Networking / Beginners

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Changes to the Workstation

The changes made to the systems on the network are not always under the control of the network administrator. Often, the end user performs configuration changes and some software installations. Such changes can be particularly frustrating to troubleshoot, and many users are unaware that the changes they make can cause problems. When looking for changes to a workstation system, consider the following:

• Network settings-One of the configuration hotspots for workstation computer systems are the network settings. If a workstation cannot access the network, it is a good idea to confirm that the network settings have not been changed.
• Printer settings-Many printing problems can be isolated to changes in the printer configuration. Some client systems, such as Linux, are more adept at controlling administrative configuration screens than others; for example, Windows leaves such screens open to anyone who wants to change the configuration. When printing problems are isolated to a single system, changes in the configuration could be the cause.
• New software-Many users love to download and install nifty screensavers or perhaps the latest 3D adventure games on their work computers. The addition of extra software can cause the system to fail. Confirm with the end user that new software has not been added to the system recently.

NOTE: Duplicate IP Addresses Consider a system that could previously log on to the network but now receives an error message, stating that it cannot log on because of a duplicate IP address. A duplicate IP address means that two systems on the network are attempting to connect to the network using the same IP address. As you know, there can be only one. This often happens when a new system has been added to a network where Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol (DHCP) is not used.