SNMP Protocol Operations

The actual communication of information in the SNMP protocol is performed in a manner similar to most other protocols, through the exchange of SNMP messages. These messages are sometimes called protocol data units or PDUs. This is a term you may have heard used in other protocols, and it is part of the formal definition of data encapsulation in the OSI Reference Model, as explained in Chapter 5. A message is, of course, a data unit used by the protocol. SNMP messages all have -PDU at the ends of their names to identify them.

Some consider protocol data unit to be analogous to the military using oblong, metallic-headed, manually operated, fastener-acceleration device to refer to a hammer. To be fair though, strictly speaking, ...

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