Smokeping_probes_TelnetIOSPing(3) SmokePing Smokeping_probes_TelnetIOSPing(3)
NAME
Smokeping::probes::TelnetIOSPing - Cisco IOS Probe for SmokePing
SYNOPSIS
*** Probes ***
+TelnetIOSPing
forks = 5
offset = 50%
packetsize = 56
step = 300
timeout = 15
# The following variables can be overridden in each target section
/^influx_.+/ = influx_location = In the basement
iospass = password # mandatory
iosuser = user # mandatory
pings = 5
psource = 192.168.2.129
source = 192.168.2.1 # mandatory
vrf = VRF1
# [...]
*** Targets ***
probe = TelnetIOSPing # if this should be the default probe
# [...]
+ mytarget
# probe = TelnetIOSPing # if the default probe is something else
host = my.host
/^influx_.+/ = influx_location = In the basement
iospass = password # mandatory
iosuser = user # mandatory
pings = 5
psource = 192.168.2.129
source = 192.168.2.1 # mandatory
vrf = VRF1
DESCRIPTION
Integrates Cisco IOS as a probe into smokeping. Uses the telnet
protocol to run a ping from an IOS device (source) to another device
(host). This probe basically uses the "extended ping" of the Cisco IOS.
You have the option to specify which interface the ping is sourced from
as well.
VARIABLES
Supported probe-specific variables:
forks
Run this many concurrent processes at maximum
Example value: 5
Default value: 5
offset
If you run many probes concurrently you may want to prevent them
from hitting your network all at the same time. Using the probe-
specific offset parameter you can change the point in time when each
probe will be run. Offset is specified in % of total interval, or
alternatively as 'random', and the offset from the 'General' section
is used if nothing is specified here. Note that this does NOT
influence the rrds itself, it is just a matter of when data
acquisition is initiated. (This variable is only applicable if the
variable 'concurrentprobes' is set in the 'General' section.)
Example value: 50%
packetsize
The (optional) packetsize option lets you configure the packetsize
for the pings sent.
Default value: 56
step
Duration of the base interval that this probe should use, if
different from the one specified in the 'Database' section. Note
that the step in the RRD files is fixed when they are originally
generated, and if you change the step parameter afterwards, you'll
have to delete the old RRD files or somehow convert them. (This
variable is only applicable if the variable 'concurrentprobes' is
set in the 'General' section.)
Example value: 300
timeout
How long a single 'ping' takes at maximum
Example value: 15
Default value: 5
Supported target-specific variables:
/^influx_.+/
This is a tag that will be sent to influxdb and has no impact on the
probe measurement. The tag name will be sent without the "influx_"
prefix, which will be replaced with "tag_" instead. Tags can be used
for filtering.
Example value: influx_location = In the basement
iospass
The iospass option allows you to specify the password for the
username specified with the option iosuser.
Example value: password
This setting is mandatory.
iosuser
The iosuser option allows you to specify a username that has ping
capability on the IOS Device.
Example value: user
This setting is mandatory.
pings
How many pings should be sent to each target, if different from the
global value specified in the Database section. Note that the number
of pings in the RRD files is fixed when they are originally
generated, and if you change this parameter afterwards, you'll have
to delete the old RRD files or somehow convert them.
Example value: 5
psource
The (optional) psource option specifies an alternate IP address or
Interface from which you wish to source your pings from. Routers
can have many many IP addresses, and interfaces. When you ping from
a router you have the ability to choose which interface and/or which
IP address the ping is sourced from. Specifying an IP/interface
does not necessarily specify the interface from which the ping will
leave, but will specify which address the packet(s) appear to come
from. If this option is left out the IOS Device will source the
packet automatically based on routing and/or metrics. If this
doesn't make sense to you then just leave it out.
Example value: 192.168.2.129
source
The source option specifies the IOS device to which we telnet. This
is an IP address of an IOS Device that you/your server: 1)
Have the ability to telnet to 2) Have a valid username and
password for
Example value: 192.168.2.1
This setting is mandatory.
vrf The vrf option allows you to specify the vrf for ping
Example value: VRF1
AUTHORS
John A Jackson <geonjay@infoave.net>
based HEAVILY on Smokeping::probes::IOSPing by
Paul J Murphy <paul@murph.org>
based on Smokeping::probes::FPing by
Tobias Oetiker <tobi@oetiker.ch>
NOTES
IOS configuration
The IOS device should have a username/password configured, as well as
the ability to connect to the VTY(s). eg:
!
username smokeping privilege 5 password 0 SmokepingPassword
!
line vty 0 4
login local
transport input telnet
!
Some IOS devices have a maximum of 5 VTYs available, so be careful not
to hit a limit with the 'forks' variable.
Requirements
This module requires the Net::Telnet module for perl. This is usually
included on most newer OSs which include perl.
Debugging
There is some VERY rudimentary debugging code built into this module
(it's based on the debugging code written into Net::Telnet). It will
log information into three files "TIPreturn", "TIPoutlog", and
"TIPdump". These files will be written out into your current working
directory (CWD). You can change the names of these files to something
with more meaning to you.
Password authentication
You should be advised that the authentication method of telnet uses
clear text transmissions...meaning that without proper network security
measures someone could sniff your username and password off the network.
I may attempt to incorporate SSH in a future version of this module, but
it is very doubtful. Right now SSH adds a LOT of processing overhead to
a router, and isn't incredibly easy to implement in perl.
Having said this, don't be too scared of telnet. Remember, the original
IOSPing module used RSH, which is even more scary to use from a security
perspective.
Ping packet size
The FPing manpage has the following to say on the topic of ping packet
size:
Number of bytes of ping data to send. The minimum size (normally 12)
allows room for the data that fping needs to do its work (sequence
number, timestamp). The reported received data size includes the IP
header (normally 20 bytes) and ICMP header (8 bytes), so the minimum
total size is 40 bytes. Default is 56, as in ping. Maximum is the
theoretical maximum IP datagram size (64K), though most systems limit
this to a smaller, system-dependent number.
2.8.2 2024-02-04 Smokeping_probes_TelnetIOSPing(3)
Generated by dwww version 1.16 on Tue Dec 16 05:34:01 CET 2025.