FAQ:MIBs 08

How can I get more information about problems with MIB files?

The command 'snmptranslate' is used to translate between numeric and symbolic forms of OIDs. It uses the same MIB parsing routines as the commands that actually communicate with a network management agent, but can be used standalone. As such, it is a useful tool for identifying problems with reading in MIB files.

In particular, the following options may be useful in identifying problems:

       -Pw  warns about conflicting symbols
       -PW  prints more verbose warnings about other problems as well
               (in both cases, ignore the 'xmalloc' reports)
       -T   provides sub-options for various views of these entries

There are other '-P' options to control various aspects of MIB parsing. See the 'snmptranslate(1)' and 'snmpcmd(1)' man pages for more details, or the tutorial at http://www.net-snmp.org/tutorial-5/commands/snmptranslate.html

For a more rigourous validation, use a tool such as 'smilint', or the on-line interface at http://wwwsnmp.cs.utwente.nl/ietf/mibs/validate/

   FAQ:MIBs
   

1. Where can I find a MIB compiler?
2. Why aren't my MIB files being read in?
3. Where should I put my MIB files?
4. What does "Cannot find module (XXX-MIB)" mean?
5. I'm getting answers, but they're all numbers. Why?
6. What does "unlinked OID" mean?
7. The parser doesn't handle comments properly. Why not?
8. How can I get more information about problems with MIB files?
9. What's this about "too many imported symbols"?
10. Do I actually need the MIB files?