rConfig
rConfig is an open-source network device configuration management utility that takes frequent configuration snapshots of devices on your local network. It will help you keep things safe by taking periodic administrative backups of your network settings, including important configurations. rConfig is simple to use, making it useful for the home user too.
The interface is clean and easy to use, and it supports all major network hardware manufacturers. rConfig works by taking periodic snapshots of all your network devices, which are stored in its configuration database. These snapshots can be compared to one another to pinpoint any changes that have occurred since the last time the snapshots were taken.
By comparing these changes with each snapshot, you can see which configuration settings were modified since the last backup was taken, thus giving you a record of what has changed on your network. It will also notify you immediately when any changes are detected, giving you the option of reverting your settings back to their original state. This can help you to troubleshoot configuration errors quickly. All in all, rConfig is a great tool that you can consider among its alternatives.
rConfig Alternatives
#1 Kiwi CatTools
Kiwi CatTools is a network automation tool offered by SolarWinds that allows for configuration management on devices such as routers, switches, and firewalls. Numerous features are included that have been built into the software to offer a scalable network management solution for small and large networks. The user interface guides you through a series of tasks to be completed on a device. The software has been designed with network technicians in mind, allowing them to set up Kiwi CatTools quickly and easily.
Most functions can be accessed via a graphical user interface or through a command-line interface. Using the GUI, users can perform tasks such as managing licenses and creating groups to organize devices. The tool also includes an enterprise-wide management solution supported by SolarWinds professional services and technical support. All in all, Kiwi CatTools is a great tool that you can consider among its alternatives.
#2 SolarWinds Network Topology Mapper
SolarWinds Network Topology Mapper (NTM) helps you map, monitor, and troubleshoot your network topology. NTM shows all nodes on your network, indicates and updates the status of nodes and the network connections between them in customizable maps with customizable icons. It provides information about network bandwidth, latency, network speed, network distance, local vs. remote server connections, bandwidth used for data transfers, vNICs in use on-site or remotely, and other configurations. With the ability to visualize the status of the entire network topology on a single screen, NTM’s map is easy to deploy and access during troubleshooting. It lets you toggle between nodes to focus on the one that has problems.
You can also communicate with SolarWinds Network Performance Monitor to provide detailed monitoring of packet traffic to the organization’s network. Moreover, the tool also uses a probing service that runs on a small number of monitored nodes to gather information about the network topology and then presents them to NPM in a format that Network Performance Monitor can use to gather traffic statistics. With the NTM, you are able to gather much more detailed network statistics than SNMP provides, such as bandwidth, latency, packet size, and other internal data. This allows for better reporting and troubleshooting capabilities.
SolarWinds NTM provides detailed information about each hop along the path that data takes between endpoints, including total available bandwidth and performance problems such as latency or misconfiguration. This makes it easy to identify and isolate bandwidth bottlenecks. All in all, SolarWinds Network Topology Mapper is a great tool that you can consider among its alternatives.
#3 Unimus
Unimus is open-source software that will automate, manage, and backup your network in the simplest way possible. This is great for those who want to automate their networks easily and efficiently while saving time and money, be sure that they have a secure network, manage their networks without having to learn complicated configuration management tools or scripts, and use Unimus to store and manage their configuration for multiple devices in the same way that they would use a file server.
A web GUI makes it fast and comfortable to work without the need to learn a CLI or deal with configuration files. You can instantly deploy up to 1000 devices in 20 minutes from scratch. Another notable feature is the setup notifications to know what jobs failed and which devices were affected. All in all, Unimus is a great tool that you can consider among its alternatives.
#4 Backbox.co
BackBox.co is the security and automation solution that offers intelligent automation and security devices to make all your networks work better. It not only provides an automated network for you but also helps you get more time by combining operations with automation. BackBox is not just a security application but also a web interface for your network infrastructure. You can use it as management software to control all aspects of your network infrastructure. Its main purpose is to make all of your networks independent of you but easier to use.
As an independent network, BackBox has its own independent software repository, so any application you may need can be installed on your infrastructure. Moreover, this infrastructure is fully active and functional, and being an independent server, it doesn’t need any human interaction. The solution can also delegate some of its operations to other servers, such as the DNS servers or the NTP servers. All in all, BackBox.co is a great tool that you can consider among its alternatives.
