NetBrain Consultant Edition (CE)

Quick Start Guide

NetBrain Technologies, Inc.

2004-2013. All rights reserved

+1.800.605.7964 | support@netbraintech.com

www.netbraintech.com

Contents
1.

Introduction
1)
2)
3)
4)
5)

2.

Install NetBrain Workstation

Consultant Edition
Start Workspace Wizard
Tune Discovery Results
NetBrain User Interfaces
Common Workflow

Dynamic Documentation
1)
2)
3)
4)
5)
6)

Map around a device

View and Annotate Design Details
Create Visio Map Instantly
Find relevant maps instantly
Map L2 Connection for an IP
Map L2 Connections of a LAN
segment
7) Define and Map a Dynamic Device
Group
8) Auto Update Maps
9) One Click Word Document From
the Map
10) Create an Asset Report

3.

Visual Network Analysis

1)
2)
3)
4)
5)
6)

Visualize L3 Design
Visualize L2 Design
Configuration Analysis
Routing Analysis
Batch Compare Configurations
and Routings
Login to a network device

4. Visual Troubleshooting
1)
2)
3)
4)

Map an Application Path

Map L2 Connections along a Path
Monitoring
Batch Compare Configurations and
Routings
5) IP Accounting
6) IP SLA
7) NetFlow Traffic Analysis

Contents
5. Automation Procedure
1)Draw on-demand map
2)Automate the process of network troubleshooting
3)Check network device and interface health
4)Customize network inventory report
5)Verify network change

6. Network Change Management

1)Change Management workflow
2)Define network change task
3)Implement network change task
4)Verify network change results
5)Document

1.1 Setup NetBrain Workstation

1.1 Install NetBrain Workstation Consultant Edition
a)

Download the software to Download the NetBrain software here.

your computer
Unzip the file.

a)

Run the setup file and

follow the setup wizard

For Windows 7/2008, we recommend that you right click on the

setup file and select the Run as Administrator option..

c)

Activate your license

Launch NetBrain Workstation Consultant Edition. The Welcome to

NetBrain window opens.
For trial license (POC user): Click on the Activate Trial License
button. Fill in your Email and Password in the Register for Trial
License window. (The Password has been sent to you in the Proof of
Concept email)
For permanent license (Customer): Click on the Activate Permanent
License button. Fill in your License ID, password, name, and email
address in the Activate License window and then click on the
Activate Online button. (The license ID and password have been sent
to you in the order delivery email)
Note: If your license server is NOT connected to the Internet, please
email support@netbraintech.com and we will send you instructions
on how to activate the license offline.
4

1.2 Start Workspace Wizard

Wizard Step 1: Define Telnet/SSH/SNMP credentials and proxy
When you start NetBrain Workstation for the
first time, the Workspace Wizard
automatically starts up. For the first step,
1. Click the Telnet/SSH login tag.
2. Click the Add button.
3. Enter the corresponding values.
4. Repeat step 2 and 3 to add all possible
Telnet/SSH login credentials.
5. Click the other tabs in this window to add
Privilege Password, SNMP community,
Network Server and Jumpbox.
6. Click the Next button to go to the next step
of wizard.
Note: If Workstation can access your
network directly, then you do NOT need set a
Jumpbox. Otherwise you do need set a
Jumpbox so that the Workstation can access
the live network.

1.2 Start Workspace Wizard

Wizard Step 2: Discover your network from a seed router
1.

2.
3.
4.
5.

Click the Telnet and SNMP field and select how

system accesses your live network from the drop
down menu. If you are not sure, select Telnet/SSH
and SNMP safely.
Enter the IP address of a seed router.
Click the Start Discovery button.
Select an entry to view the log.
View the discovery statistics and summary here.

Note: This discovery process includes two steps:

discover the network devices and retrieves the live
data from your live network; build L3/L2 topology.
Depending on your live network, the time for each
step varies, from a few minutes to 20 minutes.
6.

Click the Finish button to exit the Wizard.

Note: The discovery statistics are updated and

displayed at
.
If you fail to discover some devices in your network, first
make sure that you enter all possible live network
settings at step 1 Define Telnet/SSH/SNMP
Credentials and Proxies and then you can try
different seed routers.

1.3 Tune Discovery Results

a)

Rediscover unknown IP
1.
2.

