Misc. Networking Tools

Mobile Net Switch allows you to easily switch between network configurations, by creating customized profiles for every network you connect to. To apply the settings, all you have to do is select the profile and apply it with the click of a button, rather than having to reconfigure everything manually. The program can automatically select the correct drive mappings, printer settings, IP settings, home page settings, host file and more. You can also run custom scripts or import registry files before and after a profile is activated.

CommTraffic is a network utility for collecting, processing, and displaying traffic and network utilization statistics for network connections, including LAN and dial-up. It shows traffic and network utilization statistics for each computer in the segment. The software provides a customizable interface, with an optional tray icon menu that displays general network statistics. You can also generate reports that reflect the network traffic volume and Internet connection expenses (if any). CommTraffic supports virtually any rate plan your ISP might use, such as the one based on connection time, traffic volume, time of the day, and other measures. You can set alarms, that will inform you when certain criteria (e.g. amount of traffic, expenses) are reached. A configuration wizard will guide you through the setup and automatically detect your network or connection settings.

Plug and Browse allows you to store multiple network configurations and switch between them as needed. The program can store network connection settings, computer name and domain, Internet Explorer, Outlook Express and Windows Messenger connection settings. If you are connected to the network, you can simply push a button and the currently used settings will be stored so you can easily apply them later.

EVEREST Ultimate is a system diagnostics and benchmarking solution. It comes with a built-in hardware database and physical information for CPU, motherboard, hard disks, optical drives, chipset etc., as well as hardware and software auditing to track changes to the system(s). The information can be displayed on-screen, printed, saved as a report in HTML or text format. Additional features include System Stability Test, CPU, FPU and memory benchmarks, and more.

Ip-Tools is a complete suite of 19 essential TCP/IP networking utilites that includes : Local Info, Connections Monitor, NetBIOS Scanner, Shared resources Scanner, SNMP Scanner, HostName Scanner, Ports Scanner, UDP Scanner, Ping Scanner, Trace, LookUp, Finger, WhoIs, Time Synchronizer, Telnet client, HTTP client, IP-Monitor, Hosts Monitor and SNMP Trap Watcher. All information can be saved to log files. The Host Monitor can show messages, play sounds, send e-mail and execute external programs. All this is available from an easy to navigate tabbed interface. Other features include multi-threaded operation, audio support, custom appearance, system tray support and more. IP-Tools supports multitask operations, so you can use several (or all) utilities at the same time.

MegaPing brings the convenience of Windows to the use of host monitor, finger, name lookup, network time synchronizer, ping, traceroute, and whois utilities. It also includes a comprehensive Security Scanner, Port scanner (TCP and UDP ports), IP scanner, NetBIOS scanner and a Share Scanner. The program provides an overview of important system information, from IP routing information to per protocol statistics. It also provides information about the processes running on your computer, including summary and detailed information on threads, memory usage, loaded modules, and a number of other parameters. Megaping supports monitoring of multiple remote computers simultaneously as well as processing any number of ping, traceroute, general DNS, DNS AFXR (Transfer zone of authority), finger, and whois requests simultaneously. The built in port scanner can rapidly scan multiple or individual machines for open TCP ports and provides real-time information about open ports and connections with detailed description. Additional features include real-time protocol statistics, detailed interface information, real-time IP routing information, TCP protocol information and statistics and more.

MultiNetwork Manager is designed to easily switch between wired or wireless network profiles, when roaming between different network locations. It allows you to store and apply essential settings, using custom created profiles, eliminating the need for having to configure your settings each time you change location. You can configure multiple alternative configurations including TCP/IP, Domain settings, Registry, Startup and more. In addition, several wizards and an Auto Discovery feature can help you to establish network connectivity.

GFI EndPointSecurity allows network administrators to control which user can access removable drives, floppy disks and CD/DVD drives on the local machine. Without protection, anyone can easily copy a gigabyte or more of confidential data from or to the machine, using an inexpensive keychain USB drive or other storage device. GFI EndPointSecurity enables you to grant usage right for such devices only to users that were either added to the newly created group for that device type and for centralized management, you can define which users can use removable media from Active Directory by making them a member of three pre-defined groups.

Product Key Explorer enables network administrators to scan network computers and retrieve the product keys for a variety of Microsoft Windows, SQL Server, Office and more than 1000 other other software products. You can copy or print the license keys for backup purposes, recover forgotten CD keys and track the number of software licenses installed on your network.

