Stuart,
yes, MIB files are a great way to look up for additional information
about a SNMP object. For example:
$ gsed -n '/^ifName/,/^$/p' /usr/local/share/snmp/mibs/*
ifName OBJECT-TYPE
SYNTAX DisplayString
MAX-ACCESS read-only
STATUS current
DESCRIPTION
"The textual name of the interface. The value of this
object should be the name of the interface as assigned by
the local device and should be suitable for use in commands
entered at the device's `console'. This might be a text
name, such as `le0' or a simple port number, such as `1',
depending on the interface naming syntax of the device. If
several entries in the ifTable together represent a single
interface as named by the device, then each will have the
same value of ifName. Note that for an agent which responds
to SNMP queries concerning an interface on some other
(proxied) device, then the value of ifName for such an
interface is the proxied device's local name for it.
$
Is there any other purpose of MIB files in SNMP management stations?
regards,
Martin
On 7/8/15, Stuart Kendrick <stua...@alleninstitute.org> wrote:
> Speaking from an operational perspective, I myself would add to your list
> 'documentation' -- i.e., when I want to better understand what a variable
> and its values mean, I read the relevant section in the MIB files.
>
> If they serve any other purpose, I would like to hear about it.
>
>
> As an aside regarding terminology, I try to use the following lingo:
>
> - Management Information Base (MIB): the collection of variables which the
> SNMP agent supports, typically chunked into discrete MIBs (e.g. IF-MIB,
> CISCO-STACK-MIB, LLDP-MIB ...)
> [The fact that the "sum of all the MIBs" supported by an agent comprise its
> "MIB" bothers me ... not my idea of clear terminology.]
>
> - MIB Files: the text files stored on the network management station which
> permit the station's SNMP libraries to perform the two functions you
> describe below. From an operational perspective, useful only to humans, for
> providing translation services between numbers and
> more-human-comprehensible-strings.
>
> hth,
>
> --sk
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: Martin T [mailto:m4rtn...@gmail.com]
> Sent: Wednesday, July 08, 2015 4:03 AM
> To: net-snmp-users@lists.sourceforge.net
> Subject: purpose of MIB files in SNMP management stations
>
> Hi,
>
> it is obvious that MIB's are important for network management stations as
> otherwise SNMP queries based on object names would not work. For
> example:
>
> $ snmpget -M /dir/that/does/not/exist -On -v 2c -c public 10.10.10.1
> sysUpTimeInstance 2>/dev/null $ snmpget -M /dir/that/does/not/exist -On -v
> 2c -c public 10.10.10.1
> .1.3.6.1.2.1.1.3.0 2>/dev/null
> .1.3.6.1.2.1.1.3.0 = Timeticks: (69843635) 8 days, 2:00:36.35 $
>
> Another purpose of MIB's I can see is that they help to make sense of
> returned values. For example here I don't have Cisco MIBs installed and it
> is difficult to understand what "33939721.372808280" or "68690115.642234535"
> means:
>
> $ snmpwalk -Of -v 2c -c public 10.10.10.1
> .1.3.6.1.4.1.9.9.166.1.17.1.1.9 | head -3
> .iso.org.dod.internet.private.enterprises.9.9.166.1.17.1.1.9.33939721.372808280
> = Counter32: 0
> .iso.org.dod.internet.private.enterprises.9.9.166.1.17.1.1.9.68690115.642234535
> = Counter32: 0
> .iso.org.dod.internet.private.enterprises.9.9.166.1.17.1.1.9.68690115.724494656
> = Counter32: 0
> $
>
> On the other hand, here I have required MIB databases installed and I can
> easily see that those entries represent interface names:
>
> $ snmpwalk -Of -v 2c -c public 10.10.10.1 .1.3.6.1.2.1.31.1.1.1.1 | head -3
> .iso.org.dod.internet.mgmt.mib-2.ifMIB.ifMIBObjects.ifXTable.ifXEntry.ifName.2
> = STRING: Null0
> .iso.org.dod.internet.mgmt.mib-2.ifMIB.ifMIBObjects.ifXTable.ifXEntry.ifName.3
> = STRING: MgmtEth0/RSP0/CPU0/0
> .iso.org.dod.internet.mgmt.mib-2.ifMIB.ifMIBObjects.ifXTable.ifXEntry.ifName.4
> = STRING: MgmtEth0/RSP0/CPU0/1
> $
>
> Is there any additional purpose of MIB files in SNMP management stations?
>
>
> thanks,
> Martin
>
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