Common Network Tools

_____________, a tool used to connect a media connector to the end of a cable, such as a UTP cable and telephone cable. There are different types of media connectors, such as RJ11 and RJ45, and therefore, you need an appropriate cable crimper to connect the media connector to a cable. The most common are 8P8C and 6P4C connectors, which are RJ-45 Ethernet plugs and RJ-11 telephone plugs. The cable crimper looks like a pair of large pliers with two or more plug-shaped holes where the media connectors are inserted and crimped.

Cable Crimper, In most cases, you can use a single cable crimper to connect the RJ11 and RJ45 media connectors to the cable. This type of cable crimper has two slots where you can seat RJ11 and RJ45 media connectors.

_________________, used to measure the power in an optical signal of a fiber optic cable. Measurements that can be taken include the absolute power in a fiber optic signal and a measurement of optical signal loss. Such devices are composed of two parts connected to one end of the tested cable and each with an LCD screen showing test results.

Fiber Light Meter (or an Optical Power Meter (OPM)

_______________________, There can be times when you have to join two fiber cables, or a single fiber cable is broken into two pieces that need to be joined. It joins the two ends of the fiber cable together to form a single cable, which allows the signals to pass through.

Fusion Splicer, You need to keep both ends of the fibers in a fusion splicer, which uses an electric arc to melt and join both ends. After the cable ends are joined, they form a single cable.

____________, used to measure: Voltage Current Resistance It has two probes, which are red and black. They are touched with the conductor to check the voltage, current, or resistance. two types: -Analog: has a needle that moves to the correct measurement. -Digital: has a digital display instead of a needle.

Multimeter

________________, device used for testing a fiber cable to determine if there is an issue. It sends optical pulses over the fiber. Depending on the type of signals that are returned, it can conclude various factors about the fiber: -Length of the fiber cable -Location of the faults -Location of breaks in the fiber cable -Bad connectors -Bends in the fiber cable -Overall signal attenuation, if any

Optical Time-Domain Reflectometer (OTDR)

______________, an electronic device that generates repeating or non-repeating electronic signals along with a pair of UTP cables. Sends the signals from one end of the UTP cable. On the other end, the second device, known as the tone locator, receives the signals. If signals are received, it generates an audible tone, which means it is the same cable and is in working condition.

Tone Generator, A tone generator is used with network and telephone cables. With the tone generator, you can: Locate cables Test continuity of the cable Find fault in the cable

_________________, a tool used to remove the protective coating or the rubber insulation of the wire. Usually has more than one type of teeth for wires with different gauges. You need to put your cable into the correct notch and then close both the handles to strip the protective coating or the rubber insulation.

Cable Stripper,

_______________, used to test Ethernet and telephone cables. The Ethernet cable uses the RJ45 connector, also known as the 8P8C connector. The telephone cable uses an RJ11 connector, also known as a 6P4C connector.

Cable Tester, There are two parts to the cable tester. One part, which is active and is battery-powered, sends signals on the wire. On the receiving end, the passive component then creates a loopback connection.

_____________, a hardware device that is used for troubleshooting network transmission issues. You need to connect the loopback adapter to a specific port from where it will send the transmission signals, which should be received at the other end of the port, something like a switch. In a nutshell, it transmits signals from one end, which should be received at the other end.

Loopback Adapter, For example, you want to test whether a port is working or not. You can connect the loopback adapter to the port. If its mapped port on the switch lights up, you know that the port on the wall is working well.

_____________, tools that have long handles and short blades. They are usually used for cutting soft metals, like a tin sheet. It looks like a scissor but larger. Their size can vary from 7 to 14 inches. There are two types of snips: Straight-pattern: used for straight cuts and gentle curves Duckbill-pattern: used for cutting shapes and circles

Snips/Cutters, Snips or cutters are also used for cutting wires. They are usually made of forged steel for cleaner and faster cuts. They usually have features like: -A notched blade that can strip a 19-gauge and 23-gauge wire -Blade for cutting 16-gauge solid and 12-gauge stranded wire -Serrated blade for non-slip wire cutting

____________________, used for measuring the variation of signals against the frequency. Depending on its type, it can measure different types of signals, such as -Electrical -Acoustic pressure waves -Optical light waves

Spectrum Analyzers, Spectrum analyzers can be of different types: Benchtop Portable Networked Handheld

_____________, a hardware device that creates a copy of the traffic being transmitted on the network. The reason for copying the traffic can vary in different network environments.

Tap, You can create a copy of the network traffic for: -Network monitoring and analysis, such as bandwidth saturation and latency -Security reasons, such as finding malicious traffic or intrusion detection -Network management, such as general traffic monitoring A network tap can be placed in different locations of a network depending on its architecture. Since it only copies the traffic, it is a non-intrusive device that does not alter real-time traffic transmissions.

___________, In a network environment, you would typically use a twisted-pair cable. When a cable's end is punched into a connector, the four-pair cable needs to be connected to its corresponding pins. Even when you punch the cable into the connector with a cable crimper, and it looks as if the cable is perfectly crimped from the outside, it may not be the case.

Wire map, When the cable is plugged in, it transmits signals to each wire. This process helps the wire map tester to determine whether the cable is connected to the correct pin or not. If you doubt whether the cable is correctly punched to its correct pins or not, you can use the wire map tester to test the cable.