Networks are becoming increasingly complex. For those of you who run a business that relies on networks on a daily basis, this is nothing new. To maximize network performance, you need a skilled IT network team and network visibility itself. What exactly is network visibility? According to an article written by Greg Mayfield, network visibility is a term that refers to awareness of everything within and moving through the network with the help of network visibility tools. In this way, these tools are used to monitor and oversee network traffic, network performance, monitored applications, and managed network resources, as well as big data analytics, which in turn require effective and measurable data collection, aggregation, distribution, and delivery. According to Daniel Hein, visibility encompasses device discovery, network performance, security issues, and topology mapping.
So what is the connection between network visibility and network monitoring? Why is visibility so important in network monitoring? Of course, the two are related. Network visibility can be utilized by network monitoring applications. Simply put, network monitoring is a strategy that can be used to monitor your network and network devices. According to Mayfield, the better the network visibility in your company, the more effective network monitoring applications can become, enabling you to optimize overall application performance. You can filter important application traffic to the right tools and track more effectively when and by whom each application is used without overloading your application monitoring tools. Hein adds that full network visibility is essential for network monitoring solutions and practices. No matter how large and complex your company’s network is.
According to Jaideep Khanduja in his article, the key role of network visibility in network monitoring is to identify, interpret, and act quickly against threats. This visibility provides real-time, end-to-end security insights into physical, virtual, SDN (software-defined networking), and NFV networks, offering seamless control, reach, and performance to protect and enhance critical networks, data centers, and cloud business assets.
What happens if network visibility is poor? As quoted from an article written by Danny Johnson, without network visibility, security can be compromised. Poor network visibility is a significant obstacle. If you cannot identify vulnerabilities in the network, the risk of cyberattacks increases. Not only that, network visibility can prevent downtime. You certainly don’t want downtime issues to occur without prevention, do you? With proper network visibility, you can monitor performance and resources, including services and applications.
That’s an explanation of how important network visibility is in network monitoring. So, if your company uses network monitoring tools, it’s worth enhancing network visibility to achieve better results and avoid the issues mentioned above. For those interested in trying network monitoring, NetMonk, a network monitoring application and network monitoring service, can be the right choice as the appropriate monitoring tool for your company. Please contact our marketing team here for information about the product and PoC.
References:
https://www.gigamon.com/resources/learning-center/network-visibility/what-is-network-visibility.html