Go to the Workspace menu tab, click on the Manager icon.

Select Unknown IP at the left pane and then
Username/Password Mismatch. At the right pane, the
system lists all IP addresses discovered as the neighbor IP
address in the discovery process but was not accessible due
to the fact that none of the defined username/password
pairs worked.
3. Click the Rediscover button at the top right. Add the
username/password pairs at the Live Network Settings
window.
4. Close the Live Network Settings window and click the Start
Discovery button in the Live Network Discovery window.
Note: Using a similar approach, you can also resolve unknown IPs
due to Privilege Password Mismatch or others.

b)

Rediscover devices that were discovered only by

SNMP

1.
2.

3.

4.

Go to the Workspace menu tab, click on the Manager icon.

Select Discovered by SNMP at the left pane. At the right
pane the system lists all devices discovered by SNMP but
not accessible by Telnet/SSH.
Right click a device and select Live Access Log menu to view
why the system could not telnet/SSH to the device. If the
Telnet/SSH login credentials were missing, click Workspace
menu tag from the menu bar and then the Settings icon for
Live Network Settings to add the credentials.
Select one or multiple devices (press the Shift or Ctrl key to
select multiple devices) and from the right click menu select
Discover Selected Devices.
7

1.4 NetBrain User Interface

1 Ribbon menu: e.g., enter any IP, hostname or string to search the workspace data and maps.
2 Search results pane: e.g., create a dynamic Q-map or open Visio maps.
3 Map area: e.g., extend neighbors to draw more devices.
4 Map floating menu: launch operations to analyze or troubleshoot a network here.

5 Operation pane: e.g., drag and drop an entry to a map and manage your maps in Map Center.

1.5 Common Workflow

All-in-one Search
Search NetBrain workspace, database
and Visio maps on your PC using:
IP address or device hostname
Text inside maps
Configuration keywords
Model, serial number, MAC, etc.

Mapping
From the search results,
Create a dynamic Q-map (L3 and L2)
instantly
View the relevant Visio diagrams

Instruction:
1. Search

Enter a keyword such as IP address,

configuration keyword or model in the
Search box and press the Enter key.
Tip: check the Exact Match Only option or
put double quotes around the keyword for
exact matching.

2. Map the
searched results

Mouse over a search result such as an end

system. Select L2 Page and click on the
map to create a dynamic Q-map.

3. Analyze from
the map

Click on the blank space, a device or a

path on the map and select the various
operations from the map floating menu.

Analyze From Map

Directly from the map,
Visualize the network design
Monitor
Analyze configurations and routing
Compare the historical data

2.1 Map around a Device

Objective:
Map L3 connections around a device

Use Case:
Troubleshoot a problematic router
BGP neighbors are down

Instruction:
1. Search the device

Enter the IP address or device name in the

Search field and press the Enter key.
Tip: check the Exact Match Only option or
put the double quotation around the key
word for the exact matching.

2. Map the searched

result

Mouse over a device in the searched result .

Click the View Larger Map link.

3. View the neighbors

Click on the red plus sign to open the

neighbor window.

4. Draw the neighbors

Double click on all neighbors or one specific

neighbor to draw the neighbor(s) in the map.

5. Draw the neighbor(s)

of the neighbor(s)

Repeat steps 3 and 4 for more neighbors till

all neighbor devices you are interested in are
drawn in the map.

10

2.2 View and Annotate Design Details

Objective:
Zoom in the map to view details
Browse and annotate the design

Use Case:
Create a design map for routing,
multicasting, etc

Instruction:
1. Zoom in the map

Scroll the wheel of mouse

forward.

2. View the
configurations of a
network object

Mouse over a network

object such as routing
protocol, interface, or ACL.

3. Annotate a network
design

Click on the Display in the

Map button.

11

2.3 Create Visio Map Instantly

Objective:
Export NetBrain Q-map to Visio format

Use Case:
Share a map with someone without access
to a NetBrain Workstation
Generate static Visio maps for inventory or
compliance reasons

Instruction:
1. Create a Visio map

Click on the Export to Visio

button in the map floating
menu.

