WOW! That's really neat! Sadly, I'm fully invested in the "yellow" camp (Dewalt) and they don't have an equivalent product, but I'll keep my eye out because they will inevitably release one to match Milwaukee.
Beginner's Network Tool Box
- Thread starter Rafaelse
- Start date
WOW! That's really neat! Sadly, I'm fully invested in the "yellow" camp (Dewalt) and they don't have an equivalent product, but I'll keep my eye out because they will inevitably release one to match Milwaukee.
I saw these, but I REALLY don't trust cheap Chinese devices to not catch fire or manage the batteries properly. They cut corners in the most atrocious and dangerous ways sometimes. I might get the official Dewalt one if/when it comes out.
This same device is sold for prices anywhere from $58 to $110 by multiple different resellers under multiple names. I'm not touching that with a bargepole. Here's the same device sold by other resellers/brands:
https://www.amazon.com/TOMAPEX-Inverter ... B09F2W7DNL
https://www.amazon.com/Inverter-Compati ... B0BFBDNXVK
.. and I'm sure a dozen others.
Yeah, no, LOL.
I wouldn't trust a cheap-o device to charge my batteries, but to draw power from them? I'm pretty tolerant when it comes to that side.
Pockethernet to the rescue, again! My exterior OwlCam went down a few weeks ago, during some heavy rain, so I thought it was a moisture problem. So I redid my amateur pole mount with a proper junction box and pole mount, and it still didn't work.
I was about to re-terminate both ends of the cable, and realized I'd brought my Pockethernet with me. TDR shows one pair broken in the middle of the cable. I doubted that very seriously until I traced the cable, and found that yes, an animal had gnawed through the cable exactly where the TDR said it was broken.
One re-termination later, and the OwlCam stream is back up! Had I tested the cable first, I'd have saved myself at least 2 hours.
On a related note, Pockethernet 2 is out. It seems to be missing some features that are coming RSN, but if/when they finally arrive, it'll be a nice upgrade.
And it's like half of what the equivalent from Fluke/netAlly would be.
Glad you fixed it. And woohoo - been waiting for Pocketethernet 2 for years! Thanks for the heads-up!
I own a Fluke LinkSprinter 300 (came into ownership, never would have paid for it myself). It has a bunch of features/functions, but is sometimes a pain in the @$$ to use compared to PocketEthernet or NetTool. It does help a good deal when trying to figure stuff out when you get it working right (talking to your phone/tablet/etc is sometimes a challenge).
Mobile devices tend to HATE connecting to a network that does not have internet access, and you have to connect to the LinkSprinter's network to navigate it's web page.
The NetTool looks AWESOME. I love the remote console capability! I really, really wish it had some cable testing capabilities - a basic cable map and TDR to find faults.
G2s are kinda bulky, though. I carry a Linksprinter 300 in my backpack as a matter of course becuase it's so small and light. The 2 things I wish the Linksprinter had were IPV6 capabilities and the ability to optionally function as a gateway to allow mobile devices connecting to it to maintain internet access. The NetTool has those capabilities but at the expense of cable testing with TDR, which I rely on heavily.
No doubt. The majority of our desktop team’s need for a tool like that is to pull switch port info so they can request a vlan change for a printer or pc move or something. Perfect for the NetTool. We also have 4 of the older yellow linkrunners across desktop, telecom and networking as well for deeper stuff but for the day to day the NetTools are perfect and we can let that one team manage them.
We've got a couple of the LR 10Gs and they are pretty bulky, especially once you get all the doodads and geegaws that go with 'em. About the only thing they can't do is OTDR unfortunately.
One feature I wish all of these small network testers would add is the ability to charge over POE. I would say that nearly half of the links I test these days are POE, and since I'm plugging into a source of power anyway, it would be nice to pull a few joules. I can't imagine it would cost anything to add, since they need a POE chipset anyway.
At least the newer ones charge via USB and you don't have to find the godforsaken brick that some clown left on the last job because the other clown forgot to plug the stupid thing when they put it back in the tool crib.
But if I'm up a ladder with my Pockethernet, and I'm running low on juice, I have to go back to my toolbox to get my USB battery pack. But I'm literally testing a POE run, so I've got electrons going into the Pockethernet right now, and they're just falling on the floor, wasted.
I suppose I could carry one of these:
but then that's yet another thing to lose, or drop off the ladder.
But that's in a totally different price range.
That's assuming the tester you're using takes normal voltages (5V/12V) and not some stupid laptop esque 19V, also it's going to mess with any OTDR and wire mapping
But yes, I understand NetAlly tools are not in the same price range, just pointing out they do exist.
The Pockethernet charges off of regular Micro USB, so this adapter would be fine.
Original LinkSprinter 300's simply used 2xAA's. Ugh. So dumb. They could have at least made it allow for POE/POE Charging for say NiMh or Li-ion, but nooo. Can't do that when the things retailed over $300 each to begin with. When I get the money for my tool kit upgrades, definitely looking at units that can recharge with removable batteries (for when they die so I'm not replacing the whole stupid unit and I don't have to go scrounging for batteries for units that don't recharge). Also found out that the original Fluke LinkSprinter 300 is also now NetAlly LinkSprinter 300 (which now uses 2xAAA's and actually tests POE, but doesn't run from or charge from POE). I think it's time to start looking more at the PocketEthernet 2.
Nice competition for Pockethernet! $229 for the Lite and $299 for the Pro, vs. €249 for Pockethernet 2.
I'm debating which to order, NetTool Pro2 or Pockethernet2... given the detection speed capability of the latter (as that is something I probably weigh slightly more heavily than other features) I am leaning the latter. But not in any hurry...
A year later, and BER is still "Coming Soon":
I really want to upgrade for 2.5G/5G/10G link rate support, but I use the BER feature nearly every time I test, so I'm loathe to give that up for something that's already a year late, which makes me wonder if there are fundamental problems with implementation.
Oh, and as a public service message, don't plug in the loopback adapter if the other end of the cable is currently connected to your network. It will create a loop and crash your cheap managed switch and kick a whole bunch of devices off the WiFi on that VLAN, requiring multiple reboots of devices to get everything back online. Guess how I know this?
Actually it looks like this feature isn't what I thought it was:
So it just tests whether the opposite port requests 2.5G/5G/10G, but it can't test whether the link can support it. Bummer.
I guess expecting full 10G support in a €250 toy is not currently a reasonable request.
Something something, not a real sydsdmin unless you’ve brought down production, something something.
I don't pull cable, but as a network person I vastly prefer velcro to cable ties, at least for areas that you might muck with in the future. Nothing like having to cut a too-tight cable tie on a live network cable, worrying that you are going to accidentally take out something important.
I have some kinda-blunt side cutters for exactly this situation. Never killed a cable.....yet.