Onboarding network devices shouldn't require a complex flowchart to determine which agent polls for what data. We understand that juggling "NMS devices" versus "Flow devices"—and facing the performance penalty of "double polling" where multiple agents hit the same device—has been a source of friction and unnecessary complexity. 

What’s New?

We’re thrilled to announce a major evolution in how the Kentik Universal Agent (UA) collects device telemetry. Instead of a product-focused "NMS" capability, all SNMP and Streaming Telemetry (ST) collection will be handed by a Unified SNMP/ST capability.

Previously, the Universal Agent’s "NMS" capability focused on full monitoring (as well as ICMP-only devices), while a separate Kproxy agent (outside of the UA) handled SNMP polling for flow enrichment (as well as flow ingest). This often led to redundant polling and confusing configurations when polling devices for both flow enrichment and device monitoring.

The "NMS" capability has evolved into the SNMP/ST capability. This single, powerful capability now handles both Full Monitoring (NMS) and Flow Enrichment. For more details on these distinctions, check out the Detailed Migration Scenarios section of the KProxy Migration Guide. This update works hand-in-hand with our new UA Flow Proxy capability, allowing you to consolidate everything under the Universal Agent framework, eliminating the need for standalone Kproxy installations and streamlining your "Kentik devices" onboarding process.

Why It Matters

This unification isn't just a rename; it is a fundamental architectural improvement designed to reduce overhead and simplify your workflow.

• Eliminate "Double Polling": By consolidating monitoring and enrichment into a single capability, we stop the inefficient practice of having both Kproxy and the Universal Agent poll the same device. This significantly reduces CPU load on your network gear and improves overall performance.
• Simplified Onboarding & Management: We're eroding the need to decide between an "NMS device" or a "Flow device." You simply configure the SNMP/ST capability based on your collection needs. Whether you just need Flow Enrichment (requires Flow license) or Full Monitoring (requires NMS license), it is now handled by a single, logical agent configuration.
• Faster Time to Value: Deploying new devices is faster and less prone to configuration errors. You get immediate visibility without the "support tax" of maintaining disparate agent binaries.

Get Started!

Ready to streamline your device telemetry? For a detailed breakdown of the migration paths and new configuration options—including Flow Enrichment vs. Full Monitoring—check out the KProxy Migration Guide in the Kentik Knowledge Base.