Networks are designed to move data from a transmitting device to a receiving device. When communication becomes problematic, you must determine why data are not traveling as expected and then find a solution. The two most common causes for data not moving reliably from source to destination are:
- The physical connection breaks (that is, a cable is unplugged or broken).
- A network device is not working properly and cannot send or receive some or all data.
Network management software can easily locate and report a physical connection break (layer 1 problem). It is more difficult to determine why a network device is not working as expected, which is often related to a layer 2 or a layer 3 problem.
To determine why a network device is not working properly, look first for:
- Valid service - Is the device configured properly for the type of service it is supposed to provide? For example, has Quality of Service (QoS), which is the definition of the transmission parameters, been established?
- Restricted access - Is an end station supposed to be able to connect with a specific device or is that connection restricted? For example, is a firewall set up that prevents that device from accessing certain network resources?
- Correct configuration - Is there a misconfiguration of IP address, subnet mask, gateway, or broadcast address? Network problems are commonly caused by misconfiguration of newly connected or configured devices.
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