TP-Link tpNMS User Manual

User Guide

Network Management System

tpNMS

1910012005 REV 1.1.0

March 2017

COPYRIGHT & TRADEMARKS

Specifications are subject to change without notice. is a registered trademark of TP-Link Technologies Co., Ltd. Other brands and product names are trademarks or

registered trademarks of their respective holders.

No part of the specifications may be reproduced in any form or by any means or used to make any derivative such as translation, transformation, or adaptation without permission from TP-Link Technologies Co., Ltd. Copyright © 2017 TP-Link Technologies Co., Ltd. All rights reserved.

http://www.tp-link.com

Intended Readers

This Guide is intended for network managers familiar with IT concepts and network terminologies.

Conventions

Some models featured in this guide may be unavailable in your country or region. For local sales information, visit http://www.tp-link.com.

When using this guide, please notice that features of the Pharos Control may vary slightly depending on the software version you have. All screenshots, images, parameters and descriptions documented in this guide are used for demonstration only.

The information in this document is subject to change without notice. Every effort has been made in the preparation of this document to ensure accuracy of the contents, but all statements, information, and recommendations in this document do not constitute the warranty of any kind, express or implied. Users must take full responsibility for their application of any products.

Content

1 Quick Start................................................................................................................			8
1.1	Prepare for Installation...............................................................................................................		9
	1.1.1	Computer Requirements..................................................................................................	9
	1.1.2	Compatible Devices............................................................................................................	9
	1.1.3	Installation Topology..........................................................................................................	9
1.2	Download and Install tpNMS.................................................................................................		12
1.3	Log in to the Application.........................................................................................................		12
	1.3.1	Launch the tpNMS.............................................................................................................	12
	1.3.2 Fix the Launch Problems.................................................................................................		13
	1.3.3 Log in to tpNMS..................................................................................................................		16
1.4	Change Your Password and Email......................................................................................		18
1.5	Set the Email Server for Alarm Notifications..................................................................		18

2 Monitor Network...................................................................................................			20
2.1	Customize the Widgets on the Home Screen.................................................................		21
2.2	View the Widgets.......................................................................................................................		23
3 Discover and Manage Resources....................................................................			25
3.1	Discover Devices on Your Network....................................................................................		26
	3.1.1 Schedule a Discovery Job.............................................................................................		26
	3.1.2	Manage Discovery Templates......................................................................................	31
3.2	View and Manage Devices.....................................................................................................		33
	3.2.1 View the Device List..........................................................................................................		33
	3.2.2	Remove a Device...............................................................................................................	34
	3.2.3	Synchronize a Device.......................................................................................................	35
	3.2.4 Log in to a Device..............................................................................................................		35
	3.2.5 Ping or Traceroute a Device..........................................................................................		36
	3.2.6	Reboot a Device.................................................................................................................	37
	3.2.7	Access Config.....................................................................................................................	37

3.3	Import Devices...........................................................................................................................		39
3.4	Add Devices into Groups........................................................................................................		40
	3.4.1	View Groups.........................................................................................................................	40
	3.4.2 Add Devices to Static Group.........................................................................................		41
	3.4.3 Add Devices to Dynamic Group...................................................................................		42
	3.4.4	Delete Groups.....................................................................................................................	42
3.5	View and Manage Links on Your Network........................................................................		42
	3.5.1 View Links on Your Network..........................................................................................		42
	3.5.2 Discover Links on Your Network..................................................................................		43
	3.5.3	Add a Link.............................................................................................................................	44
3.6	Manage Maps and Topologies.............................................................................................		45
	3.6.1 View the Maps in the Map List.......................................................................................		46
	3.6.2 Add a Map.............................................................................................................................		46
	3.6.3	Add a Device........................................................................................................................	46
	3.6.4	Add a Link.............................................................................................................................	47
	3.6.5 Delete a Device, Link or Map.........................................................................................		48
	3.6.6	Refresh the Topology.......................................................................................................	48
	3.6.7	Auto-Refresh.......................................................................................................................	48

