General Troubleshooting Considerations

Knowing the differences between procedures and approaches for troubleshooting servers and for troubleshooting workstations is valuable, but a seemingly endless number of other considerations exist. Each of these other factors can significantly affect the way you approach a problem on the network. The following list contains some of the obvious and perhaps not so obvious factors that come into play when troubleshooting a network:

• Time-The time of day can play a huge role in the troubleshooting process. For instance, you are likely to respond differently to a network problem at 10 a.m., during high network use, than at 8 p.m., when the network is not being utilized as much. The response to network troubleshooting during high-use periods is often geared toward a Band-Aid solution, just getting things up and running as soon as possible. Finding the exact cause of the problem and developing a permanent fix generally occurs when there is more time.
• Network size-The strategies and processes used to troubleshoot small networks of 10 to 100 computer systems can be different from those used to troubleshoot networks consisting of thousands of computers.
• Support-Some network administrators find themselves working alone, as a single IT professional working for a company. In such cases, the only available sources might include telephone, Internet, or manufacturer support. Other network administrators are part of a large IT department. In that type of environment, the troubleshooting process generally includes a hierarchical consultation process.
• Knowledge of the network-It would be advantageous if uniformity existed in the installation of all networks, but that isn't the case. You could be working on a network with ring or star topology. Before you start troubleshooting a network, you need to become familiarize with its layout and design. The troubleshooting strategies you employ will be affected by your knowledge of the network.
• Technologies used-Imagine being called in to troubleshoot a wide area network (WAN) that includes multiple Linux servers, a handful of NetWare servers, an old Windows NT 4.0 server, and multiple Macintosh workstations. Your knowledge of these technologies will dictate how, if at all, you are going to troubleshoot the network. There is no shame in walking away from a problem you are unfamiliar with. Good network administrators always recognize their knowledge boundaries.

These are just a few of the factors that will affect your ability to troubleshoot a network. There are countless others.