Simple DNS Plus is a full featured DNS server that translates domain names into machine readable IP-addresses needed to locate the requested resources on the Internet. With Simple DNS Plus you can hosts your own domain name, or simply speed up Internet access by running your own DNS server locally. The program is also a DHCP server, it comes with a DNS lookup tool, and many other features.

JitBit Net Profile Switch is a tool laptop users that frequently travel between network locations (e.g home/office) and need to adjust their network settings accordingly. The program enables you to create multiple network profiles and switch between them with a single click. The profiles can contain the basic TCP/IP configurations as well as preferences for browser proxy settings, network drives and shares, Windows Firewall settings (on/off), default printer, VPN and Dial-up, as well as the SMTP server to be used by your email program. You can create profiles for multiple locations and simply activate the selected profile to have all your settings applied without the need for any manual configurations.

SolarWinds Kiwi Syslog Server receives, logs, displays and forwards Syslog messages from hosts such as routers, firewalls, Unix hosts and any other syslog enabled device. Features include PIX, LinkSys firewall logging, SNMP trap and TCP support. The program also offers alert option, Syslog statistics, remote web access, customizable filters and more.

Royal TS is an alternative for the standard Terminal Services Snap-In that adds additional features, including connection specific display settings, stored login credentials and more. It allows you to connect to any server which supports RDP protocol, and the connections can be organized in custom categories for quick access. Additional features include console connections (Windows XP/2003 or later), custom RDP target port, display smart sizing, port redirection and more.

NetworkSleuth is a network file search utility, that allows you to quickly locate files across a network. You can search for files by name, type, content (text), and other criteria. The program supports restricted access resources, IP subnets, hidden shares and more. A built-in password manager allows you to login with user credential as needed. The files in the result list can be moved or copied to a new location, and you also save the list in Text or HTML format. Other features include scheduled searches, sortable results, search within ZIP archives, and more.

USB to Ethernet Connector enables you to share any local USB device over the local network or Internet. Just select the local devices that you want to share, optionally set a connection password and encryption and you are ready to share the device. The program intercepts USB port activity for the shared device and redirects it via TCP/IP to a remote machine, which also needs to have USB to Ethernet Connector installed. Once connected, the remote machine(s) can access the device as if it was connected locally. Installation of the client component on remote machines does not require additional registrations.

Windows Terminal Services FTP (WtsFTP) enables you to transfer files between a Terminal Services Server and a Terminal Services Client. Unless you have the Server Resource kit installed, this is otherwise not possible and usually requires the use of an additional FTP client/server in order to transfer files. Using WtsFTP, you do not need to run an additional server or even open additional ports - simply install the server/client components and use the FTP-like interface during any TS session to transfer files from the server to the client or vice versa. Additional features include resume of broken downloads and transfer speed settings. Interface could use some work and improvements, but otherwise an inexpensive solution for TS file transfers.

Time and Attendance Plus enables you to record and report on employee work hours by using a virtual time card machine that allows your employees to punch in and out from any PC on the network. The program can store the data in an Access or SQL server database and generate a number of different reports to help you manage your business more accurately. The reports can be customized with sick time, overtime, holidays and vacation time rules to meet your company standards. Other features include export to Excel, support for shifts and company departments, integrated backup and more. Time and Attendance Plus is available with single and multi-user licenses. The program can be used for free with up to 3 employees (single install).

NetworkActiv PortImport is network port redirector that allows you to access ports on computers that are behind firewalls/routers or otherwise blocked from being accessed. You install a client application (daemon) on the blocked computer and then establish a TCP session (from the console on your computer) with the daemon and forward the specified ports to it. Your computer essentially acts as the middleman for the blocked machine and allows it to be accessed via HTTP, FTP or any other port. The client/server component can run as a service and automatically establish the port forwarding sessions.

If you need to plug your Windows computer into different networks at different locations then NetSwitcher is for you. NetSwitcher helps to manage multiple network connections on their systems. The NetSwitcher tool gives the user control over configurable network parameters. It presents them on one menu and allows the saving and restoring of those setups. No more hunting through the Windows control panels looking for every last setting that needs to be changed. Now you can just select a new setup with a click of the mouse, and be off-and-running with your new connection.

GFI FAXmaker for Network/SMTP is a Windows fax server that allows all network users to send and receive faxes from their desktop, using either the FAXmaker client or their favorite email client. FAXmaker includes fax clients for Windows and an email-to-fax gateway that works with all popular SMTP/POP3 servers as well as Lotus Notes. Features include a multi-line fax server, inbound fax routing, print to fax driver for Windows, support for server-based rendering of Office documents, fax management, remote user and fax server administration, least cost routing, user configuration profiles, remote viewing of fax server status, Word mail merge support and more.

