Physical and Network Access layer

In this phase, we check the network hardware, specifically network cables and ports.

• Is the power on?
• Is the network cable plugged in?
  • In VirtualBox, go to the VM settings, Network, select the active interfaces, click “Advanced” and make sure the checkbox “Cable connected” is checked.
  • In the case of a physical UTP cable, use a cable tester to check whether it is working correctly
• Are the Ethernet port LEDs on, both on the machine and on the switch?
  • If not, test the cable
  • Some switches have a different color for e.g. FastEthernet (100Mbps) and Gigabit Ethernet. Check whether you see the expected color.
• Use the command ip link
  • UP: ok, the interface is connected
  • NO-CARRIER: no signal on this interface