#5 GenieACS
GenieACS is an open-source Remote Management Solution with advanced device provisioning capabilities. You can use it to monitor and configure a large number of devices of any type, regardless of their brand or model. It has almost all the features that you might need from a modern RMS solution. It is very easy to use, even for someone who is not much familiar with Remote Management solutions. The tool comes with advanced device provisioning, including firmware upgrade, config package upload, configuration import/export, and so on.
Remote services support the ability to allow the customer to configure their own service settings via the RMS interface. A comprehensive dashboard with many built-in widgets that can help you control your network more effectively. Moreover, you can easily change the look and feel as you like. Other notable features include real-time alerting and event management with ticket, escalation, and notification management capabilities. All in all, GenieACS is a great tool that you can consider among its alternatives.
#6 Oxidized
Oxidized is a network device configuration backup tool that provides remote backup, cloning, and restoration. It supports both physical and virtual devices. It’s incredibly easy to use for both beginners and experienced users. You can easily configure the oxidized.cfg according to your needs. The configuration file has several advanced options that can be found in the documentation. You can also change all settings to the defaults and restart the service afterward.
Add and edit nodes and devices in oxidized, and it will use them for backups, clones, and restores. Save disk space by performing backups only when needed. The amount of space you consume depends on the number of backup copies. The number of copies determines the amount of storage space used, not the total size of all backups. All in all, Oxidized is a great tool that you can consider among its alternatives.
#7 LanTopoLog
LanTopoLog is an application that provides physical network topology discovery, visualization, and monitoring. It provides information in real-time in three different ways, i.e., map, list view, and table view. The tool does not require a tether to your phone or tablet. You can use the application on a laptop, a desktop, a PDA, a tablet computer, a smartphone, or even on a feature phone.
LanTopoLog supports wireless analysis, i.e., analysis without any physical cable connecting your phone or tablet to the router. It does not require you to unhook cables from your router. It can also show wireless connections, including hidden connections. All in all, LanTopoLog is a great tool that you can consider among its alternatives.
#8 NetDisco
NetDisco is a network management tool suitable for small to very large networks. IP address and MAC address data are collected into a PostgreSQL database using SNMP, CLI, or device APIs. You can import data from a variety of other network monitoring tools such as Cacti, Nagios, and Icinga. It can also provide network-specific reports using the Nagios plugins that have been created for NetDisco. The tool is specifically designed from the ground up to be an SNMP agent and is the only agent in the world which supports all of SNMPv1 and SNMPv2c.
It allows you to monitor your networks at various levels attached to them and plan them accordingly based on alerts generated by Netdisco. Maintain network diagrams in a database compatible with the classic Gantt chart. Consolidate multiple network monitoring systems into a single view of your whole network. Automate your everyday monitoring tasks by creating scripts to test the integrity of your configuration or check that particular devices are operational etc. All in all, NetDisco is a great tool that you can consider among its alternatives.
#9 EasyCwmp
EasyCwmp is an open-source implementation of the TR069 cwmp standard. It manages Internet communication between home users and internet service providers. It supports both IPv4 and IPv6 protocols. The aim of EasyCwmp is to provide a cwmp server implementation in the form of a loadable kernel module for the Linux operating system with low memory and CPU usage, allowing the solution to be embedded in consumer electronics like set-top boxes or network devices. All in all, EasyCwmp is a great tool that you can consider among its alternatives.
#10 RANCID
RANCID is a network management application designed to help system administrators identify the reason why a given service may have failed. It can be used to map the path from an arbitrary host through a network of gateways, routing devices, and links. RANCID accomplishes this feat by providing a coarse-grained view of the network topology and of the status of all connected devices.
The application is designed to help system administrators figure out why a particular service has failed and thus to determine if the problem lies in the paths through which it must pass or in the network’s physical layout. It is intended to help route problems that are easy to diagnose by applying network topology information, independent of routing tables used by each device. The tool can also be used to find out which link is broken without needing to check every router along that path. All in all, RANCID is a great tool that you can consider among its alternatives.
#11 Nedi
Nedi is an open-source software tool that discovers, maps, and inventories your network devices and tracks connected end-nodes. The Nedi plugin is used in combination with the OpenNebula network analysis application, which provides an analytical framework for data. The interface can be tailored to individual needs.
You can discover your network and find every end node connected to it. Visualize the topology to get the big picture and find out where your assets are located. All in all, Nedi is a great tool that you can consider among its alternatives.