A number of tools exist to generate

computer network A computer network is a set of computers sharing resources located on or provided by network nodes. The computers use common communication protocols over digital interconnections to communicate with each other. These interconnections are ...

diagrams. Broadly, there are three types of tools that help create network maps and diagrams: * Hybrid tools * Network Monitoring tools * Drawing tools

Network mapping Network mapping is the study of the physical connectivity of networks e.g. the Internet. Network mapping discovers the devices on the network and their connectivity. It is not to be confused with network discovery or Network enumeration, network ...

and drawing software support IT systems managers to understand the hardware and software services on a network and how they are interconnected. Network maps and diagrams are a component of

network documentation Network documentation is a form of technical documentation. It is the practice of maintaining records about networks of computers. The documentation is used to give administrators information about how the network should look, perform and where to ...

. They are required artifacts to better manage IT systems' uptime, performance, security risks, plan

network change A network change is when a television series moves from one network to another. Generally this term only refers to original episodes of a series; repeats of a long-running series will usually be picked up by other channels in syndication, often b ...

s and upgrades.

Hybrid tools

These tools have capabilities in common with drawing tools and network monitoring tools. They are more specialized than general drawing tools and provide network engineers and IT systems administrators a higher level of automation and the ability to develop more detailed network topologies and diagrams. Typical capabilities include but not limited to: * Displaying port / interface information on connections between devices on the maps * Visualizing

VLAN A virtual local area network (VLAN) is any broadcast domain that is partitioned and isolated in a computer network at the data link layer (OSI layer 2).IEEE 802.1Q-2011, ''1.4 VLAN aims and benefits'' In this context, virtual, refers to a physi ...

s /

subnet A subnetwork or subnet is a logical subdivision of an IP network. Updated by RFC 6918. The practice of dividing a network into two or more networks is called subnetting. Computers that belong to the same subnet are addressed with an identical ...

s * Visualizing virtual servers and storage * Visualizing flow of network traffic across devices and networks * Displaying WAN and LAN maps by location * Importing network configuration files to generate topologies automatically

Network monitoring tools

Some network monitoring tools generate visual maps by automatically scanning the network using network discovery

protocol Protocol may refer to: Sociology and politics * Protocol (politics), a formal agreement between nation states * Protocol (diplomacy), the etiquette of diplomacy and affairs of state * Etiquette, a code of personal behavior Science and technolog ...

s. The maps are ideally suited for viewing network monitoring status and issues visually. Typical capabilities include but not limited to: * Automatically scanning the network using

SNMP Simple Network Management Protocol (SNMP) is an Internet Standard protocol for collecting and organizing information about managed devices on IP networks and for modifying that information to change device behaviour. Devices that typically ...

, WMI, etc. * Scanning

Windows Windows is a group of several proprietary graphical operating system families developed and marketed by Microsoft. Each family caters to a certain sector of the computing industry. For example, Windows NT for consumers, Windows Server for serv ...

and

Unix Unix (; trademarked as UNIX) is a family of multitasking, multiuser computer operating systems that derive from the original AT&T Unix, whose development started in 1969 at the Bell Labs research center by Ken Thompson, Dennis Ritchie, and ot ...

servers * Scanning virtual hosts * Scanning routing protocols * Scanning connection speeds * Performing scheduled scans * Tracking changes to the network

Drawing tools

These tools help users to create network topology diagrams by adding icons to a canvas and using lines and connectors to draw linkages between nodes. This category of tools is similar to general drawing and paint tools. Typical capabilities include but not limited to: * Libraries of icons for devices * Ability to add shapes and annotations to maps * Ability to create free-form diagrams

List of network monitoring tools that generate network maps

Some notable tools (may not be an exhaustive list):

List of drawing tools