NetAlly EtherScope nXG Reviews

We mainly use NetAlly EtherScope nXG for troubleshooting. Linksprinter helps us solve problems and understand how things work. For example, SpamTitan is automatic, but beginners might not understand how it works. So, we use tools like Wireshark to capture packets and learn how DNS and CDP work. Linksprinter just helps us solve the problem.

One of the standout features is its ability to serve as an advanced handheld packet analyzer. It excels in discovering both wired and wireless networks and automatically documenting them, which is really valuable. The tool provides insights from the physical layer up to layer seven, including HTTP, which helps diagnose network issues effectively. This automated documentation feature sets NetAlly apart from competitors, enhancing efficiency and accuracy in network management and recommendations. When the EtherScope nXG identifies a problem, it alerts us, allowing us to use more advanced tools for deeper analysis.

Regarding PoE testing capabilities, I haven't explored them extensively, but I'm aware of their importance, especially for detecting issues like overloading switches with too many PoE devices. Integrators are becoming more cautious about these issues, but specialized tools like those from other vendors may offer features like microburst dashboards, which EtherScope nXG currently doesn't provide.

The main area for improvement that stands out is the lack of a microburst dashboard, which some other vendors offer. However, NetAlly has carved out its niche by focusing on comprehensive network analysis up to layer seven, including automatic network mapping with tools like CyberScope. While there may be some features missing compared to competitors, NetAlly remains strong in its specialized market, providing robust solutions like EtherScope for detailed customer scans, despite being on the pricier side.

  I have experience of using NetAlly EtherScope nXG for the past one year.

EtherScope has been very reliable in my experience. I haven't encountered major glitches, although occasionally there are minor display issues that don't affect its overall functionality.

Customer support from NetAlly has been solid. I haven't needed to contact their engineers much because their online resources and local partners have been helpful.

Positive

Deploying NetAlly EtherScope is more complex. It involves a deeper understanding of network analysis and may require training from NetAlly's academy. Features like packet analysis and TCP/IP diagnostics require more expertise and possibly multi-day training sessions in specialized centers. It requires more extensive preparation and knowledge to utilize its full range of features effectively.

In terms of pricing, EtherScope isn't cheap. It's a significant investment, and not a budget option.

Overall, I would rate NetAlly EtherScope nXG as an eight out of ten. It's a robust solution with great features, though there's room for enhancement in certain areas like the Microverse dashboard.

I'm a wireless engineer. I do both troubleshooting and design. I use NetAlly EtherScope nXG mainly as a troubleshooting device, and I also use it to collect data so that when I do my designs, I have all of the data that I need.

One of the great things about it is that it is a small and portable device. We're based in London, and we had a customer in New York. We were finding it really difficult to troubleshoot a problem remotely even though we had cloud-based controllers and other things for wireless. It was an intermittent problem that was difficult for us to replicate. So, I ended up sending the device to the customer. They were able to set it up and plug it in. Because it can charge over PoE, they were able to just leave it there, and then effectively, I could log into that device through Link-Live. I could run all the tests that I needed to run. I could have the AutoTest running for 24 hours, and then I could look at that data. We figured out what the problem was. I was able to do remote packet captures and other things. We were able to fix the problem, and they just shipped the unit back to us. That was obviously much cheaper than me flying over to New York for two weeks. I could carry on with the work that I was booked into day to day, but I was also able to log in and look at things over there. It was really useful to be able to just send that device and get that fixed. It has basically enabled me to be in two places at once, which is invaluable. There aren't a lot of wireless engineers. So, the fact that I can be both in New York and in London at the same time is the value that we are getting from it.

It is easy to use for less skilled staff but has deep diagnostics for experts on staff. I told the customer at the New York site to just walk around with it and let it do everything it needs to do because I'm connected via wireless. After walking around, they said that this is a problem area, and then effectively, I could just run the device. For something simple, I could get them to click on something, but if I wanted to run more of a test, I could just remotely use the device. I told them, "Stick this in the middle somewhere and make sure it has got PoE power. I can run everything I need to run. Don't worry about it, and when I've got everything I need, just ship it back to me."

Its multi-technology functionality when it comes to validating network changes, troubleshooting connectivity, and detecting performance issues is very helpful. A lot of the time, it is proving that it isn't a Wi-Fi problem. The nice thing about having a product that has all of it in there is that I can test not just the wireless; I can also test up the stack. If everything looks good from the wireless side, I can then start to troubleshoot up the stack. No other product that I have gives me that flexibility.

I create my own tests. The test is different for each site depending on what I am troubleshooting or what applications they're using. To be able to just leave something and collect data over time is really valuable.

