User Guide:Hardware
From Netmon
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Hardware Support
Netmon is implemented on the Debian Linux operating system. In theory, Netmon will run on any device which meets the minimum hardware requirements for Netmon and runs Debian 5.0 for the "x86" processor architecture. In practice, it is possible that device driver issues may cause problems in the normal operation of Netmon. For this reason, we cannot guarantee that Netmon will be fully functional on any hardware not tested by Netmon, Inc. directly or in production use by one of our customers.
Generally, the riskiest areas in terms of hardware support are networking and video. A buggy network driver can be very problematic. A video card which works well with Debian is important since Netmon uses the graphical desktop for some configuration utilities, such as configuring the network card.
As time goes on, the list of hardware that has been tested and verified to work with Netmon will grow. Beyond the list of Netmon-certified hardware, and depending on your appetite for risk, there are a number of options in determining whether your equipment is likely to work with Netmon. Some hardware vendors (such as Hewlett-Packard) explicity detail the level of support on their hardware for Debian Linux. A list of these vendors is provided here. It is very likely that Netmon will work well on any device that explicitly supports Debian 5.0 ("lenny"). Although products from vendors offering support for other Linux distributions may work, be careful since each distribution of Linux varies in many particulars, including driver support. Occasionally the Debian project excludes drivers from their distribution for technical, legal or political reasons and this may limit the effective support for some hardware.
To help bridge this gap, Netmon provides a hardware test CD which performs the same automated Debian install that is performed when installing Netmon. By using this CD to install Debian 5.0 you will be able to determine with 100% accuracy whether your hardware will be supported by Netmon. Be aware that the hardware test CD is a destructive test which will delete any pre-existing data on your device's hard disk. You can download the hardware test CD from the Netmon web site.
Tested Hardware
The following hardware is known to work with Netmon:
Hewlett-Packard
We have certified the following systems from Hewlett-Packard as working "out of the box" with Netmon:
- BL465c G1 Blade System (with p200 RAID array)
- DL380 G5 (with p400 RAID array)
IBM
- IBM x305
- IBM x306
Network Interface Cards
If you are building your own server or have compatibility problems between Debian and the Network Interface Card (NIC) in your equipment, you may need to purchase a NIC at retail. Intel produces a number of network cards with gigabit support (a gigabit NIC is recommended for Netmon).
The "Intel Pro Desktop 10/100/1000 Gigabit PCI" NIC has been tested successfully with Netmon. This NIC was chosen because of its wide availability at retail.
Vendors with Debian support
Hewlett-Packard
Hewlett-Packard supports Debian Linux on the following models:
- BL20p G4
- BL25p G2
- BL460c
- BL465c
- BL480cL
- BL685c
- DL320 G5
- DL360 G5
- DL365 G1
- DL380 G5
- DL385 G2
- DL580 G4
- DL585 G2
For an up-to-date list and details on hardware support check the HP web site. You can also refer to HP's Linux Capabilities Matrix. Some equipment may require HP-specific drivers not part of the normal Debian distribution which will require you to perform a "manual" Netmon SE installation.
Dell
Dell does not officially support Debian on its hardware, but it does provide some guidance for the installation of Debian on it's PowerEdge 9G servers. For details, refer to the Dell Debian support page. Keep in mind that Netmon SE uses only drivers bundled with Debian 4.0. Though it may be possible to use third-party drivers (provided by Dell or otherwise) to get Netmon SE running, this would be an unsupported installation.
Problem Hardware
Hardware on this list has been reported to cause problems with Netmon SE.
Network Devices
- D-Link DGE 500T. This device uses the National Semiconductor DP83820 chipset. This devices appears to have driver issues that render it unusable under the version of Debian Linux used in Netmon SE.
- Broadcom 5700. This device is not supported by Debian Linux.
Community Support
There are a number of resources maintained by the community around Debian and the wider Linux community, that may help clarify the driver support situation for your particular hardware. Netmon, Inc. has no connection with these sources of information and can not guarantee their accuracy or applicability to Netmon SE. They are listed here as a convenience.
This page allows you to paste the output of the Linux shell command "lspci -n" into a text area and get a report showing the driver support provided by the Linux kernel. Keep in mind that the kernel version used in Netmon SE (currently 2.6.18) may vary from the kernel version used by this page, which may result in inconsistent information.
This page provides a set of task-oriented guides ("HOWTO" documents in the Linux world) for configuring hardware on Linux.
This page provides a searchable database of hardware components with details on their compatibility with Linux.
The Netmon community forums are a place where you can interact with Netmon, Inc. staff and other Netmon users. You may find useful information about hardware in the forums. If you don't, feel free to ask questions about your particular scenario.
Customer-Reported Hardware
Customers have reported successful installations of Netmon SE on the following hardware devices:
- Sun Fire X4200
System Requirements
For best performance, your Netmon server should have the following minimum performance specifications:
Hardware Requirements
- Pentium 4 processor or equivalent
- 1024 MB RAM
- 40 GB Hard Disk (SATA recommended)
- 10/100 NIC (Gigabit NIC recommended)
- 56k Modem (for paging support)
Some features require SNMP-capable equipment. Also, be aware that Netmon SE will not automatically install on hard disks significantly smaller than the minimum requirement, although a manual install may be possible. Keep in mind that with less than 40 GB of storage, your Netmon device will be extremely limited in terms of its ability to keep historical data for any length of time.
Client System Requirements
Netmon uses a web-based client so requirements are fairly modest.
- Any operating system which provides a supported web browser
- Supported Browsers: Firefox 1.x or higher, Internet Explorer 6.x or higher, Opera 8.x or higher
- Flash 7.0 or higher
- Recommended 1024 MB of RAM