Note:
There is a limitation on the trial license for this feature. You can
only export a map with 50 or fewer devices to Visio.
12

2.4 Find Relevant Maps Instantly

Objective:
Manage thousands of maps in the map center
Find the Visio or dynamic maps by keywords
instantly

Use Case:
Quickly pull out the Visio maps when you need

Instruction:
1. Search the maps via any text
in the map, device name or IP
address

Enter the text, hostname or IP

address in the Search field. Check
the Map option. Click the Search
button.

2. Open the maps inside

NetBrain

Double click a map (Visio or

dynamic) to open it inside NetBrain.

3. Find the relevant maps for a

dynamic Q-map

Click the search button in the map

floating menu.

Note: when NetBrain Workstation starts, it automatically scan and index

your local disk for Visio and Q-maps.
13

2.5 Map L2 Connection for an IP

Objective:
Find the switch port connected
to an IP address and map out
the connection

Use Case:
Block the traffic from a virus
affected server

Instruction:
1. Search the IP address

Enter the IP address in the

Search field and press the Enter
key.

2. Create the L2 map from

the searched results

Move over a device in the

searched results pane. Click on
L2 Page 1. Click the View Full
Map link.

3. Draw other switch

neighbors

Click on the red plus sign of the

switch to extend its neighbors.

14

2.6 Map L2 Connections of a LAN Segment

Objective:
Map the L2 connections for a site

Use Case:
Document a data center

Instruction:
1. Search the LAN
segment

Enter the LAN segment subnet

address (e.g., 192.168.1.0/24) in
the search field and press the
Enter key.

2. Create L2 map from

the searched results

In the searched result pane,

mouse over a network segment.
Click on L2 Page 1. Click the View
Larger Map link.

3. Highlight the LAN

segment

Click the blank space of the map

and select Highlight >> Highlight
LAN Segment from the map
floating menu.
15

2.7 Define and Map a Dynamic Device Group

Objective:
Define device groups dynamically so
that their devices and maps can be
automatically updated

Use Case:
Share and auto update the maps for
network sites

Instruction:
1. Create a new device
group

In the Workspace pane, right click

on the Local node under Device
Group and select the New Device
Group option.

2. Select devices
dynamically

Click on the Dynamic button in the

Device Group Properties window.

3. Define the search

criteria

Define search criteria according to

the device type, hostname, IP
address, etc.

4. Search the devices

Click on the Search button.

5. Map the device group

Right click on the device group and

select the Topology Map option.

16

2.8 Auto Update Maps

Objective:
Validate a map against the current
network state
Auto update NetBrain maps and Visio
maps

Use Case:
Automatically create and update maps
for data centers

Instruction:
1. Validate the map against
the current baseline

Open an old map. Click on the

Map > Validate > Highlight
Changes in the menu.

2. Regenerate the map

Click on the Regenerate Map

button to update the map.

3. Schedule Map Update

Click on the Schedule button to

setup a schedule to update the
maps

17

2.9 One-Click Word Document From the Map

Objective:
Create a Word document instantly
from a map

Use Case:
Create inventory, design, or
troubleshooting documents

Instruction:
1. Open the Network
Documentation window

Click on the Word button in

the map floating menu.

2. Select the data to

export

Select a template and click on

the Advanced button to
select which data to export.

3. Select a target file

Select a target file

4. Create the Word

Document

Click on the Finish button

Note:
There is a limitation on the trial license for this feature. You can only
create a Word Document for a map with 50 or fewer devices.

18

2.10 Create an Asset Report

Objective:
Create a Asset report for some devices
instantly

Use Case:
Create inventory report.

Instruction:
1. Open the Asset Report
opens

lick the Asset Report button

within the Export group

2. Select the data to export

Select the devices by selecting

a site, a device group or a
device type/subtype.

3. Customize the asset

report

Click the Create Asset Report

button, Choose options to
customize the asset report.

4. Create the Asset Report

Click on the Start button

19

3.1 Visualize L3 Design

Objective:
Visualize the network design such as
routing, MPLS VRF, and multicasting
Analyze the configurations of a network
design

Use Case:
Visualize the routing design for a core
network
Determine if a network is QoS/VoIP ready

Instruction:
1. Highlight routing protocols

Select Highlight > Routing Protocols

from the map floating menu.

2. Open Design Reader pane

From the menu under the Home tag

click the Design Reader option.