MyConnection PC lets you test and analyze your Internet connection bandwidth and produces a report of download, upload speeds and connection quality. You can test your connection speed as needed, or on a regular schedule and view statistics in a detail log, or line and bar graph. The program can only connect to one of 4 pre-defined server locations (3 in the US) to run the test, which we found rather limiting, and does not allow to verify and/or compare results with other locations.

NetworkActiv AUTAPF is a UDP and TCP port forwarding tool that can redirect incoming traffic to a different port, optionally on a different machine or IP address. Among many other things, you can use it for example to hide your web-server behind a gateway. transparently forward traffic to a different computer or web server, block ports by bouncing connections back to the originator and more. The program allows you to configure multiple ports and start/stop redirection individually for each. In addition, it lets you create filters for incoming traffic, that allow you to limit the port redirection to specific IP ranges. Additional features include logging, tray icon and more.

WallCooler is a VPN (Virtual Private Network) solution that enables you to access your home computer from anywhere, using a secure Internet connection. Once you have installed WallCooler on both computers (local and remote), you can access all your files, emails, applications and network resources while you are on the road or in the office. You can also access any locally shared files or network drives directly, so there no need to maintain synchronized copies of your documents. The program connects to remote resources or servers by DNS/Netbios name or IP address without the need to configure your router or firewall, or to have a static IP address. WallCooler uses industry standard SSL encryption and authentication to protect your VPN connection and utilizes compression for fast throughput. Requires you to create a free account before the service can be used. Monthly rates are also available. Note: WallCooler VPN uses Windows Remote Desktop for it`s remote control features, which is usually not available with XP/Vista HOME editions. You would need to install additional remote control software (e.g VNC) to enable this functionality.

SwitchIP Address allows you to easily switch between multiple IP configurations for your computer. All you have to do is click a button and the settings will be applied. You can can configure additional settings for DNS servers and WINS and also select whether to perform a reboot after the settings are applied. SwitchIP Address is useful for laptop users who travel between two or more sites and need to constantly change their IP settings.

Bandwidth Meter Pro monitors your bandwidth usage and displays real-time graphs for one or more selected network connections. It also generates daily, weekly and monthly reports, itemizing your upload and download usage along with the total bandwidth consumption. The program also includes a notification option that can notify you when less than X bytes were downloaded within the last X seconds, as well as a simple connection stop watch and options to export reports to .txt, .csv and HTML format.

EMCO Remote Registry Exporter is a tool for network administrators, that enables you to export specified registry keys from a remote machine, and save them to a local folder. The program can be useful to backup specific keys, or to view the contained information while offline. It can detect available machines on the network or import them by IP address.

PortMarshaller enables you to transparently forward TCP ports to a different machine and remote port. It offers a browser based interface with simple configuration options that let you specify the TCP port to redirect, as well as the destination IP and port. The interface also provides several basic session and historical statistics. PortMarshaller runs as a service, and can be optionally integrated with Microsoft IIS. The program lacks IP filtering for security, as well as support for UDP redirection.

LanBuster enables you to temporarily disable local network shares from the system tray. A double-click on the tray icon will cause the program to reconfigure all your shared folders and turn them into regular not-shared folders - another double-click with revert the changes and restore the normal status of your shares, while maintaining your custom share names and settings. LanBuster indicates the status of your shared folders with a red or green tray icon. A convenient tool for people that frequently need to disable access to their network shares.

MailMonitor enables you to monitor incoming and outgoing mail traffic between the mail server(s) and local email programs (clients). It supports POP and SMTP sessions and can keep track of all email related packet traffic (using WinPcap). The program is primarily designed to monitor mail traffic for the purpose of detecting server abuse or mail server related problems, but can also be used to log mail traffic, recover passwords and read the raw content of mail sessions.

DU Super Controler provides you with extended control over download and upload speed limits for your internet connection. It displays a list of all current TCP connections and allows you to adjust the settings for each application. For example, if you have 6 active downloads, you could give priority to one of them, and limiting the others to a reduce amount of bandwith. The program is useful for advanced users to limit bandwith resources for specific applications (file sharing, ICS machines etc.).

IP Shifter allows you to quickly switch between network settings without having to go through the manual configuration process. You can create multiple profiles (e.g home, office etc.) and configure the basic TCP/IP network properties for each, and then apply the settings by simply activating the profile. IP Shifter only supports the standard IP address and DNS settings, and lacks support for advanced configurations like printers, proxies, SMTP and other network settings.