Finding Problems

However, one of the frustrating things about managing a network is that, for the most part, it consists of copper wires. When data isn't moving, a close look at that copper won't reveal the cause, and it sure doesn't have a screen displaying error messages. However, you can buy tools that can look at the network and display error messages.

Chances are that most of the vendors of your higher-end network hardware (switches, routers, etc.) offer some type of management functionality that allows you to gather data about the network. However, very often this is informationprimarily related to the operation of the vendor's hardware. You can also buy products (e.g., Network Associate's Sniffer) that can connect to your network and allow you to examine the traffic, run traces, trap specific types of problems, and so on. Products like this are rather complex, though, and a complex tool in the hands of a novice is of little use. On the other hand, there are simpler tools (like those that can test and/or trace...