LAN monitoring software | How to monitor corporate LAN? Sharing of six collection-level LAN monitoring software, it is recommended to collect them

Introduction: How does an order worth one million "fly" away?

“Mr. Li, we are very satisfied with this cooperation and look forward to next time……”

After hanging up the phone, Sales Director Lao Wang breathed a long sigh of relief. A big customer that had been working for half a year was finally settled. But within a few days, a shocking news came: This customer actually signed a contract with a small company that had just been established, and the other party's quotation, plan, and even the core technical parameters were highly similar to Lao Wang and his company.

The company's top executives were furious and immediately set up an investigation team. After some twists and turns, the truth was chilling: a core employee who was about to resign packaged and sent all the confidential documents of the project to outsiders through his personal email and network disk before leaving. He easily "reproduced" the plan and stole millions of orders that should have belonged to the company.

Such "flying orders" incidents are not unique among many companies. Employees "fishing" at work lead to low efficiency, leakage of core data causes heavy losses, and internal fraud is difficult to prevent... These problems are like the sword of Damocles hanging over the heads of corporate managers, constantly threatening the survival and development of the company.

In order to meet these challenges, deploying professional LAN monitoring software has become a must for modern enterprise management. Today, we will share with you six LAN monitoring and management software that have attracted much attention in the industry to help you build an indestructible enterprise "firewall".

In-depth analysis of six LAN monitoring software

1. Insight MIT system: integrated LAN monitoring and management platform

position : A comprehensive comprehensive LAN monitoring solution with comprehensive functions, designed to achieve unified management of terminal behavior, data flow and IT status through one platform.

Introduction：

The Insight MIT system is an "all-round player" in the field of LAN monitoring. It deeply integrates the core needs of enterprises in LAN management. For enterprises that want to simplify management and solve various monitoring problems in one step, it provides an efficient and unified central management and control platform.

Core monitoring functions：

Comprehensive screen monitoring：

This is its most intuitive monitoring feature. The system supports real-time viewing of employee computer screens, regular snapshots or full video recording. Managers can clearly understand the actual work content of employees. When a safety incident or operational dispute occurs, screen recording can be used as the most direct traceability evidence, effectively deterring violations.

Refined online behavior management：

Comprehensive monitoring of employee network activity during working hours. Whether it is which websites you browse, what keywords you enter in search engines, or the conversation content in various AI assistants and chat software, the system can record and audit it in detail. Administrators can set policies to prohibit access to non-work-related websites, or alert immediately when sensitive words are detected.

In-depth file operations auditing：

Monitor the file operations of all terminals in the LAN without blind spots. All actions including file creation, access, modification, copy, move, rename and deletion on local disks and network shared paths will be recorded one by one. This helps track the life cycle of files, detect abnormal file processing behavior in time, and prevent data from being maliciously damaged or stolen.

Dynamic IT asset and status monitoring：

Automatically inventory the software and hardware asset information of all computers in the LAN and form a ledger. When an employee privately replaces hardware (such as unplugging a memory stick) or installs or uninstalls software, the system will generate a change alarm and notify the administrator. At the same time, it can also monitor the terminal's CPU, memory usage and other load conditions to ensure stable operation of the terminal.

2. SolarWinds Network Performance Monitor: Professional-grade network performance monitoring

position : A monitoring tool focused on network device performance and traffic analysis.

Introduction：

SolarWinds is a well-known name in IT monitoring, and its NPM product is specifically designed for network administrators. It focuses more on monitoring the "health" of network infrastructure rather than the individual behavior of employees.

Core monitoring functions：

Network performance monitoring : Real-time monitoring of the CPU, memory usage and response time of routers, switches, firewalls and other network equipment to ensure the stability of the network backbone.

traffic analysis : In-depth analysis of network traffic, identifying users and applications that occupy the largest bandwidth, and helping to optimize network resource allocation.

path analysis : Visualize network paths and quickly locate faulty nodes when network delays or interruptions occur.

3. ManageEngine OpManager: Network management center for small and medium-sized enterprises

position : Integrated network and server monitoring platform for small and medium-sized enterprises.

Introduction：

OpManager provides a relatively lightweight but full-featured network monitoring solution that combines network monitoring, server monitoring and traffic analysis. It is cost-effective and is deeply loved by IT departments of small and medium-sized enterprises.

Core monitoring functions：

Equipment status monitoring : Monitor the operating status of network devices and servers through SNMP, WMI and other protocols, and support custom alarm thresholds.

