Ideal Networks: Quicker, Simpler Network Troubleshooting with Updated NaviTEK NT

August 23, 2016

The NaviTEK NT Plus and Pro network testers from Ideal Networks have received a number of time-saving updates to help technicians carry out network troubleshooting and maintenance on both copper and fibre cable even more efficiently.

Compact and handheld, NaviTEK NT network testers are designed to help technicians quickly pinpoint and solve issues and offer fast detection of link and IP information, as well as the ability to detect services like ISDN, POTS and Power over Ethernet.

“While the NaviTEK NT series was already a convenient and effective network troubleshooter, we listened closely to feedback to see how we could further increase efficiency and usability,” says Tim Widdershoven, Global Marketing Manager for IDEAL Networks. “There has been a software update and we have improved the graphical user interface, measurement times, fibre testing and switch testing to give some significant time savings for technicians.”

To make initial testing quicker and simpler, a test mode selection has been introduced to the start screen, allowing users to choose between Auto-detect, Cable, Switch and Network, reducing auto detection time by up to 13 seconds. The discovery time for port identification after plugging into a network has also been reduced by up to 80%. Now taking a maximum of 5 seconds, this has increased productivity significantly particularly during testing.

In addition, the time taken for the NetScan function (which detects number of connected devices in the network sorted by IP and MAC address) has been significantly reduced, boosting on-site troubleshooting efficiency. NetScan can now be done in under 4 seconds when using IPv4.

The NaviTEK NT will now indicate a Pass or Fail when testing fibre cabling. Clear colour coded on screen indications of Pass (Green) and Fail (Red) have been introduced to help technicians judge optical Rx power level more easily, as well as eliminating any guess work for technicians with limited knowledge of optical levels. The Pass/Fail threshold simply needs to be defined by the user in Setup from the main network test screen.

Also among the user-friendly enhancements, in instances where switches are configured to deny any unapproved devices, the NaviTEK NT will now display LLDP/CDP port information when connected due to its passive testing mode. Furthermore, when the Bandwidth Utilisation graph is used, the vertical scale is now dynamic. This makes it much easier for technicians to interpret the graph when very low traffic is detected. For example, if only 0.5% of the port rate is utilised the graph still will zoom in to show the bandwidth data.

Whether troubleshooting is being conducted on copper or fibre optic cabling, once testing is complete the free Ideal AnyWARE app can be used to transfer test reports to any Android or Apple mobile device. As well as saving time, this allows IT technicians to share test reports with colleagues or project managers via email or file sharing app, resulting in greater collaboration, more on-time job completions and reduced costs.

Find out more: www.idealnetworks.net/UK/EN/News/Quicker,-Simpler-Network-Troubleshooting-with-Updated-NaviTEK-NT.aspx.