Observer

Example problems Observer can help isolate:

Can't Print?
Observer helps you see whether the station is sending and if the server is responding

Host sessions are "hanging"?
Observer's capture and decode will show which system sent the last packet and which system failed to respond-host or workstation

Slow screen updates?
Observer's delta time stamps show which system is waiting, and which system is lagging in its reply

Is your UNIX (TCP/IP) or NT server re-sending fractured or incomplete packets, forcing multiple retransmissions?
Observer's Packet Capture will capture the interaction between stations and server and thus provide the hard evidence you need to pursue the problem

Can't log in?
Packet Capture can display login negotiations, retransmissions and response times to determine where the problem is

Implementing VoIP, and need a tool to verify performance and check compliance?
Observers complete decode of H.323, including VoIP, insures you will have the tools you need when voice and data problems arise

Wondering about how much time your employees are spending on the Web?
Internet Observer, and the associated trending facility keeps an ongoing record of all internet activity, including sites visited, how long each user was at each site, and how much data was transferred. Reports can be generated on individuals' internet usage over time

Is your Web server servicing requests in a timely manner?
Web Observer shows your web server's average response times and gives you a view of who is on your server, and how much traffic each client is generating

Do you need a faster WAN/Internet connection?
Router Observer shows one minute and one hour averages for router usage statistics.

What is your switch throughput?
Observer's Switched Bandwidth Utilization shows switch throughput and effective switch efficiency

What ports/stations are consuming all switch resources?
Observer's Switched Top Talkers shows how your switch is being
utilized port-by-port

Expert Observer

Example problems Expert Observer can help isolate:

What’s causing the slowdown?
The Expert Analysis, real-time or upon completion of capture, will provide a summary of conclusions about any problems and possible causes—in plain English.

Why has the company’s main database become so slow?
Expert Observer will identify the client/server relationships automatically and display expert analysis statistics, including slow response times, busy network or server problems and retransmissons.

Will moving to Gigabit increase my network response time?
Expert Observer’s What-If Analysis lets you create unlimited scenario analysis based on your captured data. This allows you to accurately determine the impact of changing variables such as network bandwidth, response time and number of users and latency.

How can I isolate intermittent problems?
Expert Observer’s Time Interval Analysis of data transmissions is displayed as a “drill down” from any problem identified in the IP/TCP/UDP Experts. Viewing errors by time periods will show whether a problem is sporadic or consistent throughout the day.

Why can’t I log in?
Packet Capture can display login negotiations, retransmissions and response times to determine where the problem is.

Implementing VoIP, and need a tool to verify performance and check compliance?
Expert Observer’s complete decode of H.323, including VoIP, insures you will have the tools you need when voice and data problems arise.

At what point will the added VoIP traffic critically impact the quality of network communication?
VoIP Expert displays jitter and percentage of lost packets for each VoIP pair, and both the amount of network utilization the conversation is consuming and the total VoIP utilization on the network. With both utilization and jitter data, problems can be easily pinpointed, and predictions of future capacity can be made.

Can I get more detail about a particular conversation?
Expert Observer’s connection Dynamics allows you to analyze and graphically view any conversation’s behavior—displaying inter-packet timing between stations (who is waiting on who) and conversational events, highlighting retransmissions and lost packets in red.

Observer Suite

Example problems Observer Suite can help isolate:

Why are host sessions “hanging”?
Observer’s capture and decode will show which system sent the last packet and which system failed to respond—host or workstation.

Why has access to the company’s main database become so slow?
Observer Suite will identify the client/server relationships automatically and display expert analysis statistics, including slow response times, busy network or server problems and retransmissons.

Will moving to Gigabit increase my network response time?
Observer Suite’s What-If Analysis lets you create unlimited scenario analysis based on your captured data. This allows you to accurately determine the impact of changing variables such as network bandwidth, response time, and number of users and latency.

How can I isolate intermittent problems?
Observer Suite’s Time Interval Analysis of data transmissions is displayed as a “drill down” from any problem identified in the IP/TCP/UDP Experts. Viewing errors by time periods will show whether a problem is sporadic or consistent throughout the day.

Can I view utilization and errors on a multi-interface router uplink?
You can use the SNMP reporting to query any router and view link utilizations and errors in chart or graphical form. Additionally, long term trending can offer period and comparison reports for management and SLA verification.

Implementing VoIP, and need a tool to verify performance and check compliance?
Observer Suite’s complete decode of H.323, including VoIP, insures you will have the tools you need when voice and data problems arise.

At what point will the added VoIP traffic critically impact the quality of network communication?
VoIP Expert displays jitter and percentage of lost packets for each VoIP pair, and both the amount of network utilization the conversation is consuming and the total VoIP utilization on the network. With both utilization and jitter data, problems can be easily pinpointed, and predictions of future capacity can be made.

I have outside consultants working on my LAN, and need to provide access to traffic data but don't want to provide decode capabilities—can WEB Extension help?
WEB Extension can provide aggregate trending flow and SNMP data, without opening the security hole of providing packed decode.