Network topology discovery : Automatically discover all devices in the LAN and generate a visual network topology diagram to facilitate administrators to understand the network structure.

Bandwidth monitoring : Analyze traffic flowing through network interfaces to help identify abnormal traffic patterns and bandwidth abuse.

4. PRTG Network Monitor: Flexible sensor-based monitoring system

position : Highly customizable, "sensor"-based monitoring software.

Introduction：

What makes PRTG unique is its "sensor" concept. Each sensor is responsible for monitoring a specific indicator (such as traffic on a certain port, CPU load, etc.). Users can freely combine sensors as needed to build a completely personalized monitoring system.

Core monitoring functions：

Full coverage monitoring : Provides more than 200 predefined sensors to monitor network traffic, device status, application performance, cloud services, and almost all IT elements.

Real-time dashboard : Users can display the most important monitoring data in a centralized manner through the dashboard, making it clear at a glance.

Flexible alarm mechanism : Supports sending alarms through multiple methods such as email, SMS, APP push, etc., and can set different notification strategies according to the severity of the alarm.

5. Zabbix: Open source enterprise-level monitoring solution

position : Powerful, completely free open source monitoring software.

Introduction：

Zabbix is ​​a popular open source monitoring tool that is powerful and highly scalable, capable of monitoring anything from hardware to applications. But its disadvantage is that configuration and maintenance are relatively complex, requiring enterprises to have specialized IT technicians.

Core monitoring functions：

Data collection : Supports a variety of data collection methods and can monitor server performance, network equipment, Java applications, databases, etc.

Problem detection : A powerful trigger engine that can flexibly define complex alarm logic and accurately identify problems.

Visualization : Provides rich chart, network topology and dashboard functions to help users analyze monitoring data intuitively.

6. Nagios: Classic IT Infrastructure Monitoring

position : A long-standing, stable and reliable IT infrastructure monitoring system.

Introduction：

Nagios is one of the "veterans" in the field of IT monitoring and is known for its extremely high stability and reliability. It achieves infinite expansion of functions through plug-in architecture and has a large number of users and communities around the world.

Core monitoring functions：

Host and service monitoring : The core function is to monitor whether the hosts (servers, PCs) and services (HTTP, FTP, SMTP) in the network are running normally.

event handling : When a problem is detected, the system can automatically execute preset scripts (such as restarting services) to try to solve the problem.

Reporting and Analysis : Able to generate availability reports, historical logs, etc. to provide data support for IT decision-making.

How to choose?

If you are a business manager, you are more concerned about employee behavior and data security.：Insight Eye MIT System It is the most suitable choice. It integrates the employee screens, Internet behavior, file operations, etc. that you care about into one platform, making the management perspective clearer.

If you are a network administrator, you are responsible for the stability of the network infrastructure：SolarWinds NPM、PRTG or Zabbix This type of professional network monitoring tool is more suitable for your needs.

If you are the IT leader of a small or medium-sized enterprise looking for a cost-effective comprehensive solution：ManageEngine OpManager or open source Zabbix Worth considering.

Conclusion

In today's increasingly fierce digital competition, the challenges faced by enterprises are no longer just market and products, but also risks from internal management. Choosing a suitable set of LAN monitoring software is not only a strong protection of the company's core assets, but also a long-term investment in team work efficiency and overall competitiveness. I hope today’s sharing can help you find the “Guardian Saint” that suits you best.

Introduction: From the crisis of “flying orders” to the rebirth of management

“This month's performance has declined again, and several major customers have also been lost. Tell me, is there a mole? ”

Mr. Wang, the boss of a medium-sized trading company, has fallen into deep anxiety recently. The company is clearly in a rising period in the industry, and the team size is also expanding, but its core performance has declined instead of increasing. What shocked him the most was that several old customers who had been with him for many years suddenly lost contact and turned to cooperate with a new company - and the boss of that company was the former sales director of Wang Corporation.

He began to strongly suspect that the company's core customer information, quotations and other confidential information had been leaked through employees' computers. Traditional "humanized" management is vulnerable in the face of naked interests. Mr. Wang realized that he urgently needed a pair of "eyes" that could clearly see the internal conditions of the company's network to plug management loopholes and protect the lifeline of the company.

Mr. Wang’s dilemma is a common challenge faced by countless business managers in the digital age. Fortunately, the market has already given the answer. Professional LAN monitoring software is a powerful tool to solve such problems. But with so many products on the market, how do you choose?

