Network management protocols are designed to aid network operators, troubleshooters, and designers in understanding the functioning (and lack thereof) of large computer communications networks. Three main standardization efforts in this regard have been undertaken over the past ten years, by the International Standards Organization (ISO), by the Internet Engineering Task Force (IETF--the standardization body for the TCP/IP protocol suite), and by the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE). The standard issued by the IETF, known as the simple network management protocol (SNMP), has the largest installed base. Nevertheless, the other two network management protocols, the common management information protocol (CMIP) from ISO and the CMIP over LLC (CMOL) from the IEEE, have their proponents.

This book attempts to provide an introduction to these three protocols. It includes an introduction and overview of the protocols, discussion of the ancillary protocols used by the management protocols, descriptions of the databases accessed by the protocols (the actual management data that the protocols are designed to access), specifics on the protocols, and implementation details for some specific vendor implementations of standards-based (or standards-aligned) network management systems.

The book’s discussion of CMIP is about average, given that little experience with full CMIP implementations exists as yet. Thus, rather than illustrate the discussion of the protocol with actual traces of packets on the wire, or with actual data from running boxes, most examples are fairly superficial, with no tie to any real networks.

The sections on CMOL are also fairly sketchy, which is understandable, since CMOL is only a few years old and is only now being implemented in actual systems. Even so, to say of the “Compare and set” operation only that “This operation is used to perform a set of tests and, if the tests are successful, the object will be set to a particular value” (pp.15, 273), with no reference to the reasons such a facility might be provided (such as synchronization in an environment with multiple management stations managing a given network node), is to have missed an opportunity to discuss an interesting aspect of real-world network management.

The sections on SNMP are, to a large extent, erroneous, misleading, and incomplete. For example, on pages 17–20, the author implies that the TCP/IP name lookup service, known as the Domain Name System, is one of the key concepts of SNMP. The reader interested in a complete introduction to SNMP would be wise to consult a book such as Rose [1], as suggested on page 246 of this book. The chapter on specific vendor implementations of OSI protocols is useful in gaining an understanding of actual fielded products. A similar chapter on specific vendor implementations of SNMP protocols would have been useful. The sections on data link, network, transport, session, and presentation protocols include errors and misleading and dubious comments: “The concept used with TCP is somewhat unusual among communication protocols. It is based on issuing a ‘window’ value to the transmitter” (p. 72).

The book has no bibliography. It contains many typographical errors, including the amusing statement that “a seven-layer OSI suite usually requires between 200 and 400 bytes of random access memory …” (p. 271).

Overall, the flaws in this book far outweigh the good. This book is to be avoided.