4	Monitor Devices and Network..........................................................................		49
	4.1	Monitor the Top 10 Devices..................................................................................................	50
	4.2	Monitor the Top 10 Interfaces..............................................................................................	51
	4.3	Specify the Device Monitor...................................................................................................	54
	4.4	Manage and View Dashboard...............................................................................................	60
		4.4.1 Create or Modify a Dashboard View...........................................................................	60
		4.4.2 Launch a Dashboard View..............................................................................................	63
		4.4.3 Display the Dashboard View..........................................................................................	64
5	Manage Alarms and Traps.................................................................................		65

5.1 View and Manage Traps Sent from Devices....................................................................

66

	5.1.1	View the Traps....................................................................................................................	66
	5.1.2	Delete the Traps.................................................................................................................	66
	5.1.3	Export the Traps.................................................................................................................	66
5.2	View and Manage Alarm Configurations..........................................................................		66
	5.2.1 View and Manage Current Alarm Configurations..................................................		68
	5.2.2 Add a New Alarm Configuration...................................................................................		69
	5.2.3 Modify Current Alarm Configurations........................................................................		71
5.3	View and Manage Alarms.......................................................................................................		74
	5.3.1 View and Manage Current Alarms...............................................................................		74
	5.3.2 View and Manage History Alarms................................................................................		77
5.4	View and Manage Remote Notice Profiles.......................................................................		78
	5.4.1 View and Manage the Recipients.................................................................................		78
	5.4.2 View and Manage the Notice Rules.............................................................................		80

6 Manage the Configuration and Firmware Files............................................		86
6.1	Back Up Device Configurations...........................................................................................	87
	6.1.1 Add or Modify a Backup Schedule..............................................................................	87
	6.1.2 Execute a Backup Schedule..........................................................................................	89
	6.1.3 View the Execution Result of a Backup Schedule.................................................	90
	6.1.4 Remove a Backup Schedule..........................................................................................	91
6.2	Restore Device Configurations............................................................................................	92
	6.2.1 Import a Configuration File.............................................................................................	92
	6.2.2 Modify a Configuration File............................................................................................	93
	6.2.3 Remove a Configuration File.........................................................................................	94
	6.2.4 Add a Restore Schedule..................................................................................................	95
6.3	Upgrade Device Firmwares...................................................................................................	97
	6.3.1 Import a Firmware File......................................................................................................	97
	6.3.2 Remove a Firmware File..................................................................................................	98
	6.3.3 Add a Firmware Upgrade Schedule............................................................................	99
6.4	View and Manage Schedules..............................................................................................	100

	6.4.1 View the Execution Status of the Schedules.......................................................		101
	6.4.2	Edit a Schedule................................................................................................................	101
	6.4.3	Remove a Schedule.......................................................................................................	103
	6.4.4	Execute a Schedule ......................................................................................................	103
6.5	Example: Backup Configuration File for a Device.......................................................		104
6.6	Example: Upgrade Firmware for Several Devices.......................................................		111

7 View and Manage Tasks...................................................................................		114
7.1 View and Manage the Tasks................................................................................................		115
7.1.1	View the Tasks.................................................................................................................	115
7.1.2	Enable/Disable the Tasks............................................................................................	116
7.1.3	Delete the Tasks.............................................................................................................	116

8 Manage Users......................................................................................................			117
8.1	View and Manage Roles........................................................................................................		118
	8.1.1	View Roles.........................................................................................................................	118
	8.1.2	Add a Role..........................................................................................................................	119
	8.1.3	Modify a Role....................................................................................................................	120
	8.1.4	Delete a Role.....................................................................................................................	121
8.2	View and Manage Users........................................................................................................		121
	8.2.1	View Users.........................................................................................................................	122
	8.2.2	Add a User.........................................................................................................................	122
	8.2.3	Modify a User....................................................................................................................	123
	8.2.4	Delete a User....................................................................................................................	124
8.3	View and Log off Users.........................................................................................................		124

9 System and Global Settings............................................................................		126
9.1	Device Count............................................................................................................................	127
9.2	Configure Email Server.........................................................................................................	127
9.3	Configure Idle Timeout..........................................................................................................	128
9.4	Configure Auto Refresh Interval........................................................................................	129