In order to help you make informed decisions, we have carefully compiled six (types) of LAN monitoring software that have attracted much attention on the market. They each have their own characteristics and are suitable for different management needs.

1. Insight MIT system: a "panoramic" monitoring platform that goes deep into LAN terminals

Reasons for recommendation: If you want to conduct comprehensive and detailed monitoring and management of terminal computers in the LAN, the Insight MIT system provides a complete solution. By deploying lightweight agents on terminals, it can deeply capture and analyze various user behaviors, providing managers with a panoramic view of the internal dynamics of the network.

Core functions:

Real-time screen monitoring and recording: This function allows managers to view the computer screen of any employee within the LAN in real time, or to record screen operations without interruption. This not only provides an intuitive understanding of the working status of employees, but also provides clear and traceable video evidence when safety incidents or operational disputes occur, which is an important basis for post-event audits.

Online behavior monitoring and management: The system can record in detail the web browsing history of all computers in the local area network, including the URLs visited, titles and times. Administrators can set website blacklists and whitelists based on policies, and block websites unrelated to work (such as videos, shopping, and social networking sites) with one click, thereby standardizing online behavior, improving work efficiency, and reducing security risks caused by visiting malicious websites.

Instant messaging monitoring and auditing: For commonly used chat tools within the enterprise, the system can completely record the conversation content, including the sender and receiver, chat text, transferred files, etc. By setting sensitive word alerts (such as "private work", "job hopping", "price"), once triggered in the conversation, the system will immediately notify the administrator, effectively preventing the leakage of business secrets through chat tools.

Network traffic auditing and analysis: This function can count the network communication traffic of each computer in the LAN and rank it by application, IP address and other dimensions. Administrators can clearly see which program or computer is occupying a large amount of bandwidth, which helps optimize network resource allocation and timely detect traffic anomalies caused by viruses, abnormal programs, etc.

Suitable for businesses: Enterprises of all sizes need to conduct detailed and multi-dimensional monitoring of employees' computer behavior, and want to take into account work efficiency management, data security protection and behavioral compliance audits.

2. LanPatrol: Simple and easy-to-use “real-time patrol””

Reasons for recommendation: For companies that are small in size, have limited IT staff, and whose primary need is to understand the working status of their employees in real time, lightweight software like LanPatrol is a good entry-level choice.

Core function highlights:

Multi-image screen wall: Its core function is to monitor employees' computer screens in real time. Managers can see the real-time screen wall of all employees' screens on their own computers to intuitively understand whether everyone is working on the job.

Basic online behavior control: Supports website and application blacklist, which can block access to non-work-related websites such as videos, shopping, games, etc. with one click.

Instant alarm and remote control: When an employee performs illegal operations, the system can send an alert to the administrator and allow the administrator to perform operations such as remote locking and shutdown.

Suitable for businesses: For small and medium-sized enterprises, especially call centers, design studios and other teams that require high-intensity on-the-job work, the main management goal is to prevent employees from "fishing".

3. DataGuard Pro: A “vault focusing on data security””

Reasons for recommendation: If your company belongs to industries such as R&D, finance, and law that have extremely high requirements for data confidentiality, then it is particularly important to choose a professional tool with DLP (data leakage prevention) as its core.

Core function highlights:

Deep content identification: The core of this type of software is its powerful content analysis engine, which can deeply scan outgoing files, emails, and chat content through keywords, regular expressions, file fingerprints, etc., and automatically intercept or alarm if sensitive information is found.

Encryption and permission control: Emphasize the mandatory encryption of storage devices and hierarchical permission management of documents. Employees with different confidentiality levels can only access files within the permission range.

Comprehensive audit log: Record all data-related operations and form strict audit logs to meet industry compliance requirements.

Suitable for businesses: High-tech enterprises, financial institutions, design institutes, law firms, etc. that own core technologies, intellectual property rights and large amounts of sensitive customer data.

4. EffiWork Suite: “Performance Coaching Focusing on Efficiency Analysis””

Reasons for recommendation: The original intention of this type of software is not to impose strict control, but to help teams and individuals discover efficiency bottlenecks and optimize work processes through data analysis.

Core function highlights:

Comprehensive time tracking: Automatically record and classify the time employees spend on various applications and websites.

Project time management: Employees can attribute their time to different projects, helping managers accurately calculate project labor costs.

Efficiency reporting and analysis: Provide multi-dimensional individual and team efficiency reports to help managers discover inefficiencies and provide employees with data reference for self-improvement.

