• CEPro_logo_blue-new
  • TOPICS
      • News
        • People & Places
        • Product Briefs
      • Projects
      • Events
      • Control
        • Central Vac
        • Energy/Power
        • HVAC/IAQ
        • Interfaces/Devices
        • Lighting
        • Motorized Shades
        • Whole House Systems
      • Audio/Video
        • Audio/Video
        • AV Accessories
        • AV Racks
        • Cabling
        • Displays
        • Furniture
        • Headphones
        • Home Theater
        • Media
        • Mounts/Lifts
        • Multiroom AV
        • Projectors/Screens
        • Speakers/Subwoofers
        • Wireless AV
      • Security
        • Access Control
        • Alarms/Sensors
        • Services/Platforms
        • Surveillance/Cameras
      • Business Support
        • Associations/Buying Groups
        • Cell Phone Boosters
        • Distributors/Reps
        • Operations
        • Recurring Revenue
        • Research
        • Sales/Marketing
        • Software Services
        • Tools/Testers
      • Networking
        • Cellular
        • Devices/Equipment
        • Wireless
        • Wired/Installation
      • Markets
        • Builders
        • Commercial
        • Design
        • Europe
        • Outdoors
        • Resimercial
        • Wellness
      • CE Pro Hub Pages
        • Bose
        • Savant
        • Inside Sound United
  • PRODUCTS
  • RESOURCES
    • Reports/Downloads
    • Buyer’s Guide
    • Webcasts
    • Podcasts
    • Integrator Jobs
    • Digital Edition
    • CE Pro-iQ
  • SUBSCRIBE
    • CEDIA SHOW UPDATES
    • CEPRO PRINT EDITION
    • CEPRO DIGITAL EDITION
    • CEPRO NEWSLETTERS
  • DISCOVER
    • CEDIA Expo
      • September 29 – October 1
        Dallas, TX
      • VISIT SITE
    • KBIS
      • February 8 – 10
        Orlando, FL
      • VISIT SITE
    • Total Tech Summit
      • October 26 – 28
        Orlando, FL
      • VISIT SITE
    • Commercial Integrator
      • VISIT SITE
    • Security Sales
      • VISIT SITE
    • Tech Decisions
      • VISIT SITE
    • Campus Safety
      • VISIT SITE
    • Design Well
      • VISIT SITE
    • KBB Online
      • VISIT SITE
    • AV-iQ
      • VISIT SITE
    • CE Pro-iQ
      • VISIT SITE
  • Search
  • TOPICS
    • News
      • People & Places
      • Product Briefs
    • Projects
    • Events
    • Control
      • Central Vac
      • Energy/Power
      • HVAC/IAQ
      • Interfaces/Devices
      • Lighting
      • Motorized Shades
      • Whole House Systems
    • Audio/Video
      • Audio/Video
      • AV Accessories
      • AV Racks
      • Cabling
      • Displays
      • Furniture
      • Headphones
      • Home Theater
      • Media
      • Mounts/Lifts
      • Multiroom AV
      • Projectors/Screens
      • Speakers/Subwoofers
      • Wireless AV
    • Security
      • Access Control
      • Alarms/Sensors
      • Services/Platforms
      • Surveillance/Cameras
    • Business Support
      • Associations/Buying Groups
      • Cell Phone Boosters
      • Distributors/Reps
      • Operations
      • Recurring Revenue
      • Research
      • Sales/Marketing
      • Software Services
      • Tools/Testers
    • Networking
      • Cellular
      • Devices/Equipment
      • Wireless
      • Wired/Installation
    • Markets
      • Builders
      • Commercial
      • Design
      • Europe
      • Outdoors
      • Resimercial
      • Wellness
    • CE Pro Hub Pages
      • Savant
      • Bose
      • Inside Sound United
  • PRODUCTS
  • RESOURCES
    • Reports/Downloads
    • Buyer’s Guide
    • Webcasts
    • Podcasts
    • Integrator Jobs
    • Digital Edition
    • CE Pro-IQ
  • SUBSCRIBE
    • CEPRO PRINT EDITION
    • CEPRO DIGITAL EDITION
    • CEPRO NEWSLETTERS
    • CEDIA SHOW UPDATES
  • DISCOVER
    • Cedia Expo
      VISIT SITE
    • Commercial Integrator
      VISIT SITE
    • Security Sales
      VISIT SITE
    • Tech Decisions
      VISIT SITE
    • Campus Safety
      VISIT SITE
    • Design Well
      VISIT SITE
    • Total Tech Summit
      VISIT SITE
    • KBB Online
      VISIT SITE
    • AV-iQ
    • CE Pro-iQ
M
POPULAR SEARCHES
News
Projects
Control
Audio Video
Security
Business Support
Markets
SUBSCRIBE CEDIA EXPO
Devices/Equipment | Networking | News | Operations | Tools/Testers
March 23, 2018

4 Network Troubleshooting Lessons for Newbie Installers

Technicians should connect/disconnect one device at a time, trust your instincts, use manufacturer tech support and hone your speed so your labor becomes a profit center for your integrator/employer.
Jason Knott  
Nathan Holmes of Access Networks offers hands-on network troubleshooting advice to new installers at Maverick Technical Institute.
Article:
Devices/Equipment | Networking | News | Operations | Tools/Testers
March 23, 2018

4 Network Troubleshooting Lessons for Newbie Installers

Tedium and confidence are the names of the game when troubleshooting a home network. That is the advice from Nathan Holmes, technical trainer at Access Networks. Holmes recently conducted a three-day networking training course at Maverick Technical Institute (MTI) in Nashua, N.H. for students learning the skills to become installation technicians.