I have made use of its full line-rate 10 Gig capability. Because I've two nXGs, I can use the LANBERT tester as well. I've done that a few times where customers have got pre-existing cabling, and they said that they will have to completely rip out the cabling to be able to go with the new 6 GHz APs and things like that. In such cases, I've been able to just test that cabling and tell them that this cabling will be absolutely fine. There is no need to rip it out, which obviously makes the customer quite happy because it means that they don't have an additional cost of re-cabling everything.

It is a handheld tool, which makes it easy to use, and you do use it. Some of the other tools that we have are great tools, but because they're cumbersome and they require you to put lots of things in and have lots of extra things attached to them, you only use them if you absolutely have to, whereas you can use this tool every time because it is portable and easy.

The AirMapper Site Survey app is brilliant at gathering WiFi site survey data, and the Link-Live service that you have afterward is the crown jewel of it. You can easily share that with customers. All that data is readily available on any platform, which is really good. I can use an iPad, I can use a Mac, or I can use a Windows device. It doesn't matter.

The Link-Live part of the whole system is very good. You can build up reports. You can create heat maps, and you can have all that other data in there as well. You can have raw test data, and you can have your discovery data. It is all there in one place, and then you can easily share that with customers. It is very good in terms of the ability to visualize key performance metrics. It has got everything we need, and it is clear for customers too.

It impacts our ability to validate changes or troubleshoot problems. I use it for both. It has the data, and I can also see the before and after. I can go onsite really easily and collect that data. I can then make changes based on the recommendations and then go back to the site and see the difference between how it was before and how it is afterward. Being able to display that and easily show that to the customer is a great thing, and I'm not printing off 100-page reports. I can just send a link.

It has provided visibility into the network that we could only get by using many other tools. It has both the wireless and the wired in one device, and that's the thing that separates it from anything else on the market. You get some really good wired devices. You get some really good wireless-only devices. This is the only one that I've come across that has not just both of them but also a lot of detail and a lot of expertise in both of those areas. It has affected the efficiency and cost of our network troubleshooting massively. I didn't have to fly to New York for two weeks. It is helpful for the remote support that we can offer to customers. It is so much easier for us to send that device than it is for us to send a Level 3 or Level 4 engineer.

It has reduced the troubleshooting time. Now, I can walk onto the site and within a couple of minutes, I'm able to determine if this is a wireless problem or a wired problem. I still have everything I need to fix that problem, whereas previously, I would either have to take a lot of equipment with me, which is expensive and a hassle, or I would turn up thinking it is a wireless problem and not have the other equipment with me, and then I would have to come back another day or book in another session. I don't have the actual number of time saved, but I wouldn't go anywhere without this equipment now.

The things that I find most valuable are the Wi-Fi app and the Discovery app. Those two things help a lot when I'm doing the initial discovery of a space. I also use the AutoTest feature quite a lot, especially if I'm troubleshooting.

It is one of the best solutions for finding network problems quickly. The Discovery app that I use as I'm walking around the site picks up loads of things such as retries, APs that are using wrong channels, APs that are moving channels regularly because of DSS events, etc. That's one of the best features that I use the most.

We should be able to do online wireless design through Link-Live. We should be able to take the information that we've gathered and send a customer the way to fix it, in terms of moving APs and how that would affect things, within Link-Live.

The ease of use of AirMapper could do with some improvements. I don't use the AirMapper Site Survey app a lot. I have used it recently with the new 6 GHz device because effectively, it is the only device I have that can do that. For most of my site surveys, I use a different tool. AirMapper is very quick and easy once everything is on there, but I would like to see an improvement on how you get things on there. Currently, rather than being able to build up buildings or a site of things, every map is an individual piece. We should be able to set up an AirMapper survey easily and more effectively. At the moment, we just have separate floor plans. It'd be great to be able to build a building and tell where different floors are so that if it hears an AP on the floor below, it doesn't put two APs, one on that floor and one on the other floor, and it knows that there are two floors here. One is on top of the other, and it won't put the AP at both places. It would put it on one of the floors where it would be strongest. This would be one of the biggest improvements.

I've got two of these. I've been using them for about three years. I'm currently using the 6 GHz model.

It is very stable and reliable. I've never had a crash, and I've never had it not collect data. It has always been rock solid.

I've never had to use their support. Their documentation is good, but the main place I've gone to find out how to do things has been YouTube. When there is a new feature, or there is a webinar that's being recorded, I can just watch that back on YouTube.

I've added the NetAlly solution to what I already had. It is not replacing these, but it is better than the tools that I still take with me. I'm a wireless engineer rather than a wired engineer, and I didn't have any Fluke or Netscout products previously. I don't have a wired networking tester. I do have Ekahau, and I still use that. With NetAlly, I've now got additional capability that I didn't have previously. I used to have a separate device for doing packet captures, which effectively is just my laptop with USB wireless cards plugged into it, and now, I don't use that. I just use EtherScope nXG.

