Network Cabling Solutions-Traffic Analyzers
Fluke Networks has reintroduced the OneTouch AT Network Assistant troubleshooting tool. This tool is ideal for network managers who find themselves routinely sending front-line technicians on desk-side calls to try to fix possible network connectivity issues.
This device is handheld, with a collection of gigabit copper, optical and 802.11 a/b/g/n wireless interfaces, and Fluke Networks testing software. This OneTouch AT is able to perform an array of basic tests in just minutes with extremely little technician interaction.
There are a myriad of similar no or low cost network test applications out there, but the OneTouch AT simplifies the process. It automates nearly every test action and then displays easy to read test results. The results from a no cost do it yourself laptop applications are incredibly difficult to decipher, and technicians must have expert level decoding experience to interpret them.
The OneTouch AT starts at $4,995 for the basic model, and costs $9,995 with a full complement of optional hardware, including a Fluke Networks directional antenna and fully loaded test network interfaces. This network cabling tool is essential in companies and IT organizations that routinely perform basic network tests and who require quick problem solving.
Fluke Networks has also come out with a new sensor for Wi-Fi network monitoring. The SmartEdge Sensor Series 4 for AirMagnet Enterprise essentially eliminates the need for Ethernet cabling and lowers the cost by up to two thirds in situations where network cabling installation is prohibitive from a time, cost, or logistics standpoint. The SmartEdge is fast and easy to install, with three internal radios and a Wireless Connect feature. It extends Wi-Fi security and performance monitoring, and provides instant coverage in the face of explosive wireless LAN (WLAN) growth and the Bring-Your-Own-Device (BYOD) craze.
Chia-Chee Kuan, the vice president of Fluke Networks WLAN business unit, claims that “the SmartEdge sensor provides a solution to help secure and monitor the network by eliminated roadblocks caused by Ethernet cabling.”
Many companies come face to face with these logistical hurdles on a weekly basis. The need for more efficient and less disruptive deployment options for wireless intrusion system technology is growing. This technology is especially important in the healthcare industry, where the Infection Control Risk procedures for cleanliness and the TIA-1179 standards have to be adhered to during network cabling installations.
For those customers who find Ethernet cable readily available or not costly to install, the SmartEdge Sensor can leverage its internal radios to enable both 24×7 security monitoring, scanning and rogue detection, and client performance verification using AirMagnet Enterprises’s Automated Health Check. The Automated Health Check tests and verifies WLAN network health from the device at the user’s end all the way to the cloud. It can identify issues before they cause an impact.
All these new and proactive tools are a great help to the network cabling industry, but with all the technological advances, many cables are becoming less integral. Network Cabling companies may soon be facing a world of all wireless all the time, and will have to adjust accordingly.