Your Roadmap to Identifying and Troubleshooting Network Brownouts

Imagine walking with a couple of small stones in your shoe. At first, you might barely notice them, tolerating the discomfort for a minute or two. But as time passes, the discomfort grows, and eventually, you realize that if you don't remove those stones, you won't be able to walk the next day. This simple analogy sheds light on the significance of addressing network brownouts – those subtle disruptions in network performance that, like small stones in your shoe, can escalate into significant issues if left unattended.

So, let's embark on this journey to uncover the hidden challenges posed by network brownouts and equip you with the knowledge and tools needed to ensure the reliability and resilience of your business's network infrastructure.

Brownout definition in networks is referred to as "unusable uptime," which are periods of subpar network performance that can cause connections to drop, delayed browsing, poor video quality and application performance, as well as many other issues. Brownouts can endure anywhere from a few seconds to several hours, which makes them one of the most common network issues that slip under the radar of network admins.

A company's products or services may become difficult to utilize as a result of network brownouts, which lowers customer satisfaction and often decreases employee productivity.

Revenue loss is nearly always the outcome of these disruptions to applications and services, and ongoing brownouts can seriously harm the organization's reputation.

Network brownouts can manifest in various forms, each with distinct characteristics and implications for network performance. Understanding these different types of brownouts is crucial for effectively identifying and addressing them. Below are some common examples of network brownouts:

Intermittent Connectivity Issues:

• One of the most common types of network brownouts involves intermittent connectivity issues, where network devices experience inconsistent disconnects or timeouts.
• Users may encounter difficulties accessing network resources or experience frequent disruptions in communication channels, leading to decreased productivity and frustration.

Packet Loss:

• Packet loss occurs when data packets travelling across the network fail to reach their intended destination.
• During brownout events, network congestion or hardware malfunctions may result in packets being dropped or delayed, leading to poor performance and reduced throughput.

Latency Spikes:

• Latency refers to the time it takes for data packets to travel from the source to the destination.
• Network brownouts may cause sudden spikes in latency, resulting in delays in data transmission and sluggish application performance.
• High latency can affect real-time communication applications such as VoIP or video conferencing, negatively impacting user experience.

Fluctuating Bandwidth Availability:

• Brownouts may also result in fluctuations in available bandwidth, where network capacity varies unpredictably.
• Users may experience periods of reduced bandwidth availability, leading to slow file transfers, buffering during media streaming, or degraded performance of cloud-based applications.

Device-Specific Issues:

• In some cases, network brownouts may be attributed to specific hardware or software issues affecting individual devices or components.
• Faulty network adapters, misconfigured routers, or incompatible firmware updates can contribute to brownout events, requiring targeted troubleshooting to resolve.

By recognizing the diverse manifestations of network brownouts, businesses can better diagnose and address underlying issues affecting network performance. In the following sections, we explore the impact of network brownouts on businesses and strategies for effective identification and troubleshooting.

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Brownout in networks can have far-reaching consequences for businesses, affecting various aspects of operations, productivity, and customer satisfaction. Understanding the impact of these subtle yet pervasive disruptions is essential for businesses to appreciate the urgency of addressing network brownouts effectively.

According to a recent study done on American firms, rather than being proactively recognized by IT teams, more than 60% of network brownouts are first noticed by customers or remain unreported.

90% of businesses value their network's significance because they recognize its important role in business operations. The fact that a sizable 60% of network brownouts go unnoticed and are not discovered by IT/NetOps, however, is alarming. In addition to presenting possible hazards, this highlights how important it is to have reliable enterprise network monitoring solutions like the Obkio Network Performance Monitoring tool.

Below are some key areas where network brownouts can significantly impact businesses:

Lost Productivity:

Brownouts in networks can severely impact employee productivity by hindering access to cloud-based services and collaboration platforms. Employees may experience delays in accessing essential resources, leading to missed deadlines, increased frustration, and ultimately, decreased efficiency.

One straightforward method to quantify the impact of network brownouts on productivity is:

The number of hours per day affected by brownouts (both those reported to IT and those that go unnoticed) multiplied by the wasted time per employee = the overall productivity loss.