In terms of the return on investment, when you use it onsite once or twice, it has already paid for itself. I've said to people that it makes your life so much easier when you're onsite, especially if you're troubleshooting, that it doesn't make sense to not pay for it.

The main benefit is that it just saves time. It saves time on the site. Because it is a handheld device and I can walk around with it, I don't have to walk around with my laptop everywhere. My site visits now are 50% of what they were previously because I'm able to gather that data at the same time. I'm not having to go back and use different tools or take lots of different things to do it. This one tool allows me to do it all in one go or one sweep of the building. A site survey that might've taken two days can be done in a day now. It takes me less time, and I can charge more per day. It also means that on the second day that I would've been there, I can be on another site, effectively earning money twice.

It is worth it. The cost benefit of Link-Live is massive because it is included with the cost of the device and the licensing. A lot of people miss that part of it. It is not just the device that you get but it is the ability to look at all of that data later on. You're not having to do all of that on the device. You can just be there, use the device, and then look at the data from the comfort of your office or home afterward.

I am currently the only user of this equipment, and I also take care of its maintenance. I've planned an internal demo of the equipment for some of the other engineers in the company. Some of our NOC engineers and some of our wired engineers could really use something like this.

It is relatively easy to learn. There are a lot of videos and other resources that you can check out. A lot of the content is pretty intuitive. The only issue is that because there is so much there, people might feel that they don't really understand where to start with this. However, if people have a particular problem they're trying to solve, they will be able to figure out how to solve that because it has everything they need. There is just so much in there that when people first start out, they won't necessarily know where to go to check something out, but most people who are buying this type of solution would be savvy enough to open everything, figure out where everything is, and then go with it. I certainly had no problem.

I would rate it a nine out of ten.

My primary concern was wireless networking troubleshooting capabilities.

EtherScope has made our networking staff more productive. We have remote locations and can use the tools to collaborate. I have other people looking at it at the same time that I am looking at it. With the uploading ability, I can have more eyes on the project at the same time, instead of just one set of eyes.

I may have to go into a situation that I don't know. By plugging the solution in, I can get a footprint of what that facility is doing or has, without having documentation. I can see how many potential clients that I have, how many are in line with what we have set up, and how many are not seeing what is on the various networks. Also, I can find misaligned or unprepared equipment that is on the network. As a project technician, when I use the solution, I am looking for something specific, such as the number of devices on the network and the number of devices connected through the wireless networks.

The most valuable features are: 

• Its network troubleshooting capabilities. 
• The applications available to you where you don't have to switch tools or devices. 
• Running Pings, testing network configurations, and connectivity.
• Heatmapping.
• Seeing the wireless interfaces that are running.

I like the multi-technology functionality of the solution. It has helped me cut down on troubleshooting time because I don't have to switch between tools. It has also advanced my knowledge in some areas that I wasn't as familiar with.

I use the pre-programmed AutoTest feature. However, I am still learning all its capabilities. When we purchased it, I had certain things in mind that I wanted to test. As I am learning the tool, it provides the feasibility of just being able to document and have other people take a look at the configuration. So, our time is cut in half from the field to our NOC.

One of the things that I like about it is that I can have people train other people on it. Even though I am not familiar with all of the tools, I have been able to train them so they can use it in the field when needed.

The training aspect needs improvement. They provide training, but if I am looking for something specific, then I have to sit through about an hour of training to learn about something that I may not have time to do. So, I probably have 40 hours of training for something that was five minutes of use.

From the demo, they show you a great deal of what the tool does. To actually learn how to do it, you probably have a learning curve that depends on what other tools you have used in the industry. That could go from 45 minutes to 4 hours just to learn how to use one of the applications.

For all its flexibility, make sure that you are prepared to spend the training time. While the training is available, it is just making sure that the person who will be working on it has the time available to train on it.

I am still learning the tool. The main reason that I purchased it was for the wireless troubleshooting capabilities and heatmapping. Those took me probably about six hours to properly learn everything that could be done with them, and I probably still don't know everything that can be done with them.

For my usage, I thought the training would be maybe an hour, but I ended up having to spend an additional four to eight hours just to make sure I could adequately translate the data. So, using the tool was not that difficult, but translating the data is where there is a breakdown in what you are demonstrated and what you can actually do.

I have been using it for a year.

I love the solution's stability. 

I handle the device's maintenance. I make sure that everything is downloaded when I see a pop up that I have something new available.

We have seen ROI. It reduced the number of tools and the amount of software that I had downloaded onto my computer to gather the same amount of data. The portability of the tool has allowed me to cut down my time.

It cuts down on time by reducing my troubleshooting tools. There is simplicity in not having to carry five or six different sets of tools to do the same thing that you can do with NetAlly. For example, when I go into a building, I can plug into the E-port and get probably about an hour and a half to two hours of time per day when I use it. Therefore, it has probably cut my time down from three and a half hours to an hour.