3. View the configurations of

two devices such as BGP
neighbors

Select two devices in the map and

their configurations will be displayed
at the bottom.

4. Select a design filter such

as All BGP Configuration

Select a design filter in the lower left

pane.

20

3.2 Visualize L2 Design

Objective:
Highlight the VLAN , the STP
blocked ports, or voice VLAN
View L2 port configuration

Use Case:
Understand the L2 design

Instruction:
1. Highlight LAN segment

Click on the Highlight >

Highlight LAN Segment option
from the map floating menu

2. View the port

configuration

Mouse over the port and the

configuration will be displayed
in the tip window

3. Annotate the
configuration in the map

Click on the Display in Current

Map button
21

3.3 Configuration Analysis

Objective:
View the current and historical
configurations
Compare the current and historical
configurations

Use Case:
Identify configuration changes before and
after implementing a network design
Identify recent configuration changes during
troubleshooting

Instruction:
1. View the configurations

Select a device in the map and

click on the Config > Config
option in the map floating menu.

2. Select a source such as the

current baseline or a historical
benchmarked data

By default the configurations used

to draw the map (usually the
current baseline) will be displayed.
Select another source here.

3. Search the configurations

Click on the Search button.

4. Compare two configurations

Click on the Compare button and

select two sources.

22

3.4 Routing Analysis

Objective:
View the route table and find the route
to a destination quickly.
Find out how a route is propagated

Use Case:
Discover a flapping route
Find out how a route is propagated

Instruction:
1. View the route table

Select a device and click on Route Table >>

Route Table in context menu.

2. Sort the route entries

Click on a parameter to sort route entries by

this parameter. E.g., sort the routes by Age in
ascending order to find the flapping route.

3. . Find the route for a

destination

Enter the destination IP address or subnet into

the Filter field of the Route Table pane, then
press the Enter key.

4. Map the route in the map

Create a new map and drag and drop a route

entry to the Q-map.

5. Find how route is propagated

Click Go To Next Hop button to discover how

this subnet is routed in the next hop device.
Continue this process till the destination is
reached.

23

3.5 Batch Compare Configurations and Routings

Objective:
Compare configurations and routings for
all devices in the map

Use Case:
Find out any missing routes after
implementing a network change
Find out when a routing loop was
introduced

Instruction:
1. Compare configurations and
routings for all devices in the map

From the map floating menu, click on Compare >

Compare Config & Routing.

2. Select two data sources

Select two DataFolders and click on the Compare

button.

3. View the routing change

statistics and the routing changes

Double click an entry in the Batch Compare

Routing Tables pane to view the route changes
for a router.

4. View the configuration changes

Double click an entry in the Batch Compare

Config pane to check the configuration change
details for a device.

24

3.6 Login to a Network Device

Objective:
Work on the old CLI window and the
map side by side.

Use Case:
Disable a switch port connected to
the a virus affected server
View the output of BGP routing
table of a router and its topology map
side by side

Instruction:
1. Search the device

Enter the device hostname at the search

field and press the Enter key

2. Create the Q-map around

this device

Mouse over a device in the searched

results and click View Larger Map link .

3. Login to the device

Select a device in the map and click CLI >>

Telnet/SSH from the map floating menu.

25

4.1 Map an Application Path

Objective:
Discover and map the application
path (L3 and L2) between two end
points

Use Case:
Troubleshoot a slow application
Document critical applications

Instruction:
1. Enter the source and destination
IP addresses

At the ribbon menu under the Home

tab, enter IP addresses in Field A and B.

2. Select the path direction

Click here to select the path direction.

3. Select the discovery option

Click on the Expand icon. Select an

option: Via Live Network (live path) or
Via Cached Route Table in Data Folder
(historical path).

4. Discover and map the path

Click on the Find Path button.

5. View the configurations

Click on any alarm info such as ACL to

view detailed information.

26

4.2 Map L2 Connections along a Path

Objective:
Map L2 connections along an L3 path

Use Case:
Troubleshoot a slow application
Document critical applications

Instruction:
1. View L2 path

Click an L3 path curve and

select View L2 Path from the
map floating menu.

2. View port configuration

along the path

Mouse over a switch port and

view its configuration in the
tip window.

