Once spent a whole day troubleshooting a site remotely over the phone to re-establish network connection
The client assured me the server was connected to the network switch. It wasn’t until some repeated questioning about the indicator lights on the switch, which were mysteriously absent, that I realised we were talking about a patch panel and not a network switch.
This was before facetiming and decent res photo cameras on mobile phones.
Yup, status LEDs are great for over-the-phone troubleshooting. If you suspect somebody unplugged a thing and everyone says it’s running, ask for them to check the power LED’s color.
Once spent a whole day troubleshooting a site remotely over the phone to re-establish network connection
The client assured me the server was connected to the network switch. It wasn’t until some repeated questioning about the indicator lights on the switch, which were mysteriously absent, that I realised we were talking about a patch panel and not a network switch.
This was before facetiming and decent res photo cameras on mobile phones.
Yup, status LEDs are great for over-the-phone troubleshooting. If you suspect somebody unplugged a thing and everyone says it’s running, ask for them to check the power LED’s color.
the usefulness of most status LEDs is what makes NICs whose LEDs shine and even blink when they are totally unplugged that much more infuriating.
Ouchie, I felt your pain.