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Saturday, October 26, 2013

Joe's Ping Tool

Joe's Ping Tool is a simple graphical interface for built in network tools included in the Windows operating system. This tool will assist you in troubleshooting and diagnosing network issues. It eliminates the hassle of having to use the command line to manually type in commands, and displays the results in a user-friendly manner. The results are also more descriptive and easier to copy and paste which may come in handy if you need to keep records of Ping or Trace Route Results.
This tool is designed for both, the technical professional and the Beginner and Novice users. Advanced users who will need to diagnose network issues often and quickly, and possibly need to keep records of the results (i.e. Helpdesk or Network Technicians) will benefit from the Interface’s ease of use and ability to Copy and paste results easier. The beginner and novice user will benefit from the tool’s ease of use and elimination of the command line confusion.
Here is a Screen Shot of Joe's Ping Tool
(Figure 1. Light Color Scheme Shown)


System Requirements
Minimum requirements:
Windows 95, 98, ME, NT, 2000, XP
300 MHz Processor or better
64MB RAM
2 MB Free Hard Disk Space
NOTE: The IP information and Net Send tools will only work on Windows NT, 2000 and XP.


Installation
To Install Joes Ping Tool 3, Simply run the "PingTool3Setup.exe"  file and walk through the install. It is very self explanitory.


Features
Ping
Ping is a basic layer 3 network utility that sends a request to another machine or device with an IP address. Once that machine receives that request, it replies. This is useful to determine if your machine can "see" the other machine. If a ping is successful it means that your computer is capable of sending packets (data) to the other machine and receiving them back. Pings also give you useful information such as how long it takes for the packet to travel from your machine, to the destination and back. The time is measured in Milliseconds (MS). The higher the response time, the more latency you have between you and that machine. This is important for network intensive activities such as Downloading and gaming.
Joe's Ping Tool allows you to easily ping IP addresses or host addresses. You have options to change Packet size and Ping Count. You will also be able to choose between Classic and Cisco Style Results.
Packet Size
Adjusting the packet size will adjust the size of the packets sent in the ping (in bytes).
Ping Count
Adjusting the Ping Count will adjust the number of times to ping the target.
Ping Results
You can change the way the ping results are displayed by Choosing File, then Preferences.
Classic Style Results
Classic style results will look like the following:
(Figure 2. Classic Style Results)
Advantages: Will show the Time response for each ping as well as the summary at the bottom
Disadvantages: If you choose to run an extended ping, the results will be considerably longer
Cisco Style Results
Cisco Style results display a "!" for a successful ping and "." For a failed ping, as displayed in Figure 3:
(Figure 3. Cisco Style Results)
Advantages: Allows for a smaller result summary.
Disadvantages: Does not show a time response for each ping, however does show an average time.


Trace Route
Trace Route is a utility that records and displays the route through a network or the internet from one machine to another. It displays each Router or Gateway along the path to the destination, displayed as a "Hop". Trace Route will also display the amount of time between each "hop" to the destination IP address. This tool is very useful for troubleshooting Packet Loss or Latency, and determining where it is coming from.
Figure 4 Shows a Trace Route using Joe's Ping Tool.
(Figure 4. Trace Route)


Net Send
Net Send (Windows NT, 2000, and XP only) is a utility that allows you to send messages to other users on your local Network.
Figure 5a shows the Net Send utility of Joe’s Network Tool, and Figure 5b shows the message received by the Recipient.
(Figure 5a. Net Send Utility)
(Figure 5b. Message Received by Recipient)


Telnet
Telnet is both a Utility and a TCP/IP Protocol. It allows you to connect to another device or machine running the telnet service and gain access through a Terminal Window.
Figure 6 is the Joe's Ping Tool’s Telnet interface which then opens a Telnet Window.
(Figure 6. Telnet Interface)


Flood Ping
Flood Ping Utility in Joe's Ping Tools is a utility that will open multiple windows (50-80) hat each ping the target with 1472 bytes of data. This is useful to Troubleshoot Packet Loss and Slow throughput issues. Used in addition to Traffic monitoring utilities it allows you to send a massive amount of packets to the target.
NOTE: Use this tool for diagnostics purposes only, it is illegal and unethical to use this tool to send a flood ping someone without their permission.


IP Information
IP Information (Windows NT, 2000, and XP only) Displays your current IP configuration. Equivalent of typing IPCONFIG at the Command Prompt.
Figure 7 is a screenshot of the IP Information results.
(Figure 7. IP Information)


Net View
Net View allows user to see the computer names on their domain / workgroup, Equivalent of typing ‘Net View’ in command prompt.


Color Schemes
Joe's Ping Tool comes with two different color schemes, a Light one (pictured) and a Dark one as shown in Figure 8. To change the color scheme, click on File then Select Preferences and choose the desired scheme.
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(Figure 8. Dark Color Scheme

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