Suitable for businesses: Consulting, software development, creativity, etc. are project-based and result-oriented companies that hope to improve the overall output of the team through data drive.

5. AssetControl Enterprise: the “Central Processing Unit” of IT Operations and Maintenance”

Reasons for recommendation: For large enterprises with hundreds or even thousands of terminals, the complexity and workload of IT operation and maintenance are huge. This type of software focuses on solving IT management problems in large-scale network environments.

Core function highlights:

Automated asset management: Automatically scan and maintain the entire network's software and hardware asset list, and support asset change alarms and life cycle management.

Remote batch deployment: It can remotely install software, distribute files, and push patches to computers in the entire network or in designated groups, greatly improving operation and maintenance efficiency.

Unified policy execution: Force the implementation of unified security policies on all terminals, such as system configuration, anti-virus software policies, password policies, etc., to ensure the security baseline of the entire network.

Suitable for businesses: Large and medium-sized enterprises, group companies, governments and institutions with a large number of terminals and complex IT environments.

6. SecureGate FW: The “invisible guard of the network boundary””

Reasons for recommendation: This type of product focuses more on monitoring and management at the network gateway level, with minimal impact on terminal performance.

Core function highlights:

Network traffic audit: In-depth analysis of traffic data across the entire LAN to identify abnormal traffic, large bandwidth hogs, and potential network attacks.

Internet behavior management (gateway level): Website filtering, application control and content auditing are carried out at the network exit, and all terminals can take effect without installing a client.

Illegal outreach and access control: Ability to detect and block unauthorized devices from accessing the internal network, or internal computers from accessing unsecured external addresses.

Suitable for businesses: Enterprises that hope to achieve macro control over the entire network behavior without affecting the performance of employees' computers and have professional network administrators.

Introduction: Invisible security holes are “emptying” your company

Every enterprise has an invisible "net" - local area network. This network carries the core lifeblood of the company: customer information, financial statements, technical code, marketing strategies... However, this network is also fragile. Unintentional illegal operations by employees, malicious copies on the eve of resignation, and "digital wandering" during working hours may all become holes in this network and cause irreparable losses to the enterprise.

Traditional firewalls can resist external attacks, but are helpless against internal risks. How can we not only ensure data security but also improve team efficiency? Deployment of professional LAN monitoring software is a required course for modern enterprise managers. Today, we will conduct an in-depth review of six mainstream LAN monitoring software to help you find the best solution for protecting your company’s digital assets.

In-depth evaluation of six software

1. Insight MIT system (comprehensive terminal security management platform)

position: A terminal security "command center" that provides integrated solutions for enterprises.

Review: For enterprises that hope to solve multiple intranet security issues through one platform, the Insight MIT system provides a comprehensive perspective. It deeply integrates functions such as employee behavior monitoring, data leakage prevention and IT management, aiming to achieve the unity of security and efficiency.

Core functions:

Real-time screen monitoring: Allows administrators to view the screens of one or more terminals in real time, intuitively understand the current work content of employees, and supports video playback of historical screens to facilitate subsequent audits.

Document security control: The outgoing behavior of audit files through U disk, email, network disk and other channels can block, back up or enable the approval process of sensitive file transmission, effectively preventing core data leakage.

Internet behavior audit: Record the websites visited by employees and the applications used, and audit the chat content of mainstream instant messaging software to provide data support for behavior analysis and efficiency evaluation.

IT asset and equipment management: Automatically scans and counts software and hardware asset information across the entire network, and can fine-tune the use rights of USB ports, Bluetooth, printers and other peripherals to maintain the unity and security of the IT environment.

2. Unified Threat Management (UTM) Gateway

position: The "all-powerful door god" at the LAN border is a hardware gateway that integrates multiple security functions.

Review: UTM is a network hardware device that is deployed at the entrance of the enterprise network like a comprehensive security checkpoint. It integrates firewall, intrusion prevention, web filtering and other functions to centrally detect and manage all traffic entering and leaving the local area network.

Core functions:

Apply behavior controls: Able to identify and control thousands of network applications, for example, employees can be prohibited from using P2P downloading software, video applications or stock trading software during working hours.

Web content filtering: Employees' online behavior can be filtered and restricted based on categories (such as malicious websites, phishing websites, social networks, entertainment videos, etc.) to purify the network environment.

Intrusion Prevention System (IPS): Monitor network traffic 24/7, proactively discover and block known network attacks and malicious scanning behaviors, and protect internal servers and terminals.

