How to Use SolarWinds IP Address Manager

As computer networks get larger and you have hundreds of devices present, keeping track of all the devices that are connected to the network can become difficult, especially without the right tools and solutions.

If you are not monitoring your network traffic and the devices that are present, your network can run into multiple issues including both network performance and security.

Without proper scans, you won't know when unauthorized devices are connected, which could lead to various security risks. Weather Going through a spreadsheet to keep track of IP addresses on a network is a thing of the past

And because of the tools available now, you can implement a sufficient solution in just a few moments. If you want to learn how to use SolarWinds IP Address Manager don't stop reading this post.

Before we get into the nitty-gritty, I have to tell you that one of the advantages of managing IP addresses is that you know which addresses are open so you can assign them to newer devices. Otherwise, you may run into duplicate IP address issues almost all the time. That's why having an IP address scanner is always a good option.

Now, there are several tools available that allow you to scan your network, however, none of them would come close to SolarWinds IP Address Manager. A name that is not unfamiliar to system and network administrators, SolarWinds IP Address Manager is a complete solution that allows you to track the entire network, monitor and manage DNS servers, and more.

How to download and install SolarWinds IP Address Manager

In order to scan the devices that are present on your network, we will be using SolarWinds’ IP Address Manager tool. IPAM is a complete solution that brings together DNS, IP address, and DHCP management under the same hood. There is a lot you can do with it and we are only going to scratch the surface in this article.

To download the tool, go to  this link and click on the Download button providedYou can opt for a free trial lasting 15 days if you are still not so sure about the tool. Once you have downloaded it, follow the instructions below to install the IP Address Manager:

• First, run the Orion Installer downloaded to your system.
• Once the Orion installer window opens, you will be asked to choose the installation type on the welcome page. You can choose the light installation, which is usually the best for evaluation, as it installs all the necessary components. Otherwise, you can opt for the standard installation if you have a SQL server configuration that you would like to use. Click Next.

• After that, on the page Select products, make sure the IP Address Manager is selected from the list and then click Next.

• Once you've done this, the Orion installer will run some tests on your system to ensure compatibility. Wait for them to finish.
• Then accept the license agreement and click NextAt this point, the installation of the selected product will begin. Wait for the installer to download the necessary files and install IP Address Manager on your system.
• When the installation is complete, click the button Finalize.

• After that, the Setup Wizard should start. Click the button Next to start.
• On the page Service Configuration, make sure IPAM services are selected and then click the button Next.

• Now, click Next again and wait for the installation to complete. setting.

• Once the setup wizard is complete, simply click the button Finalize to close it.

How to perform network device scanning

We have successfully installed IPAM at this point and can now start scanning network devices. To do this, we will use the SolarWinds Orion Web Console to actually use the IP Address Manager.

The Orion Web Console should open automatically when you close the setup wizard. You can also open it manually via the address “hostname or IP address: 8787”. So, go ahead and open the web console and then follow the instructions below:

• First, if this is your first time opening the web console, you will be asked to create a password for the administrator account. Do this and then click the button Save and log in.

• Once you have logged in, you should be taken to the page Network Sonar Discovery which can be used to scan the network for devices.

• Alternatively, you can also access it by clicking on the menu Configuration and then going to Network discovery. Once there, click on the button Start.
• Now, you have a number of options that you can use to discover your network, i.e. you can provide an IP range, you can scan a subnet, provide individual IP addresses or use Active Directory. Choose what suits you best and then click the button Next.

• After this, on the page of virtualization, you can choose to add any device VMware or Hyper-V. Click the button Add VMware, Hyper-V, or Nutanix entities To do this, once this is done, you have to press on the option that says Next.

• You will then be taken to the Agent page. Make sure the checkbox is checked. Check existing nodes polled by an agent for node changes and updates is checked and then click Next.

• Then, in the tab SNMP, you can provide any SNMP credentials that are used on your network. Click Next.
• Similarly, in the tab Windows, you can provide any Windows credentials that are used on your network. Afterwards, you need to click on Next.

• In the tab Monitoring Configuration, if it is detecting Windows devices, select WMI as a survey method. This does not mean that SNMP will not be used, but will be preferred WMI about SNMP first. Also, leave the selected Monitoring option configured manually after devices are discovered and click the Next button.

• Leave her Discovery Settings as is and click on Next.
• Now, you can choose the frequency of the network scan in the tab Programme of discovery. Once this is done, you must click on the button Discover.

• After that, wait for the discovery to complete.

Add devices to IPAM

At this point, you have successfully scanned your network, however, the most important step remains and that is to add the devices to IPAM before you can see them. Follow the instructions below to do this:

• Once you have completed the network discovery, you will be directed to the Network Probe Results Wizard.
• In the tab Devices, select the devices you want to import and then click the button Next.

• You can see the interfaces that have been found on the devices on the network. Click the button Next.
• After that, in the tab Volumes, select the volume types to monitor. Then, click Next.
• Once this is done, in the Import Preview, you will be shown the devices that will be imported to the IP Address Manager. Review it and then click the button Import.
• Wait for it to finish importing the devices. Once done, you need to click on the Finish button.

See the network

Once you have added devices to the IP Address Manager, you can view the devices that have been found on your network and monitor them. To do this, follow the instructions below:

• First, in the Orion Web Console, to view your devices, you need to click on the drop-down menu My panels and select IPAM Summary.
• There you can see a summary of your network devices.
• In addition to that, you can check the complete list of devices by going to My Dashboards > IP Addresses > Manage Subnets and IP Addresses.

• From there, you will be able to see all the devices that were found during the network scan.
• Additionally, you can schedule scans to run periodically on the discovery programming tab of the Sonar Discovery Network AssistantThat way, scans will run automatically in the background and you will be able to see the found devices, allowing you to keep track of them.

If you follow each of these steps, you will be able to use SolarWinds IP Address Manager without any problems. I hope you find our post useful, and hopefully we will meet again in another opportunity. See you soon.