Here are four key pieces of advice from the training:

Disconnect/Connect One Device at a Time

When troubleshooting a system, the most effective way to isolate the culprit is to disconnect and replace one device at a time. If the system still does not work with the replacement device, then disconnect that device and put the original device back in the system. Then move on to the next device.

See Related: How to Streamline your Network (Webinar)

“If you have 20 components in a system and you replace more than one at a time, you will never really know what caused the problem or how you fixed it,” advises Nathan Holmes, technical trainer at Access Networks. “The same logic applies to building a system. Connect one device at a time and test. It is tedious and time-consuming, but if you rush, you will ultimately lose your shirt on labor from mistakes.”

Don’t Doubt Yourself

During the training, Holmes “tricked” the young students by purposefully including a switch that was incompatible with the devices necessary to complete the task. In order to connect the Araknis wireless access point, Wattbox power supply and Vivitek surveillance camera, the system required a powered network switch. But Holmes forced the students to come to that conclusion on their own.

“It is very common in this industry for the wrong devices to be spec’ed on to a project. It could be the salesperson’s mistake, but most often it is caused by the homeowner deciding to add more devices to the system than were originally specified,” says Holmes.

Don’t Be Afraid to Call Tech Support

In another test for the students, Holmes used a power supply that had subsequently had the default password changed from the time the device was purchased (and thus what was printed in the manual) until the time it was being installed.

See Related: Access Networks Opens New East Coast Office/Training Facility

“Manufacturers update the default passwords all the time but sometimes don’t update the manual. If you know you are doing everything right, don’t be afraid to call tech support…that’s why they are there,” he says.

Repeatable Processes Build Profit

“If you establish repeatable processes, you will eventually create a profit buffer for your company on your labor,” Holmes told the students. By that, he means it might take you 90 minutes to do configure a small basic network the first time, and your company might have only billed it for one-hour of labor. They lost money on your labor. But eventually, that same technician might only take 30 minutes to configure that small network, which means you are making profit on that one-hour’s worth of billed labor.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Jason Knott
Follow
Jason Knott:
Jason Knott is Chief Content Officer for Emerald's Connected Brands. Jason has covered low-voltage electronics as an editor since 1990, serving as editor and publisher of Security Sales & Integration. He joined CE Pro in 2000 and serves as Editor-in-Chief of that brand. He served as chairman of the Security Industry Association’s Education Committee from 2000-2004 and sat on the board of that association from 1998-2002. He is also a former board member of the Alarm Industry Research and Educational Foundation. He has been a member of the CEDIA Business Working Group since 2010. Jason graduated from the University of Southern California.
View Jason Knott's complete profile

ARTICLE TOPICS

Devices/Equipment • Networking • News • Operations • Tools/Testers

ARTICLE TAGS

Access Networks • Network Design • Networking • Training

SHARE

Share On Facebook
Share On Twitter
Share On Linkedin
Share On Whatsapp
Share Via Email
Copy URL
← Previous Article Next Article →
Article Central VacNewsWellness

Amazon Acquires iRobot Roomba for $1.7B in Cash

Amazon adds iRobot's Roomba vacuum cleaner to its growing portfolio of smart home solutions including Ring, Fire TV and Echo smart speakers.
Article Amplifiers/ReceiversAudio/VideoAV AccessoriesAV RacksControlDesignFurnitureHome TheaterInterfaces/DevicesLightingMarketsMediaMotorized ShadesMultiroom AVNetworkingNewsProjectors/ScreensSpeakers/Subwoofers

SDI’s Audiophile-Centric Approach Reflects an Evolving Market 

SDI is helping Boston-area homeowners meet their home technology objectives without cluttering their homes with unsightly electronics.
Article Central VacNewsWellness

Amazon Acquires iRobot Roomba for $1.7B in Cash

Amazon adds iRobot's Roomba vacuum cleaner to its growing portfolio of smart home solutions including Ring, Fire TV and Echo smart speakers.
Article Devices/EquipmentNetworkingSecurityServices/PlatformsSponsored Content

Preventing Cyberattacks Before They Occur

guardDog’s ASM solution preemptively recognizes, exposes and shuts down cybersecurity threats before an attack can happen, and can help prevent it.

SHOW NEWSLETTER

Sign Up

CE Pro

Subscribe Sign Up

Content Types

News
Products
Projects
Companies
Downloads
Webcasts
Podcasts
Events

Specials

IntegratorJobs
CEDIA EXPO
CE Pro 100
CE Pro Summit
Awards Programs

Company Info

About
Contact Us
Customer Service
Media Solutions & Advertising

Subscribe

Magazine
Newsletters
Digital Edition

Connect

Twitter
Facebook
LinkedIn
YouTube
RSS Feed

Categories

AUDIO/VIDEO
AV Accessories
AV Racks
Amplifiers/Receivers
Cabling
Displays
Furniture
Mounts/Lifts
Multiroom AV
Projector Screens
Speakers/Subwoofers
Wireless AV
CONTROL
Central Vac
Energy/Power
Interfaces/Devices
HVAC/IAQ
Lighting
Motorized Shades
Whole-House Systems
NETWORKING
Cellular
Devices/Equipment
Wireless
Wiring/Installation
SECURITY
Access Control
Alarms/Sensors
Services/Platforms
Surveillance Cameras
BUSINESS SUPPORT
Associations/Buying Groups
Distributors/Reps
Operations
Recurring Revenue
Research
Sales/Marketing
Software/Services
Tools/Testers
MARKETS
Builders
Commercial
Design
Europe
Outdoors
Wellness
FOLLOW US ON
  • Follow
  • Follow
  • Follow
  • Follow
  • Follow

© 2021 Emerald X, LLC. All Rights Reserved.

  • ABOUT
  • CAREERS
  • TERMS OF USE
  • PRIVACY POLICY