27

4.3 Monitoring
Objective:
Visualize the device/interface status and
performance data on the map

Use Case:
Identify a down/unstable device or
interface
Identify any interfaces with high
bandwidth or devices with high CPU or
memory usage

Instruction:
1. Turn on monitoring

Click on the Monitor button

from the map floating menu.

2. View the historical data

Right click a data point and

select the View Chart option.

3. Turn off monitoring

Click on the Monitor button

again.

Note:
If the interface delay or bandwidth usage is not visible, you can
zoom in the Q-map or drag the link longer to make it visible.

28

4.4 Batch Compare Configurations and Routings

Objective:
Compare configurations and routings for
all devices on the map

Use Case:
Identify any missing routes after
implementing a network change
Identify when a routing loop was
introduced

Instruction:
1. Compare configurations and
routings for all devices on the map

From the map floating menu, click on Compare >

Compare Config & Routing.

2. Select two data sources

Select two DataFolders and click on the Compare

button.

3. View the routing change

statistics and the routing changes

Double click an entry in the Batch Compare

Routing Tables pane to view route changes for a
router.

4. View the configuration changes

Double click an entry in the Batch Compare

Config pane to check configuration change details
for a device.

29

4.5 IP Accounting
Objective:
Find the top talker via IP Accounting

Use Case:
Troubleshoot high bandwidth usage

Instruction:
1. Launch IP Accounting

Right click on the bandwidth usage of

an interface and select IP Accounting.
Note: The interface must have IP
Accounting configured.

2. Sort the IP accounting

results

Click on a field such as Packets per

Second to sort the results.

3. Create the path

Right click an entry and select Create

Path to map out the path for this
entry.

30

4.6 IP SLA
Objective:
View packet loss, jitter and latency between
two devices across a LAN or WAN link.

Use Case:
Troubleshoot VoIP

Instruction:
1. Open IP SLA Manager

Click on the IP SLA button in the ribbon

menu under the Home tag.

2. Refresh the operations

Click the Refresh button to refresh IP

SLA operations.

3. Select an IP SLA operation

Select an IP SLA operation.

4. Start the operation and view

IP SLA result chart

Click on Start and then Show Chart

buttons.

5. Map the operation and view

results on the map

Create a new map. From the IP SLA

Result pane, click on the Find Path
button. Switch back to the IP SLA
Result pane, then click on the Highlight
In Map button.

6. Display the live IP SLA

results on the map

Click on the Monitor button to turn on

monitoring.

31

4.7 NetFlow Traffic Analysis

Objective:
Find the top talker using NetFlow

Use Case:
Troubleshoot high bandwidth usage

Instruction:
1. Launch NetFlow

Right click on the bandwidth usage

of an interface and select NetFlow.
Note: The interface must have
NetFlow configured.

2. Sort the NetFlow

results

Click on a field to sort the results.

3. Create the path

Right click an entry and select Create

Path to map out the path for this
entry.

5.1 Draw on-demand Map

Objective:
Draw on-demand map for problem area or
special technology

Map created by procedure:

Map for All VTP Domain

Instruction:
1. Open the procedure task
window.

From the Procedure tab, click the Run

Procedures button to open the
procedure task window.

2. Select procedures you want

to run.

Select the procedures you want to run.

Note: Procedures with name starting
with Map will create Qmap for specific
technology.

3. Select devices to run the

procedure task.

Click Select Seed Device and select

the devices that you want to run
procedures with. Click Run Procedures
to run the procedure task.
33

5.2 Automate Network Troubleshooting

Objective:
Automate the process of network
troubleshooting

Sample map of :
BGP Neighbor Not Coming UP

Instruction:
1. Open the procedure task
window.

From the Procedure tab, click the Run

Procedures button to open the
procedure task window.

2. Select procedures you want

to run.

Select the procedures you want to run.

3. Select devices to run the

procedure task.

Click Select Seed Device and select

the devices that you want to run
procedures with. Click Run Procedures
to run the procedure task.

34

5.3 Check Network Device and Interface Health

Objective:
Check network device and interface health
using procedure

Sample map of :
Are interfaces MTU
mismatched

Instruction:
1. Open the procedure task
window.

From the Procedure tab, click the Run

Procedures button to open the procedure
task window.

2. Select procedures you want

to run.

Select the procedures you want to run.

