3Com Announces Transcend Network Supervisor - a Free Entry-level Management Solution for Small and Medium Enterprise Networks - network management software - Product Announcement

Edge: Work-Group Computing Report, Sept 13, 1999

3Com Corporation Tuesday announced Transcend Network Supervisor - a simple and powerful free management tool that enables 3Com's customers to maximize the benefits of the management capabilities built into the SuperStack II, CoreBuilder 3500 and NETBuilder platforms. Designed for small and medium networks with up to 500 nodes, Transcend Network Supervisor lets users automatically map their network's topology, identify areas of congestion and identify parts of their network that need upgrading, all without the need for specialized knowledge or training. Transcend Network Supervisor allows inexperienced administrators to quickly and easily manage networks that are increasing in size and complexity. Through an intuitive and easy to navigate graphical user interface, it simplifies management by automating time-consuming tasks such as device discovery and network topology generation. For the more experienced administrator, Transcend Network Supervisor provides advanced features to help enhance network performance, including stress monitoring, event logging and alert generation functions.

"As our business continues to expand with new product lines and customer programs, we need a simple but powerful management solution for our growing network," said Scott Iver, Systems Administrator of Pet Products Plus in St. Peters, Missouri. "I evaluated several management solutions from different vendors, but 3Com's Transcend Network Supervisor stood out from the crowd. Its automatic discovery and topology mapping tools are useful right away, and the well-designed graphical displays let me monitor my network's health quickly and accurately."

Automatic Device Discovery and Topology Mapping Saves Management Time Through a simple menu selection, Transcend Network Supervisor discovers up to 500 IP nodes on a local network or on several subnets, including the links between nodes and end stations. After discovery, it automatically creates a graphical view of the network's topology - typically a protracted manual effort - which shows the speed between links, device stress levels and operational status. This topology map allows users to easily navigate around the network and quickly identify problem areas. If changes to the network occur, Transcend Network Supervisor can automatically regenerate the topology map, incorporating each network change and device addition or deletion.

Through Transcend Network Supervisor's stress monitoring function, users can easily view consolidated RMON-1/RMON-2 data, proprietary data and MIB data through a graphical `stress bar.' More experienced users can `drill down' into the stress bar to gain access to a wide range of raw data, and clear, simple dialog messages explain network abnormalities and suggest remedial actions. The event generation function provides managers with an audible, visual or email alert if a device or network connection reaches a pre-determined event threshold.

Transcend Network Supervisor supports all managed SuperStack II and OfficeConnect hubs and switches, as well as the CoreBuilder 3500 and NETBuilder routers. In addition, it can identify non-3Com devices and show where they fit into the network topology, along with each device's IP address, host name and MAC address.

Transcend Network Supervisor runs on Windows 95/98 and Windows NT. It is available now for free download from 3Com's Web site, http://www.3com.com/tns, and is planned to ship with all SuperStack II switches beginning in September.

With approximately 300 million customers worldwide, 3Com Corporation connects more people to information in more ways than any other networking company. 3Com delivers innovative information access products and network system solutions to enterprises, small businesses, carriers and network service providers, PC OEMs and consumers. FMI: www.3com.com.