The pricing was a little bit high, but I understand that when you are getting multiple tools.

There are three people using EtherScope and 10 people who review the data. Right now, I am primarily using it three times a week, but there are other sites that I want to get taken care of. I have recommended that we purchase two more devices since we have three technicians in the field.

I would rate EtherScope as nine out of 10.

Our biggest use case is the heat map. We also use it for testing cable length, and/or verifying what port an unmarked data drop is going to.

We're in a big push to get proper network documentation. When we go to a site, we take a NetAlly with us and we try to do both a heat map and use the discovery function. Additionally, if we're onsite and we're troubleshooting some issues, we might use both the AutoTest and Cable Tester to identify problems that we need to fix. For example, we tend to have long cable runs that sites need to be replaced or addressed.

The NetAlly product is still relatively new for us and we are exploring what other functions it will do for us. It's not a tool we use daily. We use it three or four times a month at this point.

The AutoTest feature has definitely reduced troubleshooting time. Given the fact that there's a lack of documentation about our environment—nobody's marking data drops—it's an awesome little feature. It has reduced my typical troubleshooting time on a data drop by somewhere between 15 and 30 minutes.

Overall, the nXG has helped us to be more effective when it comes to troubleshooting. It helps us identify issues in our network more quickly.

The functions we're using currently are AutoTest, Cable Test, discovery, and the AirMapper.

I love the AutoTest feature. It's my favorite feature. Finding a network problem is not the biggest deal for us. Our problem is that we usually go to a port and it's undocumented, regarding how or where it's connected. AutoTest allows us to find out what port it is on the switch and to trace it back to a particular patch panel. We can then document it, if necessary, or use that information for connecting a device or for re-VLANing a switch to the appropriate VLAN.

I'm still on the amateur side when it comes to doing heat maps and the AirMapper Site Survey app is a tool that is designed for somebody who does professional heat maps and really gets into the minutiae. It probably gives me more information than I realize. But its ability to visualize key performance metrics from the map, with the color-coding, is great. I like all the information that I get. It's easy to understand, especially by the time you weed out all the unnecessary SSIDs. That's great.

I use the NetAlly site and one of the things I don't like about the topology map, something I wish I could fix, is that the map kind of jiggles if you don't adjust any of the settings.

One of the things I'd like to be able to do with that feature is to grab a group of devices and drag them. For example, if you drag a switch, all the devices that are attached to that switch stay in the same spot. Your switch can be dragged all the way out to the far side of the page, but all the devices are still back in their original spot. That means there are all these lines and you have to go back and move all the individual devices. I wish there was a way to drag the device and its attached devices.

Another thing that I would love for the EtherScope nXG to be able to do is when I'm looking at a topology map. A lot of times it will say, "Unknown switch," and I'm pretty sure it's a phone that probably has a PC attached to it. I would love it if it could identify that.

Also, when running a discovery, it would help if there were something that makes it a little more obvious when the NetAlly device determines that the discovery is complete. There's a little percentage sign that runs up towards the top when the discovery is going, but I'd like a little more obvious sign that indicates, "Hey, we're still running. We're still trying to discover things." That way we won't pull it off before it's done.

Another point is that this product needs to come with a stylus. It doesn't work well with fat fingers.

We've had NetAlly EtherScope nXG for about a year, and I've started using it within the last nine months.

I had to do an update because my original EtherScope had a problem with one of its WiFi radios not turning on. I couldn't use WiFi to upload things. That created a little bit of a hassle, but they replaced it really quickly.

NetAlly's customer support has been good. I haven't had any complaints.

I brought one of our engineers who works a lot with these tools and we sat down with a couple of the salesmen. I showed one of them my EtherScope and when I talked to him about my wireless issue, he was the one who said, "Yes, you need to have them replace this." I contacted support and they looked at the unit and said, "You realize that it's not up to date?" and they asked me to update it. I updated it but that didn't fix my problem. We then moved to the step of replacing it.

When it's one of the guys who knows the product best who identifies the problem and says, "You just need it replaced," at that point, I would expect customer service to just follow the engineer's lead.

Positive

I previously used AirMapper. I like the fact that this is easier to handle than walking around with a PC with a dongle hanging off of it. The nXG gives me multiple tools in one handheld device.

We're still trying to figure out how the discovery in NetAlly differs from SolarWinds, which we also use. We do gain some additional information from NetAlly compared to SolarWinds, but we still have to figure out how we can utilize that information.

EtherScope will work for less skilled staff and experts on staff, but you better be prepared to grow your skills. Some of the smaller apps are pretty intuitive. I did heat maps using a different AirMapper tool before. But I still have to learn Performance, iPerf, and LANBERT. I don't even think I've touched a Path Analysis. I'm not even sure what it does. I have watched some of the videos that are available. It is just a matter of dedicating your time to learning all the features that the tool offers. Sometimes that's hard, given the typical "IT is overwhelmed" situation.