Note: Choose Procedures under
Device/Interface Level Check directories.

3. Select devices to run the

procedure task.

Click Select Seed Device and select the

devices that you want to run procedures
with. Click Run Procedures to run the
procedure task .
35

5.4 Create Customized Network Inventory Report

Objective:
Create customized network inventory report

Sample map of :
Add Interface Attribute Media
Type

Instruction:
1. Open the procedure task
window.

From the Procedure tab, click the Run

Procedures button to open the
procedure task window.

2. Select procedures you want

to run.

Select the procedures you want to run.

Note: Choose procedures under
Inventory directory to create customized
fields.

3. Select devices to run the

procedure task.

Click Select Seed Device and select

the devices that you want to run
procedures with. Click Run Procedures
to run the procedure task.
36

5.5 Verify Network Change

Objective:
Verify network change using procedure

Sample map of :
Is BGP Configuration Changed

Instruction:
1. Open the procedure task
window.

From the Procedure tab, click the Run

Procedures button to open the procedure
task window.

2. Select procedures you want to

run.

Select the procedures you want to run.

Note: Select procedures related to changes

3. Select devices to run the

procedure task.

Click Select Seed Device and select the

devices that you want to run procedures
with. Click Run Procedures to run the
procedure task.

4. Choose current data folder and

historical data folder.

Click Options and choose the live data

folder and historical data folder (default is
fine). Click Run Procedures to run the
procedure task .

37

6.1 Change Management Workflow

Implement &
Benchmark

Design
Define Network Change Task
Annotate network change Task
Define network change
Define benchmark show
commands

Implement Network Change

Perform benchmark before
Execute network change task
Perform benchmark after

Verify

Document

Verify Network Change Results

Batch compare configuration
files, route tables and show
commands
Verify network change

Document
Document network change
automatically

Instruction:
1. Design

Click Summary/Define Network

Change/Benchmark Before/Benchmark After
buttons to switch to corresponding view and
define specific items.

2. Implement &
Benchmark

Click Benchmark Before button to perform

benchmark before network change. Click
Execute button to switch to Execute view to
push the predefined commands to specified
network devices.
Click Benchmark After button to perform
benchmark after network change.

3. Verify Network
Change

Click Compare button to compare benchmark

before data with benchmark after data to
analyze and verify network change results.

4. Document

Click Document button to create a document

for the network change automatically.

38

6.2 Define Network Change Task

Objective:
Annotate network change task
Define network change commands
Define benchmark show commands

Instruction:
1. Annotate network change
task

Click Summary to switch to Summary

view, annotate this change task.

2. Define network change

commands

Click Define Network Change button to

switch to network change view, define
configlet and rollback config.

3. Define benchmark show

commands

Click Benchmark Before or Benchmark

After button to switch to corresponding
view, define show commands which can
reveal the difference.

39

6.3 Implement Network Change Task

Objective:
Push predefined configlet to network devices.
Perform Benchmark both before and after the
network change.

Instruction:
1. Perform benchmark
before network change

Click Benchmark Before button to switch to

Benchmark Before view, click Run CLI
Commands button to issue the predefined
show commands to retrieve data from the
live network (Before change).

2. Execute change task

Click Execute button to switch to Execute

view, click the
button to push
predefined configlet to network devices.

3. Define benchmark show

commands

Click Benchmark After button to switch to

Benchmark After view, click Run CLI
Commands button to issue the predefined
show commands to retrieve data from the
live network (After change).
40

6.4 Verify Network Change Results

Objective:
Identify configuration changes before and
after implementing a network change Task
Compare the benchmark before data and
benchmark after data to verify the network
change Task.

Instruction:
1. Select Execute Time

Select the Execution Time from the

drop down list.

2. Select data folders to

compare

Select two Benchmark DataFolders to

compare.

3. Compare the differences

Click Compare button to compare.

4. Review and verify the

network change

Double click an entry to see the

differences highlighted.

41

6.5 Document
Objective:
Create a word document to document the
network change task

Instruction:
1. Set export document
options

Click Document button to open the

Export Document window, select the
options that you want to export to the
document.

2. Select Benchmark
DataFolders to compare

Select two Benchmark DataFolders to

compare.

3. Export document

Click OK to export the network change

task document.

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