SolarWinds Tuesday introduced a download that will enable users of its network management software to incorporate Cisco NetFlow traffic analysis data.

The Orion NetFlow Traffic Analyzer brings NetFlow data to SolarWinds' management platform, which is used for monitoring network devices such as switches, routers, firewalls, load balancers and other boxes with an IP address. The software installs on a Windows server and automatically discovers devices on the network. It uses standard protocols such as SNMP and Internet Control Message Protocol (ICMP) to collect data and does not require network managers to install software agents on managed machines.

The traffic analyzer works with the Orion Network Management Platform to examine Cisco NetFlow traffic data and enable network managers to drill down into the data to determine traffic by user, application, department, conversation, interface and protocol. According to Cisco, "NetFlow provides a set of services for IP applications, including network traffic accounting, usage-based network billing, network planning, security, denial-of-service monitoring capabilities, and network monitoring." The network giant included the feature in its router operating systems to help customers get "valuable information about network users and applications, peak usage times, and traffic routing," Cisco says.

Kenny Van Zant, chief strategy office at SolarWinds, says the added capabilities will help Orion customers better track bandwidth utilization across WANs and quickly identify anomalous traffic on the network.

"It can be used as a tool to find and filter out bad traffic on the WAN" when used for troubleshooting, he explains.

SolarWinds competes with other vendors targeting the SMB market such as AdventNet, Crannog Software, Ipswitch and Spiceworks. Company representatives say the added capabilities in Orion could also have it competing with similar products from the likes of NetScout and NetQoS.

Orion NetFlow Traffic Analyzer is expected to be available for download by Dec 15, 2006. Pricing starts at $875 for 10 interfaces.