Overall, if you've got an ugly network, this is the device for you. If you lack cable management documentation or labeling on your drops, this is the device for you.

I use it for WiFi troubleshooting, network validation, and cabling validation.

It provides visibility into networks that you could only get by using many other tools. It saves time and that helps with costs.

The nXG also reduces troubleshooting time. Most regular things that would take 10 to 15 minutes can be done in a minute.

The most valuable features are the WiFi troubleshooting, network validation, and cabling validation, and the fact that it's an all-in-one tool. You don't have to carry different tools. The multi-technology functionality and its ability to do WiFi and wired Ethernet analysis in one device are the best aspects.

Also, the pre-programmed AutoTest feature is good. It checks where it's supposed to. The basic functionality that it comes with, the checkpoints and the parameters it checks against, those are all good. I like it.

I also use the solution’s full line-rate 10 Gb capability. It works great. It's very easy.

And the AirMapper Site Survey app is good for visualizing key performance metrics. It works well for validating changes. If we are making a change on the grid at a specific point, it works well.

It's easy enough for people without skills to use, and it does provide other tools for people who are more expert. It saves a lot of time.

For troubleshooting, the pre-programmed AutoTest feature is not as intuitive as it could be because there are different windows.

The user interface could be a little bit more streamlined, a little bit easier. Sometimes it's hard to find a specific thing that you're looking for. 

In terms of hardware-based improvement, the battery would be the biggest issue. The battery goes out very quickly.

It would be nice to be able to use the device to test from the device and do a hyper-wireless to wired, while using the same device. You would plug it in on one side of the device and then use a wireless to run a throughput test of the wireless without needing a separate device. That would be great. 

Finally, the AirMapper Site Survey for wireless surveys still needs a lot of work. It's not as intuitive as it could be and it can only take readings one at a time. It doesn't do continuous surveying. It's okay at gathering WiFi site survey data, but it could be better. It's stop-and-go.

I have been using NetAlly EtherScope nXG for a little less than a year. I use the tool most in our company but there are three people that I trust the tool with. I handle the maintenance of the tool, in my role as network engineer.

I haven't used the technical support. I wanted to, one day, but it wasn't easy to find who to call. I normally like to call to open a ticket. It wasn't as intuitive as I would have liked. I went to their website and I searched for "support." I was hoping to get a phone number I could call. 

I know we bought support for this product and I don't know when it expires. A portal, or something like that, would be a nice way to know what your support status is. Also, a portal where you could open a ticket would be nice.

I used the Fluke in the past, but the interface was horrible. It was hard to navigate so I mostly used a computer to access network devices to figure stuff out. Obviously, I used cable finders and cable tracers, but I really didn't use anything like this.

The learning curve is a little steep in the beginning. I wish there were more videos showing how to use it. The videos that are out there are very entry-level, very broad and light. It would be nice to have additional video content, besides the documentation, although the documentation is good.

The cost of the tool versus its ability to save time or solve problems faster depends on the client. For most clients, it probably doesn't justify the cost if they're not too big or they don't have the need for it. A cost of $9,000 is hard to justify. But if you have heavy usage and find yourself trying to troubleshoot something over and over again, it's worth the cost. You have to have that level of use. It's not for the average, medium-sized company. You would need this for a larger enterprise. It's not easy to justify the cost for most smaller companies. If your company has more than 500 people then it would make sense.

For me, the ROI has been slow. It grows with time. It would grow a lot faster if we had many and many people who could use it. But when there's only one person using it, it's a very expensive tool. I'm not always the one who does the testing, so a lot of people end up doing testing without the tool. It's not a tool that I just give out and send everywhere, again because of the cost. If it were a less expensive tool and we had several of them, it would be easier because everybody would be using it. It would be a part of the toolbox that we would give out to everybody.

It's very expensive. I wish I could buy a few more and give them to all the people who could use it, or perhaps send it to a client, given that some of its features are easy to use. But sending something worth $8,000 or $9,000 is nerve-racking. It would be nice that if it were a lot less expensive.

It is quite a delicate tool. And for $9,000, I wish they included a nice pouch to protect it; something to carry it. The Ekahau Sidekick is an expensive tool but it comes with something to carry it on your shoulder. This one is easy to drop and it's $9,000. So you have to be super-careful as well.

NetAlly's marketing was good. I knew about them, knew what they were doing, so I didn't look further, past them. I always had it in my sights. When I bought it, it was them and nobody else, to be honest.

I've been using it quite often, several times a week; sometimes more, sometimes less, depending on what's happening.

We use it to troubleshoot network cabling issues as well as identify network ports and network connectivity issues from the end user to the switch. It is a device that helps us test cables and network connectivity.

