The AG Group is the leading developer of powerful, graphical, intuitive Macintosh-based network management software. Our mission is to debunk the myth that sophisticated network management tools are complex and expensive.
TokenHelp is an application specifically designed to help people who support and explain networks get a better idea of what is happening on a remote network without having to visit that location. The application works by capturing all network traffic, or a specified portion of that traffic, in the form of packets. Packets captured are saved in a “Packet Trace” file, which can then be forwarded to a vendor/consultant for analysis using TokenPeek™ , our protocol analysis software. Though TokenHelp is a Macintosh application, it is not limited to Macintosh or TokenTalk-only networks. TokenHelp captures ALL Token Ring traffic, no matter the protocol.
TokenHelp is a subset of TokenPeek, a full-featured product often likened to a phone tap in that it silently listens to all of the signals traveling on a wire without interrupting them. TokenHelp does the same thing, storing the resulting trace on disk for forwarding by electronic or traditional mail to network support personnel for analysis.
Beyond the ability to capture packets, TokenHelp borrows two other features from TokenPeek: filters and triggers. Filters allow a user to limit the packets captured to specific criteria. Triggers allow TokenHelp to stay poised for capture until a specific type of packet is present, whereupon capture begins. Filters and triggers are referred to in these programs as “settings”. If specifying certain packets for capture is important in troubleshooting a network problem, predefined filters can be selected by network support personnel using the “Save Settings” feature. End users then simply “Load Settings” before capture.
Note: TokenHelp is a limited tool. It will not allow the user to see the packets captured, inspect their contents, or extract statistical data about network performance and function. Packets captured with TokenHelp can be viewed only by using special versions of the TokenPeek application.
This document is intended to be a brief and basic guide to the use of TokenHelp. Please refer to the more detailed Reference Guide (included on this disk) for additional information.
How does TokenHelp work?
TokenHelp acts like a phone tap. It lets you capture all packets being exchanged by computers on your Token Ring network. It puts the Token Ring hardware into a state which prevents any packet from being ignored (Promiscuous Mode). Every packet is received and put into memory. Once packets are stored into memory, TokenHelp can actually evaluate (filter) packet information and keep only those packets relevant to your problem.
NOTE: Because TokenHelp is a free utility, you will not be able to inspect packets or their contents. Packet display, traffic statistics, and other advanced features are only available in the retail version of TokenPeek. Please contact The AG Group at (510) 937-7900 for TokenPeek purchase information.
Hardware Requirements
TokenHelp runs on the following Macintosh computers:
All members of the Macintosh II Family
Macintosh LC
Macintosh Quadra Family
You will need to be sure your Token Ring hardware is installed before you can capture packets with TokenHelp. The Macintosh must be equipped with the following supported Token Ring interface cards:
Before continuing here, you must first install your Token Ring hardware and connect it to the network (for more info, see the Reference Guide). Launch TokenHelp by double clicking on its icon, or by selecting it and using the "Open…" command in the File menu. Once TokenHelp is running, you will see the Main Window which displays summary information about packets captured in the upper left corner.
Selecting the Token Ring card
If you have two or more interface cards installed, TokenHelp can be configured to use one of the cards while the others are used for various networking activities. This allows you to run TokenHelp without disabling any of your other network services. Use the "Select Adapter" item in the File menu to specify which Token Ring card TokenHelp should use to capture.
Start Capturing
You are now ready to start capturing network traffic. Click on the "Start Capture" button in the Main Window, or use the "Start Capture" command in the Capture menu. This will command the Token Ring interface card to receive all packets transmitted on your network. If there is any activity on your network and your hardware is connected correctly, you should begin to see the packet counters incrementing in the Main Window. The Start Capture button, after being selected, turns into the Stop Capture button.
Caution: If you had previously been using AppleTalk services, or any other network service (e.g. AppleShare, telnet), when you press the Start Capture button, you will receive a warning dialog box. You may want to cancel the Start Capture operation here. Cancelling allows you to save any work you may have had in progress using these other network services. For example, you may want to unmount AppleShare servers, quit telnet or wait until the PrintMonitor is done printing.
Stop Capturing
To stop TokenHelp from receiving packets on the network, press the Stop Capture button. You may also stop capture using the Stop Capture item in the Capture menu. Once the memory allocated to TokenHelp (default is 1MB) is full, the application will automatically stop capturing.
Saving Packets
Once capturing has stopped, you must save the packets captured for examination and comparison by TokenPeek. To save packets, use the "Save All Packets…" item in the File menu. A standard Macintosh window for saving files allows you to specify the filename to use for saving the packet information.
Saving and Restoring Settings
The settings file contains all the information required to set up filters and triggers. After you have set up your filters and triggers, Tokenhelp will remember the settings each time it starts up. However, you can also save the settings to a separate file so that they can be selectively restored as required. In fact, you may have received a TokenHelp settings file from your vendor in order to streamline capture and subsequent diagnosis. A settings file is useful when different configurations of settings are repeatedly used for things like diagnostics and testing. To save and restore configuration settings, use the "Save Settings" and "Load Settings..." items from the File menu. Load Settings uses the Macintosh standard for opening files, with options for restoring filters, triggers or both. The Save Settings Window is identical to the Macintosh standard for saving files.
Filtering
TokenHelp provides filters which allow the user to eliminate the inconsequential or uninteresting packets from view (For a full explanation of filtering capabilities, please read the section on filtering in the Reference Guide). If you wish to enable capture filtering and select a predefined filter:
• Choose "Filters..." in the Capture menu to open the Filters window.
• At the top of the window, click the appropriate radio button to instruct TokenHelp to capture or not capture packets according to the filters
• Select one of the predefined filters listed in the window by clicking in the small check box preceding the filter you wish to enable
• Exit the window and start capturing packets. Only those packets that meet your selected criteria will then be captured
If you wish to edit one of the filters provided with TokenHelp, double-click on a filter name in the Filters window. The Filter Settings window will open, allowing you to specify a new filter name, and address, protocol, offset or error filter information. (Please see Reference section for a detailed explanation for setting specific filters.)
Quit
After saving the captured packets to disk, quit TokenHelp by selecting "Quit" in the File menu. TokenHelp will automatically re-initialize your Token Ring card to normal operation mode and will attempt to re-enable AppleTalk.
Problems or Questions
The AG Group has licensed the rights to distribute and use TokenHelp to approved consultants and network vendors. Please contact the licensed vendor or consultant from whom you obtained TokenHelp for any questions you may have about the utility. If you have questions concerning TokenPeek, our Token Ring network analysis tool, please contact us directly (see information below).
The AG Group, Inc. specializes in easy-to-use software tools for troubleshooting, optimizing, maintaining and expanding multivendor computer networks. While designed to take advantage of the intuitive, graphical interface of the Macintosh, our products can be used in virtually any heterogeneous networking environment.
If you are intrigued by TokenHelp and would like to learn more about our other network management tools, please contact us directly.
Phone number: (510) 937-7900
Fax number: (510) 937-2479
Mailing address: 2540 Camino Diablo, Suite 202, Walnut Creek, CA 94596
