l l l To maintain a history of the performance of  your system.  Studying  this  history  could  point  out potential failures long before they occur. To provide a statistical basis for new equipment requests. Management is more likely to purchase new equipment if you can demonstrate that the current equipment will not meet the company’s needs. To enable you to tune your network for optimum performance. This is especially true on larger networks with more than one file server. In some cases, you can provide a perceived increase in throughput by simply transferring tasks from one server  to  another. Various network operating systems (NOSs) have their own utility programs to monitor what processing is taking place on their network. You can use these programs to monitor the status of your network, and some utilities give you the capability to monitor a particular job request. REVIEW AUDIT LOGS The  main  importance  of  reviewing  audit/event  logs is to monitor the security of the system. Besides, C2 Security  compliance  requires  that  the  system  be monitored (audited) continuously. Whether it pertains to the system – what hardware was accessed, security – identify who logged on (logged-in), or application – what software was accessed; usage must be tracked. The term auditing refers to the process of recording events,  such  as  file  access,  creations,  deletions,  the addition  of  print  jobs,  and  so  on,  and  using  that information to detect usage violations or to confirm that network procedures are operating correctly. A network administrator, by using the audit logs, can track what files were accessed, when they were accessed  (date  and  time),  by  whom,  and  even  what transactions were performed. Some logs even show you if the transaction was or was not successful with some type of message. NETWORK  CONFIGURATION Equipment,  the  connections,  and  equipment settings  for  a  network  comprise  the  network configuration. The equipment refers to the hardware (computers, peripherals, boards, and cables), but may also include software under certain circumstances. Because   of   equipment   compatibility   and interoperability, a system administrator needs to know considerable detail about all of the equipment that comprises the network. This information may include model  numbers,  memory  specifications,  enhancements, and so on. This information must be maintained, or conflicts between the equipment may occur. Most networking systems include a utility for recording system configuration information and updating it as the net work changes. Record the current settings for each component as part of the configuration information. Avoid conflicts when  deciding  on  specific  settings.  A  conflict  can  arise because two boards want to use the same memory location  or  interrupt. SYSTEM PARAMETERS System  parameters  must  be  verified  prior  to installation and startup to avoid any conflicts. The majority of the conflicts involve system interrupts. An interrupt is a mechanism by which one computing element, such as a modem or a program, can get the attention  of  another  elements.  Interrupts  may  be generated by hardware or software. Hardware Interrupt There are 16 interrupt request lines (IRQs) for hardware interrupts in a PC environment. Each device attached to a computer can have an IRQ assigned. When the device wants service from the CPU, it signals on this line and waits. IRQs have different priority levels, and the higher priority  lines  are  assigned  to  the  most  important functions on the PC. By responding to IRQs according to  their  assigned  priority,  an  operating  system  or interrupt handler can ensure that no vital activities are interrupted. IRQ  values  for  a  device  may  be  set  through software or by manually setting them through the use of jumpers or DIP switches on the expansion board for the device. When configuring devices, it is important that you do not have two devices that use the same IRQ. Software Interrupt Executing programs also use interrupts to get resources needed to perform some action. There are software interrupts to access a monitor screen or disk drive, to handle a keystroke or a mouse click, and so on. 1-4