Traffic analysis and reports: Statistics and analysis of traffic across the entire network are performed, and visual reports are generated to help administrators understand bandwidth usage and locate network bottlenecks.

3. Wireshark (open source network protocol analyzer)

position: IT professionals' "network scalpel" for in-depth network troubleshooting and analysis.

Review: Wireshark is free and open source and is the de facto standard for network administrators and security experts for low-level network analysis. It does not provide a management interface, but focuses on capturing and analyzing every data packet flowing through the LAN. It plays an irreplaceable role in diagnosing complex network problems and discovering hidden security threats.

Core functions:

Live packet capture: Ability to capture data in real time from multiple network interfaces such as Ethernet, Wi-Fi and more.

In-depth protocol analysis: Supports the analysis of thousands of network protocols, and you can clearly see the details of each network session.

Traffic filtering and statistics: Allows users to screen and filter captured data based on IP address, port, protocol and other conditions to quickly locate problems.

Security analysis: By analyzing abnormal data packets or communication patterns, it helps detect security incidents such as network scanning and malware communication.

4. Network Admission Control (NAC) System

position: The "smart access control" of the local area network ensures that only compliant devices can access.

Review: The core concept of NAC is "authenticate first, then access the network". Before any device—whether it’s a company computer, an employee’s phone, or a guest device—can be connected to the corporate network, it must pass its “identity check,” and non-compliant devices will be turned away or quarantined into a restricted network.

Core functions:

Identity and device authentication: Force all devices connected to the network to undergo identity verification and prevent illegal devices from accessing without permission.

Security posture assessment: Check the security status of access devices, such as whether anti-virus software is installed and whether system patches are up-to-date. Devices that do not comply with security policies will be isolated or have access restricted.

Guest network management: Provide guests or temporary devices with an Internet access channel isolated from the internal core network, which not only facilitates guests but also ensures the security of the internal network.

Linked defense: It can be linked with other security devices (such as firewalls). Once a terminal is found to have violations, it can be immediately isolated from the network.

5. Desktop Virtualization (VDI) Solutions

position: Reshape the "centralized" model of LAN security from the architectural level.

Review: VDI (such as technology solutions based on Citrix or VMware) provides a completely different security concept from traditional monitoring software. It centrally runs all employees' desktop operating systems on servers in the data center, and employees' computers only serve as "thin clients" for display and input. In this mode, data is naturally retained on the server, which greatly reduces the risk of terminal leakage.

Core functions:

Data is not implemented: All files and data are stored in the data center and will not be stored on employees' local computers, which fundamentally eliminates the possibility of copying data through USB flash drives and other methods.

Unified policy control: Administrators can uniformly monitor, manage and issue policies for all virtual desktops on the server, such as software installation, peripheral use, etc.

Operational behavior audit: It can record all user operations within the virtual desktop and centrally store logs to facilitate unified auditing.

Rapid deployment and recovery: Standardized work desktops can be quickly deployed for new employees or quickly restored to normal when issues arise.

6. Splunk (big data log analysis platform)

position: The enterprise's "Security Information and Event Management Center (SIEM)".

Review: In a complex local area network, firewalls, servers, databases, terminals, etc. will generate massive logs. The role of Splunk is to bring together these scattered log data to perform intelligent search, correlation analysis and visualization to discover hidden security threats.

Core functions:

Unified collection of logs: Ability to collect log data from virtually any source on the network (hardware devices, operating systems, application software).

Real-time monitoring and alerting: Perform real-time analysis on the collected data, and issue an alert immediately once the preset risk rules are matched (such as multiple failed logins in a short period of time).

Security incident correlation analysis: Concatenate log events from different sources to help restore the entire attack chain and discover advanced persistent threats (APT).

Compliance Report: Audit and analysis reports can be automatically generated based on various safety compliance standards (such as Class Assurance 2.0).

Conclusion: How to choose which option is best for you?

The above six types of software provide guarantees for local area network security from different levels and dimensions.

for Most companies , especially small and medium-sized enterprises that want rapid deployment, comprehensive coverage, and simplified management. Insight Eye MIT System Such an integrated terminal management platform is the most efficient choice. It integrates multiple core monitoring and control requirements with one platform.

for Strong technical ability and pursuit of ultimate analysis IT department, Wireshark It is an indispensable diagnostic tool.

for Security requirements are extremely high and we hope to solve the problem architecturally of enterprises, VDI The plan deserves serious consideration.

and UTM、NAC and Splunk It is more like a key puzzle piece in the construction of a defense-in-depth system for large and medium-sized enterprises, guarding the network boundary, access and audit analysis.