It has reduced our internal troubleshooting time. In the cases where we could not internally solve the troubleshooting, we would have had to contact an external vendor to test cable, rerun it, etc. NetAlly EtherScope has let us eliminate that in most cases so we can resolve an issue on our own without having to call a third-party out to identify the problem. It has reduced our troubleshooting time for network cabling issues by a good 75 percent. 

It has the ability to identify what VLAN the cable is connected to on the switch. If we go to an office and need to know where that other end goes, then we use it a lot for that so we can quickly trace out and identify cables. It is really good at that.

The pre-programmed AutoTest feature has been good. I have no complaints with its ability to find network problems. For example, we had these power over Ethernet devices that we use for projections. So, if folks go into a conference room, they can wirelessly project to the projector, then that device is plugged in over the Ethernet. We had a cabling company come out and put in a bunch of cabling. They had it all mislabeled and wrong, so we use this device to correct the labeling and locate where those devices were actually plugged in. We needed to have those devices on a specific VLAN. Where the cabling company told us the cabling was, it wasn't there. It was on the wrong VLAN. This device allowed me to find out, not only what VLAN it was on, but exactly what port it was plugged into. Therefore, I was able to trace the cable on the back-end.

We're able to plug this up, then do traces, get Wireshark, etc. We can do it all on this particular device. It is more efficient to be able to pull up one tool and have that tool able to be the whole solve everything, soup to nuts. It's great to do that instead of having to run around, working with two or three different tools and starting over each time.

The battery life could be better. There have been a couple of times that I used it and put it down, then I went to pick it up and the battery was dead. So, I need to take the power cord with me in order to continue using it. 

Initially, one of the devices wasn't reading the information from the scans. So, we would do a scan, and it was giving us back erroneous information. Then, when we tested it on our other unit, that unit was fine. We tested the same problems with what we were troubleshooting. We tried testing it with our second unit and the second unit gave us the information that we needed, where our first unit did not. We kind of went back and forth doing that. Eventually we realized that the first unit on known, good scenarios, which were confirmed by the second unit, could not give us the right information. We knew at that point it was not working and that one of the particular unit was defective.

About eight months.

It seems very stable. We did get two of them. One of them had an issue that we had to get repaired, but the other seems solid. We now have the repaired one back, and it seems solid as well. 

There is no maintenance for the device that I'm aware of.

We have four field support technicians who use the devices. Then, we have a network administrator who guides us through usage of it as well as troubleshoots issues. 

We do have plans to increase usage. It's used right now as a troubleshooting tool. Therefore, if we have an issue, we pull it out as we go forward for wireless and some other things where we're doing enhancements. We engage the tool as part of that.

Our experience with the technical support was great and knowledgeable. They helped us by sending us a replacement when we realized one of the units was defective. The turnaround time was acceptable. Since I had two units, so I was able to supplement users with my other device. I might have been a bit more crankier if I only had one unit.

We didn't use anything prior to this.

We have seen reduced time for support and troubleshooting issues. So, I see value it the solution. Over eight months, they have been a little pricey. Though, in certain instances, we have had to bring out cable vendors to identify troubles, and those calls are pretty pricey as well. Because we have eliminated the need for external resources to help troubleshoot on multiple occasions, I would say there has been ROI on it.

Anybody can use it. The higher-end techs can take advantage of it to do more. We can use it for implementations and other things. This has decreased the downtime of our network operations by having us take a shorter amount of time to resolve issues. We are able to test the cable out prior to turning it over. When we are going from a build-out network, we can test every piece of it out, verifying it's all good and everything is correct before we turn it over to production. This eliminates misconfigurations and additional downtime. So, it can eliminate downtime altogether, if utilized properly, for these type of issues.

The solution has made our networking staff more productive. If we get a lot of issues, then it saves a lot of time. It saves about 75 percent of the time of what we had before, e.g., if there were a hundred hours of troubleshooting time before, then we only have 25 hours now, but this varies based on our business. Sometimes, we don't have any network issues, so we don't use it. When we do use it, it saves about 75 percent of our time.

It's a pricey device, but I see value in it from a business perspective.

We paid for the additional maintenance on it (for an extra year) to get that extra coverage. This was the first time that we had this solution in-house, and it was pretty pricey. So, we wanted to make sure that anything went wrong, then we could get it repaired, which is pretty standard.

We looked at a couple of other units. We chose NetAlley because its feature did everything that we needed and checked all our boxes.

Buy it. It is worth it. I have gotten more insight into what we are doing using the solution along with more information to make better decisions in regards to troubleshooting or wireless.

We use it anytime that we have network trouble. Now, it's one of the first tools that we pull up if we are having network connectivity issues. The first thing the we do, "Let's get NetAlly and test the cable to the switch." 

