Diagnostics > Ping/Link Test

Ping/Link Test

Use the Ping/Link Test window to run a point-to-point test between the switch and another IEEE 802.3-compliant device on your network. These tests confirm that the switch is communicating properly with another device on the network.

To respond to a Ping test or Link test, the remote device must be IEEE 802.3-compliant.

A ping test checks the path between the switch and another device on the same or another IP network that responds to IP packets (ICMP Echo Requests). A link test checks the connection between the switch and a designated network device on the same LAN (or VLAN, if configured). During the link test, IEEE 802.3 test packets are sent to the designated remote device in the same VLAN or broadcast domain. The remote device returns the data (802.2 Test Response Packet) to the switch, where it is compared to the data transmitted. If the received data matches the transmitted data, the test passes.

The Ping/Link Test window contains the following test status information:

Successes	The number of Ping or Link packets that successfully completed the most recent test.
Failures	The number of Ping or Link packets that were unsuccessful in the most recent test. Failures indicate connectivity or network performance problems.

To perform a link or ping test:

Select Link Test or Ping Test.
In the Destination IP/MAC Address field, type the IP address or MAC address of the destination device to which you want to test a connection with the switch. The IP address of the device is in X.X.X.X format where X is a decimal number between 0 and 255. A MAC address is made up of 12 hexadecimal digits (i.e., 080009-123456).
In the Number of Packets to Send drop-down menu, select the number of times you want the switch to attempt to test a connection with another device.
In the Timeout in Seconds drop-down menu, select the number of seconds the switch should wait for each packet to complete the test.
Click Start.

The test will run until all packets have been sent and either a response has been received for each or the specified time-out period for each has elapsed. The graph at the top of the window will indicate how many packets were successful and how many failed.

To stop a Link or Ping test before it concludes, click Stop.
To reset the screen to its default settings, click Defaults.