End-system documentation is just as important as the network documentation in terms of the overall
documentation strategy. The two main components that make up end-system documentation are
the end-system network configuration table and the end-system network topology table.
End-system network configuration tables are documents that show the key configuration
parameters in place on the end systems in the network. Some of the common items in an endsystem
network configuration table are the system name, system manufacturer/model, CPU
speed, RAM, storage, system purpose, media type, interface speed, VLAN, IP address, default
gateway, subnet mask, WINS, DNS, operating system (including version), network-based applications,
high-bandwidth applications, and low-latency applications. The specific items included
on the end-system network configuration table depend on the purpose of the documentation. In
most cases, the end-system table is kept in a spreadsheet or database format. As is the case with
all the documentation covered in this book, be sure to keep hardcopies of the documents to use
in the event of a network outage.
End-system network topology diagrams are graphical representations of the end systems in
the network. In many cases, they are just additions to the network topology diagram; however,
they can be their own entity. The data included in an end-system network topology diagram is
usually a small subset of that maintained in the end-system network configuration tables. The
topology diagrams are meant to make the network administrator better able to visualize the
path across the network. Some of the standard items that go into an end-system network topology
are system name, connection to the network, system purpose, VLAN, IP address, subnet
mask, and network applications.
Finally, in this chapter we covered a number of commands that can be used to effectively
troubleshoot problems on end systems. These commands include ping and its record route
option, traceroute, arp, route, nbtstat, netstat, and ipconfig. All of these commands
have Windows NT/2000/XP and Unix equivalents, and most have a direct relationship to a
Cisco IOS command.