9.5	Configure Data Retention....................................................................................................		129
9.6	Icons in the Upper-Right Region........................................................................................		130
	9.6.1	Notification Messages..................................................................................................	130
	9.6.2	Current Alarms.................................................................................................................	131
	9.6.3	System Information........................................................................................................	131
	9.6.4	Current Account..............................................................................................................	132
	9.6.5	Log out................................................................................................................................	132

1 Quick Start

The tpNMS (TP-Link Network Management System) is a centralized management software that allows you to discover, monitor and configure your TP-Link Managed Switches using a web browser. Follow the steps below to complete the basic settings of the tpNMS.

1. Prepare for Installation

2. Download and Install tpNMS

3. Log in to the Application

4. Change Your Password and Email

5. Set the Email Server for Alarm Notifications

1.1Prepare for Installation

You can install the tpNMS to centrally manage the switches in the LAN or in different network segments.

•Computer Requirements

•Compatible Devices

•Installation Topology

1.1.1Computer Requirements

·CPU: Duel Core 2.8GHz or above

·RAM: 4GB RAM (32-bit OS) or 8GB RAM (64-bit OS) ·HD Space: 20GB or above

·Operating System: Microsoft Windows XP/Vista/7/8/10

·Web Browser: Mozilla Firefox 32 (or above), Google Chrome 37 (or above), Opera 24 (or above), or Microsoft Internet Explorer 8-11.

Note

We recommend you deploy the tpNMS on a 64-bit operating system to guarantee the software stability.

1.1.2 Compatible Devices

TP-Link 2/3/5/T series switches.

1.1.3 Installation Topology

You can deploy tpNMS to manage devices in three types of network topologies. ·In the Same LAN

If you want to manage the compatible switches in the same LAN with the tpNMS host, refer to the following network topology.

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Figure 1-1 Topology of the same LAN

Host A (tpNMS Host)

IP: 192.168.0.100

	Router (Gateway)
Switch	LAN IP:192.168.0.1

tpNMS

Internet

Host B

IP: 192.168.0.200 2/3/5/T Series Switch 2/3/5/T Series Switch 2/3/5/T Series Switch

In the LAN, only one host needs to install tpNMS. The host is called as tpNMS Host. And the other hosts in the same LAN can access the tpNMS Host to manage the network. In this topology, you can visit tpNMS interface from Host B by entering “192.168.0.100: 8888” in a web browser. It’s recommended to set a static IP address to the tpNMS Host for the convenient login to the tpNMS interface.

Note

The tpNMS must be running all the time when you manage the network.

·In Different Network Segments

If the tpNMS Host needs to manage switches in different network segments, refer to the following topology. \

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Figure 1-2 Topology with different subnets
Host A (tpNMS Host)
IP: 192.168.0.100		Router (Gateway)
	L2+/L3 Switch	LAN IP:192.168.0.1
tpNMS

Internet

Host B	2/3/5/T Series Switch	2/3/5/T Series Switch	2/3/5/T Series Switch
IP: 192.168.1.200	IP: 192.168.2.200	IP: 192.168.3.200	IP: 192.168.4.200

The tpNMS Host and the switches are connected to different ports on the L2+/L3 switch. The tpNMS Host and the switches can access each other via the routing interfaces configured on the L2+/L3 switch. To ensure the switches can be discovered by the tpNMS Host and be managed, configure the switches to send SNMP traps to the IP address of the tpNMS host.

·Over VPN Tunnel

The tpNMS Host can manage the switches over the VPN tunnel, referring to the following topology.

Figure 1-3 Topology over VPN tunnel

2/3/5/T Series Switch	Host A (tpNMS Host)	tpNMS
IP: 192.168.3.200	IP: 192.168.0.100

L2+/L3 Switch	VPN Tunnel	L2+/L3 Switch

2/3/5/T Series Switch	Host B
IP: 192.168.2.200	IP: 192.168.1.200

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After the VPN tunnel is established, the tpNMS can manage the switches on the other side of the tunnel remotely.

