Should You Use Network Monitoring Tools? Monitoring a wide array of network applications, drives and devices can be incredibly challenging. Keeping tabs on bandwidth, printers, spyware / malware, patches, drivers and hardware configuration is enough to make even seasoned IT pros bang their heads in frustration. Fortunately, there's an answer. Network monitoring tools, even free network monitoring software, can make a big difference. Manage Hardware and Software at the Same Time Gone are the days when you need one program to monitor your hard drives and another to monitor your network traffic. Now you can manage all your applications under one umbrella. Switch from network to printer to device with the click of a button. Save Time With Alerts Continually checking on devices can take a lot of time. Each individual task might not take very long, but added up they can be a major drain on your time. For example, checking printer ink levels. Instead of having to manually check on ink levels, you can simply setup alerts to let you know when ink is running low. You can do the same with network alerts, by getting automatic alerts when users go over a specified bandwidth limit. Simple and Clean Reporting Compiling reports from different data sources can take hours, if not days. Why not let software make it easier for you? Network monitoring software can gather all the necessary data and extrapolate all the necessary data. Graphs, charts and calculations are quickly done on the fly. Make User Support a Piece of Cake Built in ticketing systems can make troubleshooting and follow up a cinch. Keep track of users, contact information, previous support requests, devices on their system and more all on one screen. These are just some of the many ways network management software can make your life easier. You'll be able to get more done in less time, while improving your overall output.