Cody Swartz
11/29/2010
CIS 179
Chapter 12: Network Troubleshooting Procedures:
On a Microsoft word document, answer the following questions:
Exercise 12-1: Network Troubleshooting (page 584)
Exercise 12-2: Network Hardware Problems (page 585)
Review Questions: (page 585 - 587)
Scenario 12-1: Identifying the Affected Area (page 588)
Scenario 12-2: Assigning Priorities (page 588)
Scenario 12-3: Locating the Source of a Problem (page 589)
Chapter 12 Exercises
1. Place the following steps of the problem isolation process in the proper order:
1st. Have the user reproduce the problem.
2nd. Reproduce the problem yourself
3rd. Reproduce the problem using a different user account.
4th. Reproduce the problem using a different computer.
2. On an internetworking consisting of several user segments connected by a backbone, with an
Internet router connected directly to the backbone, specify whether the following network
conditions would normally cause Internet access problems for… one user only, for all the users
connect to one hub, for all the users on one LAN, or for the entire internetwork.
1. Bother ends of a cable connecting two hubs are plugged into uplink ports
i. All the users connected to one hub
2. The router connecting the network to the ISP is down.
i. The entire internetwork
3. The cable connecting a user’s computer to the hub is cut.
i. One user only
4. The ISP’s connection to the Internet fails.
i. The entire internetwork
5. The router connecting a user LAN to the backbone malfunctions.
i. All the users on one LAN
Chapter 12 Review Questions
1. To which of the following problems would you assign the highest priority for your network
support team? Explain why.
a. I would assign top priority to the corporate e-mail server being down. I choose this
because it effects the largest amount of people since it is a network-wide issue. Also
email is a key tool used for communication, and is of most importance. Many people
would use e-mail to notify you of any issues they may have too, although you can never
rely completely on the network for such issues.
2. In a two-tiered network support system, what do the tiers refer to?
a. Technicians of different skill levels.
3. Without a DNS server, a user can still access the Internet using which of the following
techniques?
a. By using IP addresses instead of DNS names.
4. A user can’t access the shared server drive that he uses every day, where his working files are
stored. Which of the following questions would you ask the user first? State your reason.
a. Although I would ask the user if their network cable is connected to their computer first,
because you should start at the simplest most upfront issue first before you jump to
other conclusions, I would ask them to check via software first such as their connection
to the Internet, or other network resources , I would imagine they did not have any
issues logging in if they made it far enough to check the share, also depending if the
user login is via network you wouldn’t have to ask them if the network cable is plugged
in if they were able to authenticate their username and password via the network. It
also depends if you have other network resources that they can check against. If it is
the network resource that has an issue you would expect more of a network-wide issue
rather than just one person unless he just happens to be the first to report it.
5. Which of the following is not a possible cause of Internet access failure?
a. Missing WINS server address
6. Which of the following network and transport layer problems can be caused by another
computer on the network?
a. Duplicate IP address
7. A computer running Windows without a WINS server address can’t access which of the
following resources?
a. Computers running Windows that are connected to other LANs
8. Which of the following should you do if a user has changed the network interface adapter
configuration and can no longer access the network?
a. Modify the adapter driver’s configuration parameters by using the operating system
interface.
9. Which of the following is the easiest way to test a patch cable for a fault?
a. Replace it with one that you know is working properly.
10. When a computer lacks a correct default gateway address, how far do packets destine for other
networks travel?
a. As far as the local network
11. Which of the following network problems generally affects services other than Internet access
on a Windows-based network?
a. Backbone failure
Chapter 12 Scenarios
1. A user experiencing a network communications problem calls the help desk, and you are sent
over to help him. The user can re-create the problem on his computers. You have him log on by
using another computer connected to the same LAN hub as his computer and try to reproduce
the problem there. On the other computer, the problem does not occur. Based on this
information, which of the following can you assume to be true?
a. None of the above
2. During a busy shift at the network help desk at Wingtip Toys, a call comes in at 9:05 A.M. from
an angry user whose mouse is not working. At 9:07 A.M. the vice president of the Marketing
department calls to report that the hard drive in the file server where the company’s ad
campaigns are stored has failed. At 9:15 A.M., the manager of the Order Entry department calls
to report that the e-mail server that delivers the product orders generated through the
company’s Web site is down. Between 9:25 and 9:45 A.M., four users on the LAN in the Sales
department report that they can’t access the company intranet server containing insurance
forms. As the help desk manager, which of these problems should you address first and why?
a. Fix the Sales department’s intranet server access because this problem has generated
the most complaints.
i. This does effect many people under part of the LAN, which is why I have it as
top priority.
b. Fix the Order Entry e-mail server because it is needed to receive incoming orders.
i. It is hard to say but this could be seen as more important than the earlier stated
one, because this is how your customers interact with you and they should
come first, could very well outnumber the amount effected in the sales
department, and this is the heart of how your company makes money, also
emails need to be received and can be held for any amount of time but first this
server needs to be up. If the sales department depends on this server too then
this is higher priority because they can’t function anyways without this server
functioning properly.
(Now I am thinking it sounds like this would be more important.)
3. You are working at the network help desk for a large corporation when a series of calls come in
over the course of a few minutes, all from users reporting failures to access Internet resources.
Some of the users can’t access Web sites, while other can’t use FTP or retrieve their Internet e-
mail. All of the calls come from users scattered around the third floor of the building, which has
four hubs joined together to form a single LAN. The LAN is connected to the building’s
backbone network with a router. Which of the following would you check first as the possible
source of the problem?
a. The router connecting the third-floor LAN to the building’s backbone network.