Ever wondered what the network connection details actually mean?

Physical Address: Also called the Media Access Control address, is a serial number that can uniquely identify your ethernet card or wireless adapter.

IP Address: An Internet Protocol address is assigned by your LAN provider(say, a modem at homes) to each of the systems connected to a network through the provider.

Subnet Mask: When there are multiple systems connected to a network, the network is divided into subnetworks to avoid interference (traffic), and routers manage the overall traffic. In a manner of speaking, the subnets can be differentiated by the subnet masks.

Default Gateway: As the name suggests, this is the (IP) address of the node that allows access to a different network. Say your modem connects to the Internet, and your PC connects to the modem. The modem acts as the gateway for your PC to the Internet.

DHCP Server: Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol can be used by systems to obtain configuration information to connect to a network without any manual intervention. e.g. You usually don’t configure any network information on your home PC. You say “Obtain an IP address automatically” and leave it at that, and this allows multiple systems to connect to the same network without each system being designated a set of hard-written network configuration details. The DHCP Server handles this.

DNS Server: A Domain Name System server stores all the domain names and corresponding IP addresses. When you type a URL in your browser address bar, the DNS Server translates the domain name into an understandable format (IP) before the requested details can be fetched from the website you wish.

WINS Server: You may look at Windows Internet Name Service as Microsoft’s version of DNS. There are differences, but the final result to the end user is more or less the same. And either of DNS and WINS servers suffice.

Newbies, you mostly know the tiny network icons in your system tray. Click on the icon that represents the network through which you are connected to the Internet. Go to the “Support” tab, click on “Details” and you will see the “Network Connection Details” I have mentioned above.

Why, even the big dogs (read: companies) still have very “small” IT departments. No, I don’t mean they have little people or even a small number of people — they do have a small-group feeling, though. Having recently switched from a company of a few thousand to one of tens of thousands of people, I’ve learned something very quickly…

Every company out there has to run about the same way. Sure, a publicly traded company has rules and regulations they must follow but when it comes down to the real work, it takes small teams of people to get the jobs done.

Take for example, a recent need — a few switches installed in a data center. These were not production switches but they were being used for development and testing, so they were no laughing matter. Rather than the normal steps:

1. Submit a ticket (with a difficult system)
2. Wait for a reply from the helpdesk (shouldn’t take more than 2 hours for them to type in a ticket)
3. Talk to the person the ticket is assigned to (good luck reaching them by phone, email or telepathy)
4. Go back and forth with IT and the group that needs the switches (because IT likes to feel real important)
5. Order the parts (even though they exist somewhere else in an old storage area)
6. Wait for an outtage window (that isn’t necessary because it’s not production)
7. Have the switches installed and tested (that means, make sure the lights are on)

The way that a good IT department handles it is by skipping steps 3-6. In most organizations, that just saved 2 weeks worth of waiting time. Don’t get me wrong, it’s very important to keep track of what everyone is working on. It’s even more important to test things, especially if they might impact something else. But it’s not always necessary for IT to put up a tough image that says, “I am IT and I can put you off and make you wait for my help because you have no option.”

Next time, the finance or HR guy needs a bit of help, keep in mind, you have to give a little to get a little — And sometimes, acting little isn’t always bad either.

Photo credits: clayirving on flickr