: aggarwal@nisc.jvnc.net (Vikas Aggarwal)
Newsgroups: comp.dcom.sys.cisco
Subject: Cisco IP accounting
Message-ID: <29334@boulder.Colorado.EDU>
Date: 7 Nov 90 02:14:56 GMT
Sender: daemon@boulder.Colorado.EDU
Lines: 38


This is regarding the IP accounting feature in cisco r8.xx.

The feature *would* have  been really useful  if the data  collected by the
router could be more "manageable" (sound's SNMPish enough, I guess).

Presently, the router can   be configured  for  a   fixed memory limit  for
accounting- the accounting table  takes up  only  the configured  amount of
memory, etc.

However,  the  entries  in  the accounting table   are *not* sorted  in any
manner, and  the table  is effectively a list  of  the *first* X  number of
hosts who   sent traffic its way.  The  table really  offers very little by
means of *useable* information in a WAN that has a large number of hosts.

I was hoping  that the familiar "access-list"  methodology would be used in
the accounting software too- it would be  nice  to be able to configure the
accounting  for IP addresses   using  access  lists which  determine  which
entries are recorded in  the  accounting table.  That way, I  could account
packets depending on the topology of my  network  and in  a manner that was
more meaningful to  me than  a  mere collection  of host-address pairs  and
packet counts.  Over a period  of time,  I  could  make  the accounting  as
specific as I would want and not have to worry about not  being able to get
info on a host because the host  couldn't make it first  into a slot in the
accounting table.

The "I" used above might seem self-centered  but it was just easier wording
it that way  than  try  and make  the  whole   thing RFCedly abstract   and
RFCedly-(un)comprehendible.

Comments ??


-vikas
vikas@nisc.jvnc.net					(609) 258-2403
Network Engineering
			JvNCnet, Princeton, NJ
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