Networking Tools
WHAT ARE NETWORK TOOLS USED FOR?
Network tools are, for the most part, pieces of equipment or software that are used to build or test wired or wireless networks. A Wi-Fi
analyzer, for example, can be a piece of equipment or an app on a mobile device.
CRIMPER
A crimper is a tool that is used to attach connectors to either coaxial or twisted-pair (TP) cable. Crimpers squeeze the connector to make a secure connection with the coaxial (coax) cable or TP wire pairs.
Crimpers are available for RJ-45 (Ethernet), RJ-11 (phone cable), and coax (RG-6, RG6QS, RG-59).
Manual crimpers rely on the strength of the user’s hands, while ratcheted crimpers provide more power for crimping and are recommended for larger jobs. Be sure to choose a crimper made for the cable and connector types you use. Some have interchangeable dies to support a wider range of cables and connectors.
CABLE STRIPPER
When you build a TP cable, you must strip the jacket off each wire with a cable stripper before you can pair them and insert them into an RJ-45
connector. Some cable strippers automatically adjust to cable thickness, but the more common models have different sizes of strippers you select manually.
WI-FI ANALYZER
A Wi-Fi analyzer is a device that can detect Wi-Fi networks, determine signal strength, and perform diagnostic routines to help improve network performance and reliability.
Hardware-based analyzers cost hundreds of dollars or more but are worth the price for those building, maintaining, or optimizing large wireless networks. If your needs are simpler, such as detecting existing wireless networks and their signal strength so you can use a less-crowded frequency, you can use low-cost or free analyzers for smartphones, laptops, or tablets to detect 2.4 and 5GHz Wi-Fi networks and signal strength.
TONER PROBE
A toner probe (sometimes referred to as a tone and probe or tone generator and probe) is used to find a particular coax or TP cable in a wiring closet. Figure 13.5 illustrates a typical toner probe.
Connect the toner (tone generator) to a cable or wire and turn it on. Go to the wiring closet and use the probe to locate the source of the tone, which is the specific wire with the tone generator connected.
CABLE TESTER
A cable tester is used to test the connectivity of a particular TP or coax cable. To test connectivity, connect one end of the cable to the tester, make sure the other end is connected to a network switch or NIC card, and run the test. Some testers made for RJ-45 can also test the cable’s support for different speeds, crossover cable operation (one end T568B and the other end T568A), and more. The tester shown in Figure 13.6 supports both RJ-45 Ethernet and coaxial cables and tests each wire in a TP cable.
LOOPBACK PLUG
A loopback plug connects the transmit lines of a cable to its receive lines. You can then test the cable for connectivity. Some NICs include support for a loopback test, as do many self-contained cable testers. Loopback plugs are available for RJ-45 TP cable, fiber optic, USB, and legacy serial and parallel ports.
NETWORK TAP
A network tap (more properly spelled TAP) is a device that monitors network traffic. On a simple network tap (Figure 13.8), you plug a cable carrying traffic into the A port and the port carrying traffic beyond the tap into the B port. Plug a cable and an analysis device into
the Monitor port, which copies the traffic going through the network tap.
A network tap is invisible to network users, as it has no IP address or MAC address.
