Every network will have problems. This chapter discusses the tools and techniques that can help you recover from these problems, and the planning and monitoring that can help avoid them. A solution is sometimes obvious if you can just gain enough information about the problem. UNIX provides several built-in software tools that can help you gather information about system configuration, addressing, routing, name service and other vital network components. Gather your tools and learn how to use them before a breakdown occurs.
In the next chapter, we talk about another task that is important to the maintenance of a reliable network: keeping your network secure.