Introducing CA Network Flow Analysis › Console Tips and Shortcuts

Console Tips and Shortcuts

The NFA console simplifies viewing and using CA Network Flow Analysis data. Some of the common NFA console features are described in the following topics.

More information:

Use Drilldown Links

Display Tooltips

Sort Tables by Column Heading

Jump Down

Change the Interface for a Report

Search for a Router, Interface, or Interface Group

Save Report Data to CSV Files

Email Reports

Print Reports

Use Drilldown Links

When you view reports in the NFA console, many items are displayed in blue. Click the blue links for interfaces, hosts, conversations, and other items to drill down to additional information about the items.

From the Interface report page that opens, you can open other detailed reports specific to the selected interface, host, conversation, or other traffic type.

Display Tooltips

You can display detailed information for some items in report views by positioning your cursor over the item. For example, place your cursor over a bar that represents an interface to open a Tooltip. The Tooltip shows additional details about the interface, such as its parent router, description, and number of bytes.

Sort Tables by Column Heading

Sortable column headings are provided for tables of interfaces, reports, or other items. Click a column heading to sort the data. Click a second time to switch the sort mode between descending and ascending order.

Jump Down

Some selection dialogs include a blue Jump Down arrow, which you can use to jump to the bottom of the page. For example, you can use the Jump Down arrow to locate the Save button quickly in the Interface Group Selection dialog.

Change the Interface for a Report

When you click an interface link on the Interface page, you drill down to an interface report. To view a report for a different interface, click the [change] link at the top of the page, then select another interface from the Interface Index. The report is updated to show data for the selected interface.

Also See:

Open Interface Reports

Search for a Router, Interface, or Interface Group

The Interface Index page includes a Search utility that you can use to filter the list and locate a router or interface. To perform a search, enter a text string in the text box and click Search.

You can include the wild card * as part of your search term. (The wild card * by itself is not a valid entry.) For example, to search for an IP address you can enter 10.0.7* to display only the addresses that begin with 10.0.7. In this example, the filtered list could include 10.0.7.1, but would not include 10.0.8.1.

The page displays a list of items that match the filter expression.

• Under the listed items, click the Next arrow or click a page number to display another page of list items.
• To display a different number of items per page, select a different value from the Max per Page list.

Save Report Data to CSV Files

You can save a report to a comma-separated value (CSV) file.

Follow these steps:

1. Display the data that interests you in one of the following locations: the Enterprise Overview page; an interface drilldown view; or a report you run on the Custom Reporting, Flow Forensics, or Analysis page.
2. Click the blue arrow next to a report view name.
3. Select the Export to CSV option from the menu that opens.

   The File Download dialog opens.

4. Click Save.

   The Save As dialog opens.

5. Specify a name and location for the .csv file, then click Save.

Email Reports

You can send a displayed report in an email immediately, or you can set up a schedule to generate an updated, complete report automatically as a PDF file.

The Email icon is included at the top of all report views:

• Enterprise Overview page views.
• Interface drilldown views.
• Reports that you run from the Custom Reporting, Flow Forensics, and Analysis pages.

If you are logged in with Administrator rights, you can email any of the reports by clicking the Email icon and you can schedule reports to be sent as PDFs by email.

Note: To email reports, an email server must be configured for CA Network Flow Analysis. If no email server is configured, an error message is displayed when you attempt to use the email function. For information about setting up an email server, contact your Administrator or see the CA Network Flow Analysis Administrator Guide.

Follow these steps:

1. Display a completed report.
2. Click the Email icon at the top-right corner of the report page.

   The Email Information dialog opens.

3. Enter the following information:

   Send To

   Enter the email address to which you want to send the report page. Separate multiple email addresses with commas.

   Subject

   Enter the subject line for the email.

   Message

   Enter a message to explain the report or the purpose of the email.

   Scheduling Options: Select one of the following options:

   Send Now

   Send the report by email immediately.

   Send on a Schedule

   Schedule the report to generate and send on multiple days a week or to send once a week, month, quarter, or year.

   If you select Send on a Schedule, select one of the following options:

   • Send Daily: Select which days of the week to send the email.
   • Send Weekly: Select which day of the week to send the email.
   • Send Monthly: Sets the email to be sent on the last day of the month.
   • Send Quarterly: Select the month that designates the end of the first quarter to send the email. The email is sent on the last day of each reporting quarter.
   • Send Yearly: Select the last month of the year. The email is sent on the last day of the year.

   Note: Scheduled emails generate a report PDF by using a stored URL address. The saved report definition is used to generate the scheduled report that is sent.

4. Click OK.
   • Send Now: The email is sent immediately with the current report page attached as a PDF file.
   • Send on a Schedule: The email schedule is configured. The report is generated and sent according to the schedule.

     If you have administrator privileges, you can view, edit, or delete the email schedules that you configure in the Administration pages of the NFA console. For more information, see the CA Network Flow Analysis Administrator Guide.

Print Reports

You can print a report view from the browser window or save the report as a PDF file.

The Print icon is included at the top of all report views:

• Enterprise Overview page views
• Interface drilldown views
• Reports that you run from the Custom Reporting, Flow Forensics, and Analysis pages

If you are logged in with Administrator rights, you can print any of the reports by clicking the Print icon.

Follow these steps:

1. Select the completed report to display it.
2. Click the Print icon at the top-right corner of the report page.

   A printable version of the report opens in a new browser window.

3. In the browser toolbar, click the Printer icon.

   Your browser displays a Print dialog box, which you use to select a printer and set other printing options.

4. Click OK to print the PDF file.