1.2Download and Install tpNMS

Get the installation file of tpNMS from our website www.tplink.com/en in this directory For Business > Switches > Accessories, or click this link. Then follow the on-screen instructions to properly install the tpNMS software. After successful installation, a shortcut icon of the tpNMS will be created on the tpNMS host’s desktop.

1.3Log in to the Application

Launch the software on the tpNMS Host and follow the instructions to complete the basic configurations, and then you can log in to the management interface.

•Launch the tpNMS

•Fix the Launch Problems

•Log in to tpNMS

1.3.1Launch the tpNMS

Launch the tpNMS and the following window will pop up. You can click Hide to hide this window but do not close it. After a while, your web browser will automatically open.

Figure 1-4 Launch window

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Note

··If your browser does not open, please click Launch a Browser to Manage Network.

··If it opens but prompts a problem with the website's security certificate, please click Continue to this website.

··If the port 69, 162 and 1099 are already used by other processes, tpNMS will fail to initialize. Please kill the tasks occupying these ports and click Retry to launch tpNMS again.

1.3.2 Fix the Launch Problems

tpNMS will use several ports in its launch process, which include but are not limited to: 69, 162 and 1099. If any of these ports is occupied by the other processes, tpNMS will fail to initialize. The conflicting port and the PID of the process using this port will be displayed in the launch window. Please kill the process with this PID and click Retry to launch the tpNMS again.

1.  For example, the tpNMS encounters with a port conflict in initialization.

Figure 1-5 Initializing error

We can see that the conflict port is 162 and the process with PID 2540 is occupying this port.

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2.  Open the Processes tab in the Windows Task Manager.

Figure 1-6 Windows task manager

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3.  Click View and select Select Columns....

Figure 1-7 Select columns

In the pop-up window, select the PID (Process Identification) and click OK.

Figure 1-8 Show the PID column

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4.  Kill the process that occupying the conflict port. Click the process with the specified PID and click the End Process.

Figure 1-9 Kill the conflicting process

5.  Click Retry to launch tpNMS again.

Figure 1-10 Launch tpNMS again

1.3.3 Log in to tpNMS

tpNMS uses a browser-server architecture. Administrators and other types of users can access tpNMS from any accessible host in the network. Before you log in to tpNMS, please make sure that tpNMS host has a static IP address.

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Note

Since tpNMS supports multiple users’ operations at the same time, we recommend that different users coordinate their application activities. Thus the modifications on the screen made by one user are not inadvertently changed by another user.

1.  Open a browser and connect to tpNMS through the static IP address of the tpNMS host and the port 8843.

·T o c o n n e c t t o t p N M S f r o m t h e t p N M S h o s t , e n t e r t h e U R L https://127.0.0.1:8843/.

·To connect to tpNMS from a remote computer, replace 127.0.0.1 with the IP address of the tpNMS host. For example, enter https://1.1.1.100:8843/, in which 1.1.1.100 is the IP address of the tpNMS host and 8843 is the port number for the tpNMS server.

2.  After you connect to tpNMS, enter the default account and password (both are admin) in the Login screen to sign in.

Figure 1-11 Login window

3.  The Home screen displays as below.

Figure 1-12 Home page

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1.4Change Your Password and Email

It is suggested to change the admin user’s default password for safety considerations. tpNMS defines three types of roles: administrator, operator and observer. Only administrators have the authority to modify the user’s user name, password and email.

Following the steps below to modify your password and email address.

1.  Click in the top right corner of the page and the following My Account window will pop up.

Figure 1-13 Modify account information

2.  Modify the Email address of the admin user.

3.  Select the Change Password check box. Enter the new password and re-enter to confirm.

4.  Click Apply to save your changes.

1.5Set the Email Server for Alarm Notifications

Before tpNMS can send alarm notifications, you should configure the email server settings. Only an administrator role user can configure the alarm email server settings.

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1.  Go to System > System Settings > Email Server.

Figure 1-14 Configure Email server settings

2.  Enter your SMTP server address in the SMTP Server field. For example: smtp.gmail. com.

3.  Enter your email address in the Sender Address field. For example: [e-mail].

4.  If you want to encrypt the communications between the server and the recipient, select the Use Secure Connect (SSL) check box.