Ultimately, which tool to choose depends on your core pain points, budget size, and management model. But in any case, facing up to internal risks and taking proactive monitoring and defense measures are wise decisions that every business manager must make in this digital age.

Introduction: An “invisible” management problem

Do you also encounter such difficulties in today's business operations? Sensitive data such as core customer information and technical documents are always worried about being accidentally or maliciously leaked by internal employees, causing "flying orders" or business losses. ； The team's work status always seems to be "busy", but the progress of the project has not been advanced. It is not sure whether the employees are "fishing".” ； When it is necessary to conduct an internal behavioral audit to trace the source of a certain illegal operation, it is found that there is no evidence, making it difficult to eliminate fraud.

These "invisible" behaviors are like boiling frogs in warm water, quietly eroding the core competitiveness and profits of enterprises. How to make these uncontrollable risks transparent and controllable? The answer lies in effective monitoring of the local area network. It is not only a "firewall" to ensure data security, but also a "booster" to improve overall work efficiency.

Why is LAN monitoring important?

For a modern enterprise, computers and the Internet are the carrier of almost all work. Effective monitoring of LAN can fundamentally solve a series of management pain points:

Ensure core data security : By recording and controlling behaviors such as file operations, email sending and receiving, chat content, and USB device usage, it can effectively prevent core data from being leaked through various channels, and provide a solid lock for the security of corporate intellectual property and customer information.

Improve team work efficiency : Which websites do employees visit during working hours, which applications do they use, and what are their effective working hours? Through employee behavior analysis, managers can clearly understand the working status of the team, promptly discover and correct "fishing" behaviors, and optimize resource allocation and work processes in a data-driven manner.

Implement compliance audits : In industries with extremely high compliance requirements, such as finance, medical, and legal, all operations of employees need to be recorded and archived for audit. A complete monitoring system can provide tamper-proof behavior records to ensure that the company's operational activities comply with regulatory requirements and easily respond to compliance audits.

Simplify IT asset management : Real-time understanding of the software and hardware assets, software installation and usage of all computers in the company, which not only facilitates unified management and maintenance, but also effectively avoids security risks caused by illegal software.

6 LAN monitoring software to share

There are many tools on the market that can help us implement LAN monitoring, but they have different focuses. Some focus on the "technical health" of network equipment and traffic, while others are more concerned with the security of "human behavior" and "data content." The following are six unique softwares to share:

1. Insight Eye MIT System

Function introduction：

This is a comprehensive tool specially designed for business managers Employee Behavior Audit and Data Security Platform . It shifts the focus of monitoring from network equipment to every computer terminal in the local area network, aiming to help managers gain insight into work behaviors, protect core data, and improve overall efficiency. Its functions cover multiple dimensions of enterprise management:

Screen activity history : The system can record the screen images of employees’ computers to form a visual operation log. When a security incident occurs or there are questions about the work process, managers can look back at any time to understand the specific operating scenarios at that time.

File operation and outbound control : Comprehensively record file creation, copying, moving, deleting, outgoing and other behaviors. More importantly, it can accurately control the behavior of files sent out through U disk, network disk, chat tools, emails and other channels. It can be set to only allow, only prohibit or trigger alarms, effectively preventing data leakage.

Application and website access analysis : Detailed statistics on the duration and frequency of employees’ use of various software and websites during working hours, and automatic generation of work efficiency analysis reports to help managers understand the team’s work focus, discover “fishing” behaviors, and provide data support for job optimization.

Instant messaging content audit : Audit the chat content of mainstream office chat software (such as WeChat, DingTalk, QQ, etc.), and can set keyword alarms. This is critical to prevent employees from cheating, revealing trade secrets, or spreading negativity through private messages.

Peripheral and port management : Flexible permission settings can be made for USB storage devices, printers, smartphones and other peripherals, such as prohibiting use, setting them to read-only or allowing only authorized devices to access, physically blocking the channels for data leakage.

IT Asset and Software Management : Automatically inventory the software and hardware asset information of all computers in the LAN to form a detailed ledger. At the same time, the installation and usage of software can be counted, which facilitates unified maintenance and management by the IT department and avoids risks caused by illegal software.

2.Wireshark

Function introduction：

As the "gold standard" in network analysis, it is an open source and extremely powerful network protocol analyzer. It can capture every data packet flowing through the network card in the LAN and perform "deep packet inspection" (DPI) to parse the binary data traffic into human-readable protocol information.

