Auvik uses the credentials you provide in a number of ways to help with discovery, topology, and a variety of other product features.
All the credentials you share with Auvik are sent to the cloud and stored securely using AES-256 encryption. They’re decrypted and made available to the system only as needed for delivering product features.
SNMP community strings / passwords
SNMP is a valuable source of information for discovery and monitoring. Auvik requires read-only access to SNMP and supports v1, v2c, and v3 SNMP credentials. The system polls for information at a varying rate up to every 30 seconds. If data doesn't change, the system slows down its polling rate.
Login credentials (Telnet, SSH, CLI)
When Auvik finds a device it hasn't fully identified, it tries to establish a Telnet or SSH connection to learn more. Once logged in, Auvik either looks for certain words or begins to issue commands. Telnet, SSH, and CLI credentials are also used to access features like the terminal and configuration backup.
How the CLI is used
For network elements, the system attempts a series of "show" commands to help with identification. For example, "show version" or equivalent is used to capture the element’s model and firmware version.
All commands issued are read-only. The system can, but isn't limited to, issuing the following commands:
- Show running-config
- Show startup-config
- Show arp
- Show route
- Show mac-address-table
- Show cdp / lldp
Syntax may vary from vendor to vendor.
WMI credentials
When Auvik finds a Windows device with WMI enabled, it tries to establish a basic authentication connection to learn more. WMI credentials are used only to gather information about the Windows device so that Auvik can give you accurate data.
Note: Remote polling via WMI requires Administrator credentials. See the following article for more information:
https://docs.microsoft.com/en-us/windows/win32/wmisdk/user-account-control-and-wmi
(You can configure WMI to restrict access to Auvik only. See How to enable WMI monitoring on a single Windows device for details on setting this up.)
VMware credentials
When Auvik finds a VMware hypervisor, it tries to establish a basic authentication connection to learn more. VMware credentials are used only to gather information about the hypervisor and the associated virtual machines, so that Auvik can give you accurate data.
Cisco support API credentials
Cisco API credentials are used only to gather information about the hardware lifecycle detail for your Cisco devices, so that Auvik can give you accurate data.
Meraki cloud controller API credentials
Meraki API credentials are used only to gather information about the devices managed by the Meraki cloud controller and connected clients, so that Auvik can give you accurate data.
Datto cloud controller API credentials
Datto API credentials are used only to gather information about the devices managed by the Datto cloud controller and connected clients, so that Auvik can give you accurate data.
Device API credentials
Device API credentials are used only to gather information about the device associated with the credentials and connected devices, so that Auvik can give you accurate data.