Software and Hardware Tools COMP 316

Software Tools

Network Scanners  Family of tools used to analyze networks  Packet sniffers  Intrusion detection system (IDS/IPS)software  Port scanners

Packet sniffers  Actually looks inside every packet on a network segment  Give statistics on network utilization and packet traffic data as well as capture individual frames for analysis  The basic purpose is to collect and analyze each individual packet that is captured on a specific network segment to determine if problems like bottlenecks, retransmissions, and security breaches are happening

Packet sniffers

Intrusion Detection & Prevention Software  IDS  Identifies, detects, and reports attempts of unauthorized access to the network as well as any suspicious activity  IPS  Can stop the attack by shutting down ports or dropping certain types of packets

Port scanners  Software tool designed to search a host for open ports

Hardware Tools

Cable Testers  Verify connection through the cable  Determine if the cable is straight- through or crossover  Identify problems such as grounding issues as well

Loopback Plug  Diagnostic procedure in which a signal is transmitted and returned to the sending device after passing through all or a portion of a network or circuit  Are made for both Ethernet an fiber applications

Wire-Map Testers  Device that transmit signals through each wire in a copper twisted-pair cable to determine if it’s connected to the correct pin at the other end.  Consists of a remote unit that you attach to the far end of a connection and a battery-operated, handheld main unit that displays the results

Multimeter  Called volt/ohm meter (VOM)  Multitasking electronics measuring instrument  Measure voltage, current, and resistance

Toner Probe  Simple copper cable tester that is simple to use and can be used to trace a wire in a wall  Can identify a particular cable at any point between the two ends, and because the probe can detect the cable containing the tone signal through its sheath.

Punch-Down Tool  Use to punch down the wire that terminated in wiring closets into some kind of insulation displacement connector (IDC)

Cable Stripper/Snips