5.  Enter your SMTP server port in the Server Port field.

6.  If your SMTP server requires authentication, select the Need Check Authority check box and enter your user name and password for your email account.

7.  Click the Test button to verify your email server settings. A test mail will be sent from the sender to itself, to verify the settings of the email server and the user credentials are correct.

8.  Click the Save button to save your email server settings.

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2 Monitor Network

With tpNMS you can monitor the summary information about the network, devices and interfaces. You can monitor the device status, the network topology, the latest alarms and the top 10 widgets for devices and interfaces by certain criteria. You can customize these widgets on the Home screen. This chapter includes the following sections:

•Customize the Widgets on the Home Screen

•View the Widgets

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2.1Customize the Widgets on the Home Screen

You can add, delete or re-sort the widgets displayed on the Home screen.

1.  Go to Home screen.

2.  Click Customize Portal in the upper right corner of the Home screen.

Figure 2-1 Home screen customize

3.  Select a checkbox to add the widget. Deselect a checkbox to delete the widget.

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Figure 2-2 Add or delete the widgets

4.  The right part is a thumbnail of the Home page. Drag the widgets to re-sort their display order. When you move the cursor onto the title bar of a widget, the cursor will turn into a four-head arrow. Click and hold the title bar to drag the widget to the place you want, and release the left button of your mouse to complete the operation.

Figure 2-3 Re-sort the widgets

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5.  Click Apply to save your changes.

2.2View the Widgets

You can view the widgets displayed on the Home page.

Figure 2-4 Home page view

You can click the device name or interface name in the tables to view their detailed information.

The widgets and the elements they contain are introduced below.

Widget Label		Description	Default Items Displayed
			The percentage of the online
			devices
			The percentage of the offline
Device Status		The number and percentage of the managed	devices
		devices online and offline.	The number of the online
			devices
			The number of the offline
			devices
			Alarm Name
	Latest 10 Alarms	The latest 10 alarms of the entire network.	Severity
			Device IP
			Alarm Time

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Widget Label

Description

Default Items Displayed

	Top 10 Devices By	Top 10 devices by the average CPU utilization
		today. Click device name to show device detail
	Average CPU (Today)
		view.

Device Name

Device Type

CPU Utilization (%)

	Top 10 Devices By	Top 10 devices by the average memory
		utilization today. Click device name to show
	Average Memory (Today)
		device detail view.

Device Name

Device Type

Memory Utilization (%)

Top 10 Interfaces By	Top 10 devices by the traffic received and
	transmitted today. Click device name to show
Traffic (Today)	device detail view. Click interface name to
	show interface detail view.

Device Name

Interface Name

Rx

Tx

Total

Top 10 Interfaces By	Top 10 devices by the average rate of traffic
	received and transmitted today. Click device
Traffic Rate (Today)	name to show device detail view. Click
	interface name to show interface detail view.

Device Name

Interface Name

Rx (bps)

Tx (bps)

Total (bps)

Top 10 Interfaces By	Top 10 interfaces by the average utilization on
	both receiving and transmitting today. Click
Utilization (Today)	device name to show device detail view. Click
	interface name to show interface detail view.

Device Name

Interface Name

Rx Utilization

Tx Utilization

Total

Top 10 Interfaces By	Top 10 devices by errors on both receiving
	and transmitting today. Click device name to
Errors (Today)	show device detail view. Click interface name
	to show interface detail view.

Device Name

Interface Name

Rx Errors

Tx Errors

Total

		Top 10 devices by discards on both receiving	Device Name
	Top 10 Interfaces By		Interface Name
		and transmitting today. Click device name to	Rx Discards
	Discard (Today)	show device detail view. Click interface name
		to show interface detail view.	Tx Discards
			Total
		The network topology of the managed devices.
	Network Topology Map	Double click the node in the map to jump to
		the Network Topology tab and see the detailed
		map information.

