Introduction
Alarm Message Format Description
Format of Alarm Message
The alarm message begins with "#". Figure 4-1 shows the output format of an alarm message.
Fields
Field |
Description |
|---|---|
# |
Information type: # indicates the alarm information. |
TimeStamp |
It is the time when an alarm message is generated. It is a variable of the date type and expressed in the format Mmm dd yyyy hh:mm:ss.
TimeStamp and HostName are separated by a space. |
HostName |
It is the system name of a local host. HostName and ModuleName are separated by a space. |
ModuleName |
It specifies the module that generates alarm messages. ModuleName and Severity are separated by a slash (/). |
Severity |
Alarm messages are classified into six severity levels. Severity and Brief are separated by a slash (/). |
Brief |
It is a phrase that summarizes information. There should be a colon (:) between the Brief field and the Description field. |
Description |
It is a string of characters that describe a detailed alarm message. It is output by a module to the information center. It is filled in by a module at each output time. |
Alarm Functionality Description
In terms of functionality, alarm messages are classified into the five types described in following table.
Type |
Description |
|---|---|
communicationsAlarm |
Indicates that a fault occurs in the process associated with the data transfer. For example, an alarm is generated due to the communication failure between the NEs, between the NE and the OS, or between the OSs. |
qualityOfServiceAlarm |
Indicates that the QoS decreases. For example, an alarm is generated due to congestion, performance decrease, high resource occupancy, or bandwidth shortage. |
processingErrorAlarm |
Indicates that an error occurs when the software or process handles data. For example, an alarm is generated due to the software error, memory overflow, version mismatch, or abortion of the program. |
environmentalAlarm |
Indicates that the environment cannot meet the requirements for the equipment to operate normally. For example, an alarm is generated due to improper temperature, humidity, or ventilation. |
equipmentAlarm |
Indicates that a fault occurs in physical resources, including power supply, fan, processor, clock, and I/O interfaces |
Alarm Information Description
Description
Two parts are included:
- Alarm message: indicates the character string that describes the alarm. It is displayed on a device.
- Alarm meaning: indicates the meaning of the alarm.
Attribute
Three parts are included:
- OID: indicates the object ID defined in the MIB.
- Alarm severity: indicates to what extent the fault affects the performance of the device.
- Alarm functionality: indicates the function that the fault is related to.
Parameters
Indicates the parameters included in the alarm. Parameters in an alarm help in locating the fault and analyzing the alarm.
Impact on System
Analyzes the impact of this trap on the system.
Possible Causes
This part describes the causes for an alarm generated by the system.
Handling Procedure
This part diagnoses the fault and provides suggestions for system recovery.
Related Information
This part describes associated alarms to help in finding out the root cause for the alarm and the causes for the associated alarms.
Alarm Severity Description
The severity level indicates the seriousness of a fault. The severity levels can be classified into Critical, Major, Minor, Warning, Indeterminate, and Cleared.
Level |
Severity |
Description |
|---|---|---|
1 |
Critical |
Indicates that the fault affects normal operation of the system. Effective measures should be taken immediately. For example, a fault causes the unavailability of a device or resources. Recover the system immediately even if the fault occurs during non-working hours. |
2 |
Major |
Indicates that the fault decreases the system performance. Effective measures should be taken immediately. For example, the performance of a device or resources decreases significantly. Recover the system immediately during working hours. |
3 |
Minor |
Indicates that a fault occurs but does not decrease the system performance. To prevent the fault from causing a more serious one, observe the fault and remove it at a proper time. |
4 |
Warning |
Indicates that an error may occur and affect the system performance. The measures to be taken vary with the situation or the error. |
5 |
Indeterminate |
Indicates that the severity level cannot be determined. This means that the severity level is determined by the real-world situation. |
6 |
Cleared |
The Cleared severity level indicates the clearing of one or more previously reported alarms. This alarm clears all alarms for this managed object that have the same Alarm type, Probable cause and Specific problems. Multiple associated notifications may be cleared by using the Correlated notifications parameter. |