Top 25 Network Problems and Their Business Impact:
| 1. | Configuration not saved |
Reboot will cause config to be lost
Source of many problems from performance to reliability to security
Poor firewall performance
Open, unused rules, creating potential security problems
New connections via the firewall fail
Business applications exhibit intermittent failure at high firewall loads
VPNs begin to fail
Slower application response, impacting user productivity
Unpredictable application performance, impacting user productivity
Physical or DataLink errors cause slow or intermittent application performance
Link or interface stability can impact routing and spanning tree (see other examples)
Fan failure, power supply problems, and high temperatures are indicators of problems that will likely cause a network device to reboot, affecting any applications relying on the device
A bug in the device’s operating system is consuming more memory and when no free memory exists, the device will reboot, disrupting applications that are transiting the device
Causes routing protocols to make non-optimum routing decisions
Important business applications are not prioritized, yielding unpredictable or poor performance during times of interface congestion
Important business applications are slow
Business needs may have changed since the queue definitions were created
VoIP is especially affected by this problem
Poor application performance as packets take the wrong or inefficient paths in the network
Routing protocol unstable; poor and inconsistent application performance
Due to high jitter, delay, or packet loss
Choppy voice calls
Calls mysteriously disconnect
Applications using paths via this router will be unstable or slow
Affects OSPF, EIGRP, and BGP
The disconnected OSPF area will not be reachable from other OSPF areas, impacting applications that need to communicate between areas
Typically the result of misconfigured routing
Slower applications, strange failure odes, and complex troubleshooting due to asymmetric routing
Any router interface marked administratively up but is operationally down is likely to be a redundant connection that will cause an outage if the other connection also fails, affecting all applications that use it
Bridge priority not set; applications quit working over unstable VLANs
Increasing link errors
Applications get slower as traffic volume increases
Unauthorized devices added to the network
Compromise to network integrity and security
See 20, Unstable Root Bridge
The set of end stations connected via this port are disconnected from the network until the port is enabled (either automatically or by user control)
Increased latency & jitter affecting sensitive applications like VoIP
Compromised redundancy
Redundancy configured and not operating correctly
Outage when a second failure occurs
Redundancy compromised
Free Poster:
The above network problems are available as a snazzy FREE poster (ordered mine) that is suitable for office display and framing, it details the top 25 network problems that Netcordia's NetMRI detects.
It's a great resource for communicating between managers and technical staff, as it illustrates the business impact of common network problems.
Related story:
The major cause of failures are fingers
What do YOU think is a top network problem?
Brad Reese cofounded BradReese.Com Cisco Refurbished, which enables affordable networks globally by assuring customer satisfaction with guaranteed one year warranties on both Cisco Repair as well as Refurbished Cisco.
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