IT experts can use it to diagnose complex network problems (such as why access to a certain service is particularly slow), analyze network communication patterns of malware, or verify that network applications are communicating encrypted as expected. It sees the essence of network communication, but cannot directly interpret the encrypted content, and requires deep network knowledge to control it.

3.Zabbix

Function introduction：

This is an enterprise-level open source IT infrastructure monitoring system known for its comprehensiveness and flexibility. In LAN monitoring, it continuously monitors the health of all network hardware (servers, switches, routers) and services. It helps administrators understand the operating status of IT systems in real time by collecting thousands of indicators such as CPU usage, memory usage, disk I/O, network bandwidth, and service response time.

Its powerful template system can quickly deploy monitoring of standard equipment, and its highly customizable alarm mechanism can notify relevant personnel as soon as a problem occurs. It is the "central nervous system" that ensures the stable operation of the network.

4.PRTG Network Monitor

Function introduction：

It is a popular commercial network monitoring software that lowers the threshold for network monitoring with its intuitive settings and "All-in-One" design concept.

It uses "sensors" as monitoring units. Each sensor is responsible for a monitoring item, such as monitoring the traffic of a switch port, the response time of a Web server, etc. Administrators can see the health of the entire network at a glance on a unified dashboard through traffic light-style status displays.

It also supports custom maps, and device icons can be dragged and dropped onto real network topology maps or office floor plans to achieve highly visual management.

5.Advanced IP Scanner

Function introduction：

This is a free, lightweight network scanning tool that should be in every network administrator's toolbox.

Its core function is to scan the entire LAN in seconds and clearly list all devices connected to the network, including their IP addresses, MAC addresses, device names, and open network ports. This is very efficient for daily maintenance tasks such as quickly inventorying network assets, discovering "rogue" devices with unauthorized access, or quickly finding the IP address of a certain computer.

It also integrates quick access to remote desktop (RDP) and Radmin. After scanning the device, remote control can be initiated with one click.

6.Microsoft Network Monitor

Function introduction：

This is a free network packet capture and analysis tool officially produced by Microsoft. Although its functionality overlaps with Wireshark, it has unique advantages when monitoring LANs in pure Windows environments. It can better parse proprietary network protocols under the Microsoft system, such as SMB/CIFS (file sharing), MSRPC (remote procedure call), etc.

When troubleshooting problems related to Windows domain controllers, file servers, or Exchange mail servers, it often provides a clearer, more contextual "conversation" view, helping administrators more easily understand and locate the root cause of the problem.

Conclusion

In today's increasingly fierce digital competition, the management model of enterprises must also keep pace with the times. LAN monitoring is no longer an "optional" technical tool, but a "must-have" strategy to ensure the healthy and sustainable development of enterprises. When choosing a tool, it is important to understand your core needs. If you are more concerned about the performance and stability of your network equipment, Zabbix or PRTG are good choices ； But if you are like most business managers, you are more concerned about  Whether the data is safe, whether the employees are dedicated, and whether the management is well-founded , then like the Insight Eye MIT system This kind of platform that focuses on behavioral auditing and data security is the ideal choice that can truly solve your problems.

Introduction: A "thrilling" afternoon

“Mr. Li, the core design plan for the important project we bid for last month was leaked. The rival company... has already made a sample that is almost the same as ours. ”

On Monday afternoon, Manager Wang, the director of the design department, knocked on the door of the general manager's office with a pale face. Mr. Li's heart skipped a beat. This plan was the hard work of dozens of colleagues in the company who stayed up late for weeks, and it will be the company's main source of profit in the coming quarter. How could the plan be leaked? After several days of internal investigation, I had no clue, until an IT friend reminded me: “Has your company’s computer network been monitored for security? ”

This scenario may be a nightmare that many business managers have faced or are currently worrying about. Today, as digital offices become more and more popular, employees' behaviors such as "flying orders", "fishing" at work, internal fraud, and data leakage are like hidden landmines that may detonate at any time, causing immeasurable losses to the enterprise.

How to effectively manage employees’ online behavior, ensure the security of corporate core data, and improve overall work efficiency? The answer lies in the four words "LAN monitoring".

What is LAN monitoring?

Simply put, LAN monitoring software is a tool that can help managers uniformly manage, analyze and audit computer usage in the company's internal network under the premise of legal compliance. It is not "monitoring", but a "protection network" and "booster" for enterprises to protect their own interests, avoid risks, optimize management, and achieve efficient operations.

