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LinkRunner pros and cons

Vendor: NetAlly

4.3 out of 5

20 reviews
90% willing to recommend

Pros & Cons summary

The AutoTest feature of LinkRunner automatically starts testing after setup, beneficial for single users. It offers LLDP decoding with detailed port descriptions, and the ability to pause tests for verifying connectivity. Cloud storage aids in managing network changes, and VLAN testing accelerates troubleshooting. However, it has a slow boot time, lacks tone and packet viewing capabilities, has short battery life, and restricts firmware updates to AllyCare contracts.

Buyer's Guide

Get pricing advice, tips, use cases and valuable features from real users of this product.

Prominent pros & cons

PROS

AutoTest feature facilitates solo testing operations, allowing efficient setup and immediate testing processes.

LLDP decoding capabilities exceed those of other devices, enhancing port identification and network troubleshooting.

Network validation and configuration for both copper and fiber Ethernet are greatly simplified, enhancing efficiency and effectiveness.

Investigative capabilities are expanded with features like end-to-end testing and VLAN testing, saving time and resources in network troubleshooting.

Direct result sharing via email enables effective documentation and easier management of network infrastructure details.

CONS

LinkRunner takes a while to boot up, which can be frustrating for users.

It lacks the ability to send a tone down the cable, requiring an additional tool.

The device is somewhat bulky, and a smaller form factor would be preferred.

Battery life is limited, needing to be charged frequently for back-to-back shifts.

Firmware updates are restricted without an AllyCare contract, reducing its usefulness.

LinkRunner Pros review quotes

Owner at HTH Telecommunications

Mar 6, 2022

The AutoTest feature makes it easy for you on both ends. It's an excellent feature, especially if you're by yourself. You plug one end in and you hit AutoTest. It sits and waits for you to plug in the other end and it starts testing.

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Network Administrator at a university with 501-1,000 employees

Mar 7, 2022

The LLDP decoding is better than on some of the other devices that we've used. Specifically, it goes beyond the minimum of the LLDP data to decode, and it shows the LLDP port descriptions. That makes it vastly simpler to identify which port you're connecting to on a switch that's patched back to some other building, rather than having to figure out an SNMP index or something else.

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Network/Telecom Administrator at Navarro College

Mar 16, 2022

I like the fact that I can tell the equipment to stop at a certain point during the test of a cable, to see whether or not there is basic connectivity. I can stop it before it starts pinging the outside world, such as Google or, perhaps, our core network switch. Those basic results—do I have a basic connection and power—finish up fast and I can move on.

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IT Support Specialist III at Citrus College

Mar 8, 2022

In terms of documenting ad hoc additions and other changes to wired ethernet connections, this product is very good. It keeps the information in the cloud and I have the ability to name it. This makes it very nice and easy to see.

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RV

Network Engineer at a tech vendor with 501-1,000 employees

Mar 10, 2022

AutoTest is very helpful. It's very streamlined and it's very easy to set up and very easy to identify what we want to achieve. It's probably the feature we use the most. It provides us with LLTD, which is very useful.

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reviewer1856337

Senior Network Architect at a financial services firm with 501-1,000 employees

May 11, 2022

I like that LinkRunner is an all-in-one device with a touchscreen interface. You don't have to pair it with a phone or anything else to get the full functionality. The built-in tests are one of the most significant advantages. It will pull an IP, ping the gateway, ping out to the intra, and report everything on the screen. It will tell you when a test completes or fails and why.

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reviewer1889814

Network & Infrastructure Analyst with 201-500 employees

Jun 21, 2022

The auto-test feature is vital and does 90 percent of what I need on its own. It's fast and I can get there in just a few clicks. It does a good job and tells me everything I need to know. LinkRunner works pretty quickly and always seems to be accurate.

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Technical Director at SystemEngineer360 Pte. Ltd.

Jun 21, 2022

LinkRunner 10G is very handy for onsite troubleshooting and implementations. We can quickly identify the links in terms of 1G, 2.5G, 5G, and 10G on the copper side, and also from 1G up to 10G on the fiber side. It is very handy for me because we deal with a lot of banks. Especially for the provisioning of new services, we use this tool to identify the link capacity and do the necessary testing to ensure all the circuits are ready before the handover to the next team to operate the technology. This is something that saves a lot of time as compared to the old days.

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KG

Network Engineer at HCA Healthcare

Jul 1, 2022

It is fast in providing results. It is pretty accurate.

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reviewer1901049

Network analyst at a university with 10,001+ employees

Jun 29, 2022

It provides a way to test 10Gig connectivity. Previously, we had to hook up a switch. That was our only way. Now, with LinkRunner, we can test on the fly if an SFP is bad or if the switch has the right configuration on it.

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LinkRunner Cons review quotes

Owner at HTH Telecommunications

Mar 6, 2022

It's a little bit tough getting used to at first, but once you get the hang of it, and once you start using it more, like anything, it gets easier. The difficult part, at first, is knowing where to find each test and how to use the tests.

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Network Administrator at a university with 501-1,000 employees

Mar 7, 2022

It does take a little while to boot up if it's turned off.

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Network/Telecom Administrator at Navarro College

Mar 16, 2022

A feature that I would like to see is the ability to send a tone down the cable. That would be great. I have to use a separate tool for that. If I'm trying to troubleshoot a cable that is not plugged into a network switch, I need the ability to tone.

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879,422 professionals have used our research since 2012.

IT Support Specialist III at Citrus College

Mar 8, 2022

Unlike using an application like Wireshark, this device gives us no way to see network packets specifically to look at what's going on. It doesn't have the capability.

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RV

Network Engineer at a tech vendor with 501-1,000 employees

Mar 10, 2022

It's a bit bulky. It would be nicer if it were a little bit smaller and packed with all its features. I would also like it if the screen were a bit bigger.

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reviewer1856337

Senior Network Architect at a financial services firm with 501-1,000 employees

May 11, 2022

One area where LinkRunner could be improved is the battery life. Depending on which tests are run, it gets a decent six to eight hours. However, sometimes we need to do back-to-back shifts to meet a deadline, and we need access to an outlet to keep it plugged in and charging. It takes about an hour or two to charge.

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reviewer1889814

Network & Infrastructure Analyst with 201-500 employees

Jun 21, 2022

It runs tests quickly, but it takes a while to boot up. It's somewhat disappointing that LinkRunner takes some time to turn on. When I arrive in the space, I usually spend the first two minutes waiting.

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Technical Director at SystemEngineer360 Pte. Ltd.

Jun 21, 2022

It is a great tool, but in the long-term, they can make its processor more powerful to do more functions. They can upgrade the hardware to make it run faster and more efficiently from the process point of view. That'll be beneficial because the technology is evolving and the network traffic is going higher and higher. We have to leverage better spec products to handle the traffic load.

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KG

Network Engineer at HCA Healthcare

Jul 1, 2022

They should allow firmware updates even if you don't have an AllyCare contract. I'm in a situation right now where they've released firmware for bug fixes, but we cannot access those, which makes the device almost useless. You almost want to just throw it out the window because they're not supporting their product unless you have an AllyCare contract.

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reviewer1901049

Network analyst at a university with 10,001+ employees

Jun 29, 2022

It doesn't turn off automatically, but the toning function goes to sleep. It seems to stop toning after five or six minutes if you don't find the cable. It could be up to ten minutes, but if you don't find the cable that you're trying to tone quick enough, you'll have to go back and restart the tone. So, it doesn't turn itself off, but while toning, it turns itself off.

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