Decent Free Network Monitoring Software?

[jshepp]

Was curious if anyone here knew of some decent network monitoring software, preferably free?

Recently I've been getting a lot of delays when we watch movies through Roku, which is abnormal. There are a lot of devices that get connected to the network, but not all at the same time (several apple devices, printers, a couple of pcs, roku, etc.) I just wanted to find the root of the hold ups on the network, if it's coming from devices, our router, ISP, etc.

There has got to be software that does this, just wondering if anyone has some good recommendations.

Thanks!

[jshepp]

Was curious if anyone here knew of some decent network monitoring software, preferably free?

Recently I've been getting a lot of delays when we watch movies through Roku, which is abnormal. There are a lot of devices that get connected to the network, but not all at the same time (several apple devices, printers, a couple of pcs, roku, etc.) I just wanted to find the root of the hold ups on the network, if it's coming from devices, our router, ISP, etc.

There has got to be software that does this, just wondering if anyone has some good recommendations.

Thanks!

 

Any to clarify what I meant about decent: essentially I don't want to have to worry about if the software is going to somehow share all my network information and get it hacked or something...

[Steve Krause]

It's a few months old however, here's a nice list of a bunch of free tools that might fit what you're looking for @jshepp.

GFI is a quality brand also so you won't need to worry tooo much.... about spyware getting introduced to your box.

Also -- Check out Solarwinds: http://www.solarwinds.com/products/freetools/network-device-monitor/

On the left, look under FREE TOOLS. Again, plenty of free software from Solarwinds which also is a great company.

Give those a shot. Let me know what you end up using so I can copy you.

-S

[jshepp]

It's a few months old however, here's a nice list of a bunch of free tools that might fit what you're looking for @jshepp.

GFI is a quality brand also so you won't need to worry tooo much.... about spyware getting introduced to your box.

Also -- Check out Solarwinds: http://www.solarwinds.com/products/freetools/network-device-monitor/

On the left, look under FREE TOOLS. Again, plenty of free software from Solarwinds which also is a great company.

Give those a shot. Let me know what you end up using so I can copy you.

-S

 

I tried using SolarWinds, but it's too complex for me to set up. I've still been looking around to no avail. Will update if I find something decent.

[Simon H]

There isn’t a completely straightforward way to monitor multiple devices on the network.

Depending on your router you might be able to install toastman tomato firmware which allows monitoring individual device traffic by IP address.

I’ve done it with one of my routers with very little prior knowledge. My starting point was simply to Google “toastman tomato asus rt-n66u”

From there I found a forum which contained links to the required software and all the information I needed.

If you can get hold of an old router then I would try it on that first because the process can brick the device if it goes wrong.

Try doing the same search for your chosen router to see what’s available and if you feel comfortable trying it. If you have an Asus router then there’s loads of specific information I can help you with.

Here’s a link with some general information that got me started.

http://www.nextgendigitalhome.com/2127/home-network/scalable-gateway/using-the-tomato-firmware-to-monitor-bandwidth-by-ip-address/

If you don’t have a compatible router or don’t want to risk installing new firmware then you could try connecting your Roku to the internet via a PC for a few days with monitoring software installed that you know how to use.

This way you could detect if Roku was using excess bandwidth. You could repeat the procedure with other devices until you find the culprit.

Have any other devices experienced delays

Have you googled Roku Delays there might be a known issue with the device or the service.

Simon

[jshepp]

There isn’t a completely straightforward way to monitor multiple devices on the network.

Depending on your router you might be able to install toastman tomato firmware which allows monitoring individual device traffic by IP address.

I’ve done it with one of my routers with very little prior knowledge. My starting point was simply to Google “toastman tomato asus rt-n66u”

From there I found a forum which contained links to the required software and all the information I needed.

If you can get hold of an old router then I would try it on that first because the process can brick the device if it goes wrong.

 

Try doing the same search for your chosen router to see what’s available and if you feel comfortable trying it. If you have an Asus router then there’s loads of specific information I can help you with.

 

Here’s a link with some general information that got me started.

http://www.nextgendigitalhome.com/2127/home-network/scalable-gateway/using-the-tomato-firmware-to-monitor-bandwidth-by-ip-address/

If you don’t have a compatible router or don’t want to risk installing new firmware then you could try connecting your Roku to the internet via a PC for a few days with monitoring software installed that you know how to use.

This way you could detect if Roku was using excess bandwidth. You could repeat the procedure with other devices until you find the culprit.

Have any other devices experienced delays

Have you googled Roku Delays there might be a known issue with the device or the service.

Simon

 

I've already looked into if tomato firmware is compatible, of which it is not. Still searching, will update if I find anything. I guess there is not much in ways of software for diagnosing networks at consumer grade because it's not practical at a consumer level.