If someone picks up the tool, then forgets to put it back. Usually, we hear about it, they are like, "Hey, where's the NetAlly, I know it is being used?"

The multi-technology functionality of the solution does a lot. We haven't dove into everything, but I can use it to test cables. I really like the fact that it does everything that it does. The fact that it does WiFi and wired Ethernet analysis in one device has been great.

We have the solution’s AirMapper Site Survey app in a testing environment. We have been playing with it just to get familiarized with it. We did a wireless survey for a specific area that we were looking to do some additional equipment in. The AirMapper Site Survey app is pretty straightforward. I didn't have to do too much digging. Its ability to gather WiFi site survey data is good and works as advertised.

Initially, for the simple things, the learning curve is pretty easy and quick. It's not a very big curve. However, for complex items, you want to read up on the solution. They have documentation online that you can watch to the help you. The more complex things take more time unless you're familiar with them, and I wasn't that familiar with the solution and had to do a bit more digging, but the simple things were easy.

We haven't had the need to make use of the solution’s full line-rate 10 Gig capability.

I would rate this solution as a 10 out of 10.

I use NetAlly EtherScope to connect and view problems with networks. I have two units that help with recovery.

I sell, create, and install WiFi for customers. Not everyone has the knowledge to work with WiFI nor do they have the money to purchase NetAlly EtherScope.

I work with customers who have slow WiFi and cable problems. When there are multiple problems in the WiFi, configuration, or with the providers, I can view this with AutoTest. NetAlly EtherScope makes viewing this very easy.

The most valuable features are LANBERT, Discovery, and AirMapper. AirMapper is the best. Both Discovery and AirMapper are very easy to use because you can view all the problems on a single screen. If you quickly need more details about your network, then AirMapper is the best.

I use Link-Live to put maps online. I use it to upload and create networks maps and reports.

I have a unit that runs in 10 Gigs. I use LANBERT to troubleshoot in the fiber and copper cables, since the speed is slow and there is not a lot of feedback. I don't need a certificate with LANBERT, which shows me the speed. 

All my customers have slow networks. There are problems with desktop configuration and WiFi updates and networks. With AutoTest, it is very easy to view the speed, then troubleshoot problems on channels. This is difficult to view with other tools.

It is the best tool for troubleshooting. It is very easy to use. I use AutoTest and can view everything in the network. It helps to resolve WiFi issues, which is not easy to resolve.

NetAlly doesn't have a spectrum analyzer. I have to use other tools to view the spectrum, and this is a problem.

NetAlly EtherScope is easy to update for new functionalities.

The technical support is very good and fast. It is easy to create a ticket. I would rate them as 10 out of 10.

Positive

While the cost of the solution is expensive, it makes it easier to support and troubleshoot problems for my customers using NetAlly EtherScope, improving my productivity.

The pricing is very expensive, but this tool is the best.

I purchased the support from NetAlly.

These tools are very solid units.

If you have knowledge of WiFi or LAN networks, it is easy to learn how to use it. If you don't have knowledge of WiFi or networks, it is difficult to learn how to use it. NetAlly EtherScope is for very knowledgeable people, such as engineers of technical networks, because the tool is easy to use, but you need to have knowledge of technical networks. Therefore, not everyone can understand this solution.

I would rate this tool as nine out of 10. It needs a spectrum analyzer.

Our company is an IT integrator and we have a lot of work on different kinds of IP networks. We deploy networks, we troubleshoot them, and we optimize them. The EtherScope is very useful in our day-to-day activities when we are onsite too, for example, to check the network drop, which port is on the switch, and to see all the details about the switch.

We also use it to test cables for any kind of damage. It tests all eight wires in the internet cable. It has a small dongle that you can put on the other side of the cable and know the exact length and condition of the cable.

We also use it for testing high bandwidth links, such as 10 Gb fiber links between different buildings, or even different sites. We can use the EtherScope to run a speed test to see what the max capacity is that we can achieve on the fiber.

It helps us to be faster. It definitely improves our workflow because it helps to identify the details that we need from the network pretty quickly, and that saves time. It's definitely a good and valuable asset for our company.

Also, the EtherScope can replace multiple tools. With one tool we can get a lot of insights, from different angles, into the network. The level of detail, from such a simple-to-use tool, is hard to achieve with other such products. There is software on the market, but it's much more sophisticated for getting the same results and details. The benefit is that it's just one tool. The cost is not cheap but it totally pays for itself because it can do so much. For an IT integrator or IT consultancy, it is a must-have tool for troubleshooting customer networks.

In some cases, it has significantly reduced troubleshooting time; we can find the issue faster than before. The reduction in troubleshooting time depends on the issue, but if a user reports, for example, that he has intermittent connectivity on WiFi, this tool can reduce troubleshooting time by half.

