Core tables

Core tables include those tables that define the domains, for example the domainMgr table and the domainSummary table, and also the entityData table, which provides generic information about an entity, for example entityName and entityType.

The core table models the following categories of topology data:

Domains

A domain is a scoped set of entities that are discovered and managed by an application, such as Network Manager. Domains are represented using the domainMgr table. Membership of entities within these domains is represented using the domainMembers table.

Entities

An entity is a topology database concept. All devices and device components discovered by Network Manager are entities. Also device collections such as VPNs and VLANs, as well as pieces of topology that form a complex connection, are entities. Generic information for all entities within NCIM is held within the entityData table. The entity view joins data from the entityData and domainMembers tables and is equivalent to the entity table that existed in Network Manager versions 3.8 and earlier.

Containment relationships

Containment relationships express physical and logical containment. These relationships are represented by the contains table.

Connectivity relationships

Connectivity relationships are relationships between entities. These relationships are represented by the connects table. Other tables used to define connectivity include the networkPipe, pipeComposition, and topologyLinks tables.

Collection relationships

Collection relationships enable NCIM to model collections of entities, such as MPLS VPNs, global VLANs and subnets. The relationship is represented by the collects table.

Dependency relationships

Dependency relationships express a generic dependency relationship between two entities. This relationship is represented by the dependency table.

Mappings

Mappings provide a means of looking up a database value in numerical or textual format and retrieving corresponding human-readable text.