ZyXEL Communications Plumbing Product metrogigabit switch User Manual

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MGS3700-12C User’s Guide
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sFlow
This chapter shows you how to configure sFlow to have the Switch monitor traffic 
in a network and send information to an sFlow collector for analysis.
30.1  sFlow Overview
sFlow (RFC 3176) is a standard technology for monitoring switched networks. An 
sFlow agent embedded on a switch or router gets sample data and packet 
statistics from traffic forwarded through its ports. The sFlow agent then creates 
sFlow data and sends it to an sFlow collector. The sFlow collector is a server that 
collects and analyzes sFlow datagram. An sFlow datagram includes packet header, 
input and output interface, sampling process parameters and forwarding 
information. 
sFlow minimizes impact on CPU load of the Switch as it analyzes sample data only. 
sFlow can continuously monitor network traffic and create reports for network 
performance analysis and troubleshooting. For example, you can use it to know 
which IP address or which type of traffic caused network congestion.
Figure 153   sFlow Application
sFlow Collector
sFlow Agent