It has made our networking staff more productive. We don't use the tool every day because we don't have that many customer issues. This tool is primarily for troubleshooting issues, and we have a lot of other activities besides troubleshooting. I would approximate that it has halved the time we normally require, giving our staff that much more time for other things.

The most valuable feature is the ability to identify the switch port ID, when you plug the EtherScope into the network drop, and many other details about the switch. This is very useful because when you are not in that IDF or network closet but far away from that switch, you can identify the port and then configure it for your needs remotely. It is very useful to know exactly which port and what exactly the switch is. EtherScope can tell if there are network connectivity and access to the Internet along with the info about the switch. That's the most frequently used and the most valuable feature for us.

Another very useful feature is the WiFi analysis. The EtherScope helps us to see if there is any interference in the wireless and it shows radio channels capacity and current utilization with the number of connected clients on those channels. It shows the channelization (width of the band)of both 2.4 and 5 GHz Wi-Fi bands. It is extremely useful for on-spot WiFi analysis and identifying problems in that area.

The multi-technology functionality of the solution, the fact that it does WiFi and wired Ethernet analysis in one device, is also very useful. This combination of different technologies in one device is very handy when you need to do some troubleshooting on site when there is a problem with the network and you don't know where to start. You can test both wired and wireless connections and identify the issue pretty quickly.

We use the pre-programmed AutoTest feature all the time for both wired and wireless. It has all kinds of possible tests in one test that is run automatically. It's very handy to see the results on different layers of the network.

As I mentioned, we use the full line-rate 10 Gb capability to test the fiber speed, the connection between the server and the distribution panel. We run the re-installed application, installed inside the EtherScope. We can run data between the EtherScope and the server and this shows the true throughput that can be achieved, and it can be fiber or Cat 6 cable. It has very rich functionality and its compact size adds a lot of value because it's very convenient to carry it and use it. 

The fact that it is battery operated is also very good.

The tool can be used by anyone with basic technical knowledge. That person can capture all the information. Another great capability of the EtherScope is that it allows you to upload the results to the cloud at the time the test was done, and then, someone with better expertise can access those results and provide analysis. But to use it, you don't need to be technically educated. It's easy to use.

The battery life is a little bit too short.

Also, there are some inconsistencies in how it uploads the test results to the cloud, but it might just need a minor improvement on the software side. When you don't have an internet connection on the EtherScope when you do the testing, it saves the results into memory. When it has an internet connection, it uploads those results, but it doesn't work all the time. Sometimes, you need to manually push it.

I have been using NetAlly EtherScope nXG for around one year.

I'm pretty impressed, it is pretty stable. I haven't seen any sudden shutdown or any kind of serious bugs. It works fine.

Their technical support is excellent. I've had some support requests and the response time was good and my issues were resolved.

We do have JDSU Cable Certifier. It's two big boxes and they're very expensive. We can test any type of cable with them, meaning copper or fibre, and it certifies that the connections on both ends of the cable are ready for data. It also measures the speed of the connection. 

But now, we use EtherScope most of the time to test the cable and the connection. The Cable Certifiers are used only when we run the cable, but not as much when we want to see if the cable is good and what its speed is.

There is another tool that we have from Ekahau called Sidekick. It's a device for wireless troubleshooting and wireless mapping. It's actually a very advanced tool and we use it a lot. But the EtherScope has part of its functionality and the EtherScope is much easier to use. Also, the time it takes to use it is much shorter. You just turn on the EtherScope and walk around, versus the Ekahau where you need to prepare the project. So the EtherScope saves time on wireless troubleshooting. If it is not a case of wireless mapping, we definitely use the EtherScope and not the Ekahau.

The solution is pretty easy to use and it has a good "how-to" manual with it. The learning curve is pretty short with this tool. It took me two or three hours to get to know it. This was the combined amount of time, because when you need, for example, to test the network drop, you don't need to go over all the features of the tool. So we learned it step by step, as we needed the functionality.

We have five people using this tool. It depends on what project needs it, but they are mainly system network engineers and technicians. The usage is based on the incoming support requests. It is used about three days a week, on average.

There is not that much maintenance for the device. I will update it from time to time if there is an update in the settings available for the server or operating system. But other than that, there is not that much maintenance on this tool.

We have definitely seen return on investment in terms of the time that we spend onsite and reduction in the amount we have to pay our workers as a result of that reduced time onsite.

There isn't any license. The pricing is not bad. It's moderate, but the tool is worth the price.

We looked at one other tool. I'm not sure if it was from Fluke Networks, but EtherScope is the only tool on the market with such rich functionality. We picked it pretty quickly.

It's a great tool for network troubleshooting. It's an awesome tool.

The biggest lesson I have learned from using this solution is that this is the tool to discover the issue. It's not that it helps to find something new but there are ways to discover the network details in a very efficient way and that's what EtherScope nXG offers.