Nortel Networks Optivity Switch Manager for LAN Switch Networks Release 1.0.0.0 # Go back one pageGo to the next page#Go to this book's Index

Accessing devices within different SNMP communities

SNMP community passwords can provide a level of protection by limiting access to devices. In Optivity Switch Manager, you can access subnets with different communities by adding the correct SNMP passwords in the Communities dialog box. SNMP devices, that include those devices supported by Optivity Switch Manager, typically have two passwords or communities for read and write operations on that device. The two passwords are "public" (open access) and "private" (restrictive access).

By default, Optivity Switch Manager reads an ASCII file (snmpcomm.properties) that contains one entry. That entry allows Optivity Switch Manager to access all devices in the discovered network using "public" as the community password for read operations and "private" as the password for write operations. If devices contain a different SNMP community password, you cannot access them unless you know their passwords and enter those password into the Optivity Switch Manager snmpcomm.properties file.

To assign a different SNMP community password to a group or single device:

  1. From the Optivity Switch Manager menu bar, choose Edit > Communities.
  2. The Communities dialog box opens.

The table below describes the Communities dialog box fields.


Items Descriptions
Address
The subnet address of a group of devices or the IP address of a single device. (Default is 0.0.0.0 to include all devices.)
Note: Optivity Switch Manager uses zero (0) as a wildcard to associate SNMP communities with groups of devices. You can place a zero anywhere in the IP address. For example, the address 10.10.0.0 refers to all addresses in the 10.10. subnet.
Read
Enter the level of access to view or read configuration information on a group of devices or single device. The community string can be:
  • public (open access)
  • private (restrictive access)
Write
Enter the level of access to change configuration information on a group of devices or single device. The community string can be:
  • public (open access)
  • private (restrictive access)

  1. Click Insert.
  2. An empty row is added to the table.
  3. Click on the empty row and enter the appropriate information.
  4. Click Save to save the changes to the snmpcomm.properties file.

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