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3 Discover and Manage Resources

With tpNMS you can manage the resources in the network, including devices, interfaces and Topology. This chapter includes the following sections:

•Discover Devices on Your Network

•View and Manage Devices

•Import Devices

•Add Devices into Groups

•View and Manage Links on Your Network

•Manage Maps and Topologies

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3.1Discover Devices on Your Network

•Schedule a Discovery Job

•Manage Discovery Templates

3.1.1 Schedule a Discovery Job

The discovery profile can filter the devices that tpNMS can detect. tpNMS can discover devices by a single IP or in an IP range, device name, SNMP template and Telnet template.

To obtain the monitoring statistics from the target switch, you should configure the SNMP-related function in the target switch, and configure the SNMP Template in this section the same with the settings in the target switch.

To backup, restore and upgrade the target switch successfully, you should configure the Telnet Template in this section the same with the telnet settings in the target switch.

•Add or modify a discovery profile

•Delete a discovery profile

Add or modify a discovery profile

1.  Go to Resource > Device Management > Device Discovery.

2.  Click Add to create a new discovery profile, or click the schedule name in the table to modify the schedule.

Figure 3-1 Schedule modify

To add or delete columns displayed in the device list table, click the and specify the columns by selecting or deselecting the corresponding checkboxes.

To filter the schedules in the list, click the . Enter the Schedule Name and click

Filter.

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Figure 3-2 Schedule filter

3.  Edit the discovery schedule's information.

Figure 3-3 Edit schedule's basic information

Basic Information

	Schedule Name	Enter the name of the schedule.
	Discovery IP	Specify the target IP type as Single IP or IP Range.
	Device IP	Enter the target device's IP address or IP address range.

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Device Label	Assign a device label to the device discovered if you select Single IP.

SNMP Template

Click Choose Template or edit the SNMP Template manually.

SNMP Version	Select the SNMP version.
SNMP Port	Enter the SNMP port, which is 161 by default.
Timeout	Enter the timeout value, which is 4 seconds by default. The target device will be
	assumed as unaccessible if it doesn’t respond within the timeout value.
Retries	Enter the number of SNMP query messages that tpNMS sends, which is 3 by
	default.
Read	Enter the read community strings to match the target device for authentication.
Community (v1/
v2c only)
Write	Enter the write community strings to match the target device for authentication.
Community (v1/
v2c only)
Security Name (v3	Enter the user name to log in the switch.
only)
Context Name	Enter the SNMP context.
(v3 only)
Authentication	Select the Authentication Mode for the SNMP v3 User.
Mode (v3 only)	··None: No authentication method is used.
	··MD5: The port authentication is performed via HMAC-MD5 algorithm.
	··SHA: The port authentication is performed via SHA (Secure Hash
	Algorithm). This authentication mode has a higher security than MD5 mode.
Authentication	Enter the password for authentication.
Key (v3 only)
Privacy Mode (v3	Select the Privacy Mode for the SNMP v3 User.
only)	··None: No privacy method is used.
	··DES: DES encryption method is used.
Privacy Key (v3	Enter the Privacy Password.
only)

Telnet Template

Click Choose Template or edit the Telnet Template manually. You must configure the correct telnet information for managing the device (backup, restore or upgrade actions). The name and password in the telnet template are the same user information

28

that you use to telnet in to the device to perform system configuration.

	Authentication	Select the authentication mode to telnet the target device.
	Mode
	Port	Enter the port for telnet connection, which is 23 by default.
	Timeout	Enter the timeout value, which is 4 seconds by default.
	Retries	Enter the number of retries, which is 3 by default.
	Username	Enter the username for the telnet connection.
	Password	Enter the password for the telnet connection.

Discovery Schedule Config

Figure 3-4 Choose schedule's execute circle

	Unscheduled	Select Unscheduled and the discovery job will not be executed.
	Recurrent	Select Recurrent and the discovery job will be executed periodically.
	Schedule Mode	Select the recurrent mode as Hourly, Daily, Weekly or Monthly.
		Configure the exact time of the discovery schedule according to the schedule
		mode you choose.

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4.  Click Apply to save this profile. Click Execute to run this schedule immediately.

Figure 3-5 Save or execute a schedule

5.  An example of discovery result is displayed below.

Figure 3-6 Discovery result

Delete a discovery profile

Click Delete to remove the selected discovery schedule from the table.

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