IPAM — IP Address Management

NetRecon IPAM provides centralized IP address tracking and subnet management. Monitor subnet utilization, track IP assignments, and maintain an accurate inventory of your network address space.

Key Features

• Subnet Management — define and organize subnets with full CIDR notation support
• IP Tracking — track individual IP assignments with status and metadata
• Utilization Monitoring — real-time subnet utilization percentages and alerts
• Scan Integration — import discovered IPs directly from scan results
• Conflict Detection — identify duplicate IP addresses and overlapping subnets
• OUI Sync — automatically associate MAC addresses with manufacturer data
• History — track IP assignment changes over time
• Export — export IP data as CSV or JSON

Architecture

IPAM runs as a dedicated service on the probe (port 8009) with a PostgreSQL backend:

┌──────────────┐        ┌──────────────┐        ┌──────────────┐
│  Dashboard   │  HTTP  │    IPAM      │  SQL   │  PostgreSQL  │
│  (Browser)   ├────────►  Service     ├────────►  Database    │
│              │        │   :8009      │        │              │
└──────────────┘        └──────┬───────┘        └──────────────┘
                               │
                        ┌──────▼───────┐
                        │ Scan Engine  │
                        │ (IP import)  │
                        └──────────────┘

Concepts

Subnets

A subnet represents a range of IP addresses defined by CIDR notation (e.g., 192.168.1.0/24). Each subnet has:

Field	Description
CIDR	Network address in CIDR notation
Name	Friendly name (e.g., "Office LAN")
VLAN	Associated VLAN ID (optional)
Gateway	Default gateway IP
DNS	DNS servers for this subnet
Description	Free-text description
Location	Physical or logical location

IP Addresses

Each IP address within a subnet can be tracked with:

Field	Description
IP Address	The IPv4 or IPv6 address
Status	Available, Assigned, Reserved, DHCP
Hostname	Device hostname
MAC Address	Associated MAC address
Manufacturer	Auto-populated from OUI database
Owner	Assigned user or department
Last Seen	Timestamp of last network activity
Notes	Free-text notes

Utilization

Subnet utilization is calculated as:

Utilization = (Assigned + Reserved + DHCP) / Total Usable IPs * 100%

Alerts can be configured when utilization exceeds a threshold (default: 80%).

Getting Started

Step 1: Create a Subnet

1. Navigate to IPAM > Subnets in the probe dashboard
2. Click Add Subnet
3. Enter the CIDR (e.g., 10.0.1.0/24)
4. Fill in the optional fields (name, VLAN, gateway, etc.)
5. Click Save

Step 2: Import IPs from Scan

The fastest way to populate IPAM is to import from a completed scan:

1. Navigate to IPAM > Subnets
2. Select your subnet
3. Click Import from Scan
4. Select the scan result to import from
5. Review the IPs that will be imported
6. Click Import

See Import from Scan for detailed instructions.

Step 3: Manage IP Assignments

1. Click on a subnet to view its IP addresses
2. Click on an IP to view/edit its details
3. Change status, add notes, assign to an owner
4. Click Save

Step 4: Monitor Utilization

1. Navigate to IPAM > Dashboard
2. View subnet utilization charts
3. Configure alerts for high utilization under IPAM > Settings > Alerts

Subnet Organization

Subnets can be organized hierarchically:

10.0.0.0/16          (Corporate Network)
├── 10.0.1.0/24      (HQ - Office LAN)
├── 10.0.2.0/24      (HQ - Server VLAN)
├── 10.0.3.0/24      (HQ - Wi-Fi)
├── 10.0.10.0/24     (Branch 1 - Office)
├── 10.0.11.0/24     (Branch 1 - Servers)
└── 10.0.20.0/24     (Branch 2 - Office)

Parent/child relationships are established automatically based on CIDR containment.

IPv6 Support

IPAM supports both IPv4 and IPv6 addresses:

• Full CIDR notation for IPv6 subnets
• IPv6 address tracking with the same fields as IPv4
• Dual-stack devices show both addresses linked together

FAQ

Q: Can I import subnets from a CSV file? A: Yes. Navigate to IPAM > Import and upload a CSV file with columns: CIDR, Name, VLAN, Gateway, Description. A template CSV is available for download on the import page.

Q: How often is utilization data updated? A: Utilization is recalculated every time an IP status changes and on a scheduled basis (every 5 minutes by default).

Q: Does IPAM integrate with DHCP servers? A: IPAM can import DHCP lease data to track dynamically assigned IPs. Configure the DHCP server connection under IPAM > Settings > DHCP Integration.

Q: Can multiple users edit IPAM data simultaneously? A: Yes. IPAM uses optimistic locking to prevent conflicts. If two users edit the same IP address, the second save will show a conflict warning with the option to merge or overwrite.

For additional help, contact [email protected].