What are RADIUS server performance issues?

Performance issues may occur for many reasons, but they ultimately lead to an inability for users to connect to a network due to invalid or disrupted authentication attempts. Common factors affecting RADIUS service include: Incorrect user credentials Hardware overburdened by software programs and queries Automatic system updates Resource-intensive database queries and RADIUS servers housed within the same administrative device To prevent crashing, SAM relies on alternative data polling methods like WMI and SNMP until client-server communication resumes.

Why is RADIUS monitoring necessary?

RADIUS monitoring is vital for ensuring your authentication server operates correctly and allows users to access the network. And proactive monitoring makes it possible to keep an eye on network security threats. Authentication: With monitoring, you can track how long it takes to perform user authentication. Data about the performance of the service can give insight into the user experience so you can take action as needed. Security: RADIUS servers supply data outlining network behavior—and it's essential to analyze and inspect the data for rogue activity. SAM draws in the data polled from NPS in a customizable display for swift reading and configuration so failed log-in attempts and unsolicited actions are spotted and addressed. SAM can also trace incompatibilities and network interruptions through server load testing for lower downtime and better preventative awareness.

How do you monitor RADIUS servers with SAM?

SAM is server monitoring software designed to work right out of the box. SAM offers application monitoring for all components, including servers, virtual layer, and applications like SQL Server ® , Exchange ® , and Active Directory ® . With SAM, you can set up custom alerts to trigger notifications when a set threshold is exceeded. This automated monitoring can help speed up your troubleshooting process. And with dashboards and reports, you have the baseline needed to compare application performance trends. SAM RADIUS-targeted component monitors access AAA ports to poll critical network data from NPS. As a result, SAM offers visibility into the following out-of-the-box performance metrics: Service: Network Policy Server CPU and Memory Usage Accounting: Accounting-Requests/sec Accounting: Accounting-Responses/sec Accounting: Server Reset Time Accounting: Server Up Time Authentication: Access-Accepts/sec Authentication: Access-Challenges/sec Authentication: Access-Rejects/sec Authentication: Access-Requests/sec Authentication: Bad Authenticators/sec Authentication: Dropped Packets/sec Authentication: FullAccess-Decisions/sec Authentication: Malformed Packets/sec Authentication: Probation-Decisions/sec Authentication: Quarantine-Decisions/sec Authentication: Unknown Type/sec Authentication: Invalid Requests/sec Policy Engine: Last Round-Trip Time Policy Engine: Matched Remote Access Policies/sec Policy Engine: Pending Requests For any of these metrics, you can establish threshold conditions to alert you of response times reaching warning and critical status and help align actual response times with company objectives to keep your IT framework in check.

RADIUS Monitor

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Measure Response Times

Availability & Performance

User Experience Monitor

Measure response times for your RADIUS authentication servers

Bolster network access security with SolarWinds^® Server & Application Monitor (SAM). More easily monitor the availability of your Remote Authentication Dial-In User Service (RADIUS) servers, measure authentication response times, and compare them against predetermined thresholds or SLAs. SAM records each step of a client’s network behavior for constructive playback and comprehensive load-time testing. Plus, you can record from multiple locations to help ensure test accuracy.

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Monitor the availability and performance of your Windows-based RADIUS server

Ensure your enterprise’s network is running correctly at all times, so users aren’t left in the dark. The SAM Orion foundation harnesses data from Microsoft’s Network Policy Service (NPS), which manages the authentication, authorization, auditing, and accounting processes occurring as Internet Engineering Task Force (IETF) RADIUS-compatible servers receive user access attempts.

If the NPS is not available, services depending on it will not start, and users may be unable to access the network via a VPN, dial-up, 802.1x wireless, or Ethernet connection. SAM component monitors provide you with the performance metrics needed for visibility into this service. Comprehensively scan for oddities at each checkpoint of the RADIUS server-client communication process so you can iron issues out before they impact users.

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Get visibility into network functionality with the RADIUS User Experience Monitor

RADIUS Monitor - RADIUS Server Performance Monitoring Use case type 1 2 Features Array Item - features item image

Help enable a streamlined experience for your network users. Your RADIUS server grants a client access to your network, but SAM goes further. While a user is connected to the network, NPS data is fed into SAM node-specific monitors to keep a running log of their activity, using information such as remote access requests, request completions, timeouts, invalid inputs, and more, and can be revisited later on for auditing or proxy redirecting. With these insights, you can help ensure optimal network functionality and a better user experience.