Today, we will analyze in detail seven "treasure-level" LAN monitoring software or solution types to help you easily control the overall situation and allow your company to move forward steadily in the wave of digitalization.

Detailed explanation of seven "treasure-level" LAN monitoring software

1. Network infrastructure monitoring software

Software portrait : The "health diagnostician" of the local area network, focusing on monitoring the operating status of network hardware devices.

Function：

Automatic discovery and topology drawing : Automatically scan and draw the network structure diagram within the LAN, visually displaying switches, routers, servers and other equipment.

Critical equipment performance monitoring : Monitor the CPU and memory usage of network devices and servers in real time, as well as the traffic of network interfaces.

Network failure alarm : When key equipment such as switches and servers are offline or their performance exceeds standards, an alarm is immediately sent to the administrator.

2. Employee efficiency analysis software

Software portrait : An "efficiency analyst" who focuses on quantifying work status to help managers gain insight into the team's true output.

Function：

App duration and activity statistics : Monitor and count employees’ usage time on each software, and be able to distinguish between foreground activities and background hang status.

Website visit classification statistics : Statistics of the websites visited by employees are classified into work, social, entertainment, etc., and generates personal and departmental efficiency reports.

job saturation analysis : Analyze employees’ work engagement by comparing their effective working hours with total working hours.

3. Data flow and outbound monitoring software

Software portrait : The "customs security inspector" of corporate data, closely monitoring all data flowing out.

Function：

U disk copy behavior monitoring : Record in detail the name, size and time of all files copied from the computer to the USB flash drive, and can prohibit or only allow authorized USB flash drives to be used.

Auditing of files sent from the Internet : Monitor files sent outside the LAN through web mailboxes, network disks, instant messaging tools, etc.

Clipboard content monitoring : Audit the contents of employees’ copy-and-paste operations to prevent small or multiple leaks of sensitive text information.

4. Remote desktop and session audit system

Software portrait : A "high-definition video recorder" for computer screens, designed to review and review screen operation processes.

Function：

Real-time multi-screen monitoring wall : Allows managers to watch the real-time computer desktops of multiple employees on one screen at the same time in the form of a "video wall".

Screen operation recording and playback : Record all activities on employees’ computer screens into videos, which can be played back on demand at any time for audit or training.

Remote fault support : With employee authorization, IT staff can remotely connect to their desktops to visually view problems and provide assistance.

5. Application usage control software

Software portrait : The "order maintainer" of computer software, ensuring that all programs are used in compliance with company regulations.

Function：

Software black and white list policy : You can set policies to prohibit the running of games, stock trading and other illegal software, or force the computer to only run specified whitelist software.

Software installation and uninstallation monitoring : Log the software installation and uninstallation behavior of all computers in the LAN to prevent private installation of pirated or dangerous software.

Violating program running alarm : Once an employee is detected trying to run a program on the blacklist, the system can immediately block it and send an alert to the administrator.

6. Internet behavior management gateway

Software portrait : The "prosecutor" of the company's Internet export, strictly examining and recording all online activities.

Function：

URL classification filtering : Based on policies, employees can be blocked from accessing video, social networking, recruitment and other non-work related website categories in batches.

Web access log audit : Record in detail the website addresses, titles and access durations visited by all users in the local area network for subsequent audit.

Bandwidth allocation and traffic control : Allocate different network bandwidths to different users or applications to ensure smooth operation of core services and limit bandwidth usage by non-essential applications.

7. One-stop intelligent management platform: Insight MIT system

Software portrait : The combination of all the above-mentioned "specialist" capabilities is a unified and intelligent "general hospital".

Function：

live screen : It can capture and display the screen of the monitored computer in real time. Administrators can remotely view employee operations. It supports simultaneous monitoring of multiple screens. Multiple employee computer screens can be displayed through a TV wall to quickly grasp the overall working status.

Comprehensive network activity audit : Comprehensive audit Website access, instant messaging chat content, email sending and receiving All network behaviors generated through the LAN make the network footprints clear and traceable.

Real-time traffic and bandwidth analysis : Real-time monitoring of every computer and every application in the LAN Upload/download traffic , quickly locate network abuse and ensure network smoothness.

Intelligent risk warning and traceability : It can automatically correlate and analyze a variety of user behaviors (such as "frequent visits to recruitment websites" + "large amounts of outgoing emails"), intelligently warn of risks such as resignations and leaks, and provide one-click traceability functions.