Book Review - Network Flow Analysis

About the Book
Network flow analysis is the art of studying high volume network traffic. Rather than capture every single packet, flow analysis allows network administrators to selectively record and filter network data, so they're only collecting the data they really need. Flow analysis makes difficult tasks like real-time network monitoring, user profiling, security analysis, and data mining dead simple.


Network Flow Analysis (No Starch Press, June 2010, 224 pp., $39.95, ISBN 9781593272036) is the first book to show system administrators how to assess, analyze, and debug a network using flow analysis. In his latest work, author Michael W. Lucas, praised by security expert Richard Bejtlich of TaoSecurity.com as "one of the best technical writers in the networking, computer, and security worlds," teaches network administrators how to build a flow-based network awareness system and how network analysis and auditing can help address problems and improve network reliability. Readers learn what a flow is, how flows are used in network management, and how to use a flow analysis system. Lucas also explains how to collect flow records; view, filter, and report flows; present flow records graphically; and use flow records to proactively improve a network with tools like Cflow.pm, CUFlow, FlowScan, FlowViewer, NetFlow, sFlow, and so on.

"This book describes how I solve real network problems every day," said author Michael W. Lucas. "Flow analysis lets me make fact-based decisions where most people only make guesses. I recognize problems long before my users have reported them and, best of all, I no longer have to ask them to reproduce a problem in order to fix it."

Among the many other topics covered in Network Flow Analysis, readers will learn how to:

• Identify network, server, router, and firewall problems before they become critical
• Find defective and misconfigured software
• Quickly find virus-spewing machines, even if they're on a different continent
• Determine whether problems stem from the network or a server
• Automatically graph the most useful data

Network Flow Analysis offers the tools and real-world examples that system administrators need in order to effectively analyze their network flow data. Now they can determine what the root of that pesky network problem is long before their customers report it.

About the Author
Michael W. Lucas is a network/security engineer who keeps getting stuck with network problems nobody else wants to touch. He is the author of the critically acclaimed Absolute FreeBSD, Absolute OpenBSD, Cisco Routers for the Desperate, and PGP & GPG, all from No Starch Press.

My Take on the BookWOW! This book, while small, holds almost anything that you would need to debug and get your network flowing smoothly. I was amazed at how I, a semi-tech savvy individual was able to understand what was going on in the book, and then could explain it to others. This was a good sign, as it made me know that the author himself was doing a good job at both writing and educating the reader.


So if you are looking for a great book on Network Flow, this book is a great one to add to your collection!!

If this book sounds like something that you would like in your own library you can find it on Amazon!

All opinions expressed in this review are my own and not influenced in any way by the company.  Any product claim, statistic, quote or other representation about a product or service should be verified with the manufacturer or provider. Please refer to this site's Terms of Use  for more information. I have been compensated or given a product free of charge, but that does not impact my views or opinions.

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