Question

Describe the history of SNMP from its beginning and compare/contrast the features of the different versions. Support your rationale.

Answer 1

SNMP (Simple Network Management Protocol)

1.Introduction:-

-an Internet Standard protocol for collecting and organizing information about managed devices on IP networks and for modifying that information to change device behavior...

-Devices that typically support SNMP include cable modems, routers, switches, servers, workstations, printers, and more...

History of SNMP from Beginning to End

2.History:-

-SNMP was introduced in 1988 to meet the growing need for a standard for managing Internet Protocol (IP) devices...

-The history of the SNMP Protocol goes back to the predecessor of the SNMP Framework, the Simple Gateway Monitoring Protocol (SGMP), which was defined in RFC 1028 in 1987.

-SGMP was designed as an interim solution for network management while larger issues were being explored as I explained in the overview of the SNMP Framework.

-However, this standard is where many of the basic design concepts underlying the modern SNMP Protocol can be found.

-The SGMP standard specified the basic design model used in SNMP, by describing the SGMP protocol in terms of only retrievals of, or alterations to, variables stored on an Internet gateway (router).

-The standard also outlines the small number of protocol operations that are still the basis for SNMP's operation today.

-The first version of the SNMP Framework, SNMPv1, included the first formal definition of the SNMP Protocol, in RFC 1067 (later revised by RFCs 1098 and 1157).

-This standard defines the protocol operations given in the SGMP document. It makes the operation of the SNMP Protocol fit into the overall SNMP Framework, working with formally-defined MIB objects.

3. compare/contrast the features of the different versions...

Features	SNMP v1	SNMP v2	SNMP v3
Standard	RFC-1155.1157.1212	RFC-1441,1452 RFC-1909,1910 RFC-1901 TO 1908	RFC-1902 to 1908, 2271 to 2275
Version	SNMPv1 was the first version of SNMP	SNMPv2 currently exists in at least three flavors, SNMPv2c, SNMPv2u, and SNMPv2	SNMPv3 is the newest version of SNMP.
protocol operations	Simple request/ response protocol. Protocol operations: Get, GetNext, Set, and Trap	Similarity: Get, GetNext, Set Changes: Trap message format New protocol operations GetBulk and Inform	SNMPv3 uses SNMPv2 protocol operations and its PDU message format
Security	No security from someone with access to the network	SNMPv2 failed to improve on security.	Its primary feature is enhanced security.
Complexity	Performance and security limitations.	More powerful but more complex than SNMPv1	SNMPv3 focuses on improving the security aspect.
Message Format	Five messages(GetRequest,,GetNextRequest, SetRequest, Trap, Response)	Seven messages instead of five (inform-request, get-bulk-request)	Implements SNMP v1 and v2 specifications along with proposed new features.
Protocol	An open, standard protocol, Streamlined protocol	Simple request/response protocol	The "EngineID" Identifier in SNMPv3 uniquely identifies each SNMP entity.
MIB	Defines limited, easily implemented MIB of scalar variables and two-dimensional tables	Defines the general framework with which MIB defined and constructed	Can configure agents to provide a number of levels of access to MIB
Plaintext community strings	YES	YES	NO
Encrypted traffic, Detection of malformed packets	NO	YES	YES
Susceptible to brute- force attacks, Susceptible to buffer-overflow attacks	YES	YES	NO
Susceptible to injection attacks	YES	NO	NO
Susceptible to replay attacks	YES	NO	NO
Susceptible to sniffing of session keys	YES	NO	NO
Default/known passwords	YES	YES	NO