Fluke Networks releases its new wireless analyser

To address the pervasive use of wireless networking in IT organisations worldwide, Fluke Networks adds wireless analysis to the EtherScope Network Assistant, the portable analyser designed to aid in the rapid installation, maintenance and troubleshooting of 10/100/gigabit and now wireless enterprise networks.

Enterprise-class wireless networks are growing 12% per year (CAGR)1, and total wireless spending will reach $3.5 billion by 20082. Having one tool that works for both wired and wireless networks, at speeds up to gigabit and across all 802.11 bands, means the technician can solve more problems on growing, increasingly complex networks with fewer tools.

"Since its introduction it has been clear that EtherScope has a well-defined constituency," said Jeffrey Nudler, senior analyst with Enterprise Management Associates. "The addition of a/b/g wireless testing to its full-duplex gigabit capabilities plus its proficiency at device discovery make this a truly versatile troubleshooting tool for the network technician."

Security can be increased by performing periodic wireless network audits. Wireless EtherScope scans 2.4 GHz and 5 GHz frequency ranges, providing the visibility to identify, locate and disable rogue access points and unauthorised ad-hoc networks across all bands and channels. EtherScope displays the security settings of all discovered wireless devices and alerts the user to potential problems with security configurations. Users can quickly test, verify and modify wireless encryption and authorisation configurations, supervise wireless client EAP authentication processes and pinpoint where and when the process breaks down.

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Fluke Networks offers the only portable tools in the world that discover, analyse and troubleshoot devices on both wired and wireless networks. EtherScope is a tremendous time saver for technicians who must increasingly troubleshoot mixed network environments, which up to now required different tools and different techniques.

EtherScope provides visibility into wireless signal strength and quality when clients report problems with the wireless network. Wireless EtherScope provides comprehensive measurements of the 802.11 signal and noise in the environment, as well as packet level information to identify excessive errors and retransmissions.

EtherScope can automatically detect problems by monitoring the network and alerting the user to potential problems related to RF performance, improper security settings or security threats. Problem logs can be sorted by severity to ensure that the highest priority issues are located quickly.

To help manage the dynamic wireless environment, EtherScope offers site survey capabilities to record snapshots of the RF environment at points within a facility. Real-time signal strength measurements can be compared to historical records, letting the technician see changes in the RF environment.

Findings can be documented with comprehensive Web-viewable, XML-coded reports, making it easy to review and document network attributes, baseline performance, device inventory, problem logs and switch-port statistics.

Wireless Lifecycle Management runs from design and deployment, to troubleshooting, ongoing management and planning for future growth of wireless networks. EtherScope(tm) Network Assistant is an essential tool for the troubleshooting and ongoing management of the wireless network. Wireless Lifecycle Management also includes OptiView Integrated Network Analyser and InterpretAir Wireless Site Survey Tool.