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Get More on RADIUS Monitoring

Do you find yourself asking…

What is a RADIUS server?
What are RADIUS server performance issues?
Why is RADIUS monitoring necessary?
How do you monitor RADIUS servers with SAM?

A Remote Authentication Dial-In User Service (RADIUS) server is a background database operating on Windows^® or UNIX^® to connect users to networks and monitor their activity while using the network. It’s a safe and secure way for businesses to surveil behavior with the potential to negatively alter the performance or functionality of their entire IT infrastructure. The most common Windows-based RADIUS server is Microsoft’s Network Policy Server (NPS).

There are three steps involved in the process of a client-server connection: authentication, authorization, and accounting (AAA).

Authentication entails the initial connection process, wherein a client inputs credentials transmitted to a network access server for verification.

Authorization is the process where the server then receives the credentials along with an encrypted key to run for validity and subsequently grants access to the user if all information is correct. RADIUS proxies may be utilized to ensure users are guided to the correct server if multiple servers are being used.

Accounting, the final step, involves constant interaction between the RADIUS server and network-attached storage (NAS) to gain insight into the user’s session ID, data usage and transfers, network address, logout information, and more. Enterprises can use RADIUS servers to protect, manage, and mitigate any risks associated with shared network access.

A Remote Authentication Dial-In User Service (RADIUS) server is a background database operating on Windows^® or UNIX^® to connect users to networks and monitor their activity while using the network. It’s a safe and secure way for businesses to surveil behavior with the potential to negatively alter the performance or functionality of their entire IT infrastructure. The most common Windows-based RADIUS server is Microsoft’s Network Policy Server (NPS).
There are three steps involved in the process of a client-server connection: authentication, authorization, and accounting (AAA).
Authentication entails the initial connection process, wherein a client inputs credentials transmitted to a network access server for verification.
Authorization is the process where the server then receives the credentials along with an encrypted key to run for validity and subsequently grants access to the user if all information is correct. RADIUS proxies may be utilized to ensure users are guided to the correct server if multiple servers are being used.
Accounting, the final step, involves constant interaction between the RADIUS server and network-attached storage (NAS) to gain insight into the user’s session ID, data usage and transfers, network address, logout information, and more. Enterprises can use RADIUS servers to protect, manage, and mitigate any risks associated with shared network access.
Performance issues may occur for many reasons, but they ultimately lead to an inability for users to connect to a network due to invalid or disrupted authentication attempts.
Common factors affecting RADIUS service include:
Incorrect user credentials
Hardware overburdened by software programs and queries
Automatic system updates
Resource-intensive database queries and RADIUS servers housed within the same administrative device
To prevent crashing, SAM relies on alternative data polling methods like WMI and SNMP until client-server communication resumes.
SAM is server monitoring software designed to work right out of the box. SAM offers application monitoring for all components, including servers, virtual layer, and applications like SQL Server^®, Exchange^®, and Active Directory^®.
With SAM, you can set up custom alerts to trigger notifications when a set threshold is exceeded. This automated monitoring can help speed up your troubleshooting process. And with dashboards and reports, you have the baseline needed to compare application performance trends.
SAM RADIUS-targeted component monitors access AAA ports to poll critical network data from NPS. As a result, SAM offers visibility into the following out-of-the-box performance metrics:
Service: Network Policy Server CPU and Memory Usage
Accounting: Accounting-Requests/sec
Accounting: Accounting-Responses/sec
Accounting: Server Reset Time
Accounting: Server Up Time
Authentication: Access-Accepts/sec
Authentication: Access-Challenges/sec
Authentication: Access-Rejects/sec
Authentication: Access-Requests/sec
Authentication: Bad Authenticators/sec
Authentication: Dropped Packets/sec
Authentication: FullAccess-Decisions/sec
Authentication: Malformed Packets/sec
Authentication: Probation-Decisions/sec
Authentication: Quarantine-Decisions/sec
Authentication: Unknown Type/sec
Authentication: Invalid Requests/sec
Policy Engine: Last Round-Trip Time
Policy Engine: Matched Remote Access Policies/sec
Policy Engine: Pending Requests
For any of these metrics, you can establish threshold conditions to alert you of response times reaching warning and critical status and help align actual response times with company objectives to keep your IT framework in check.