Lost Revenue:

Online sales and revenue streams are particularly vulnerable to the effects of network brownouts. Customers encountering slow or unreliable Internet connections may abandon shopping carts or experience transaction failures, leading to lost sales opportunities. Businesses reliant on real-time data processing or remote services may face significant operational challenges during brownout events, potentially resulting in revenue loss and missed business opportunities.

A stunning statistic from Gartner should pique the curiosity of everyone making choices for the organization: 98% of businesses estimate that even an hour of downtime can result in lost revenue of more than $100,000. An incredible 81% of responders stressed that the hourly cost grows to $300,000 or more.

Decreased Customer Satisfaction:

In today's digital landscape, customers expect seamless access to information and services. Internet brownouts can disrupt these expectations, leading to slow response times and dropped connections. Unsatisfactory experiences caused by Internet brownouts can harm customer trust and satisfaction, jeopardizing long-term relationships and brand loyalty.

Businesses may struggle to meet customer demands and service level agreements (SLAs), further exacerbating the negative impact on reputation and competitiveness.

Reputation Damage:

Persistent instances of network brownouts can harm a company's reputation, signalling unreliability and incompetence to customers, partners, and stakeholders. Businesses may suffer reputational damage as customers perceive them as unreliable or unprofessional, leading to decreased trust and loyalty.

Rebuilding trust and repairing a damaged reputation after prolonged internet brownouts may require significant time and resources, further underscoring the importance of proactive network management and mitigation strategies.

Network brownouts can stem from a variety of underlying factors, ranging from infrastructure issues to software glitches and external environmental factors. Understanding the root causes of these brownouts is essential for implementing effective mitigation strategies and ensuring the stability of network operations. Below are some common causes of network brownouts:

1. Bandwidth Congestion:

One of the primary causes of network brownouts is bandwidth congestion, where network traffic exceeds available capacity. High demand for network resources, especially during peak usage periods, can lead to network congestion and subsequent degradation in performance.

Bandwidth-intensive applications, such as video streaming or large file downloads, can accelerate congestion issues, resulting in increased latency and packet loss.

2. Hardware Failures:

Hardware components, including routers and switches, are susceptible to failures that can cause network brownouts. Malfunctioning hardware, such as faulty cables, degraded network interfaces, or overheating routers, can disrupt network connectivity and performance. Obsolete legacy equipment may struggle to meet increasing network demands, further compromising network performance.

Regular maintenance and proactive monitoring of hardware health are essential for identifying and addressing potential issues before they escalate into brownout events.

3. Software Updates and Maintenance:

Software bugs, compatibility issues, or misconfigurations in network devices or applications can contribute to network brownouts. Incompatible firmware updates, improperly configured network settings, or poorly optimized software can introduce instability and degrade network performance.

Routine maintenance and upgrades to internet infrastructure, while necessary for ensuring optimal performance and security, can sometimes lead to temporary outages or reduced network performance. During maintenance or upgrade activities, network resources may be temporarily unavailable or operating at reduced capacity, impacting the user experience and contributing to brownout occurrences.

4. Network Congestion:

Beyond bandwidth congestion, general network congestion caused by routing inefficiencies or network topology issues can lead to brownout events. Suboptimal routing decisions, traffic bottlenecks, or inefficient network designs can result in packet loss, latency spikes, and degraded performance.

Implementing traffic shaping mechanisms, optimizing network configurations, and adopting efficient routing protocols can help alleviate congestion-related brownouts.

5. Cyber Attacks and Human Error:

Distributed Denial of Service (DDoS) attacks aim to overwhelm targeted servers or networks with an influx of traffic, disrupting network performance and causing degradation or complete outages. These malicious attacks exploit vulnerabilities in network defences, exacerbating brownout events and compromising network reliability.

Human error, such as misconfigurations or improper maintenance practices, can also result in network outages or performance degradation.

6. External Network Issues:

Brownouts can also stem from issues beyond an organization's control, such as failures in Internet Service Provider (ISP) networks. Failures in ISP infrastructure can significantly impact an organization's network and service quality, highlighting the interconnected nature of internet reliability and the importance of proactive network management practices.

7. Environmental Factors:

External environmental factors, such as electromagnetic interference (EMI), power fluctuations, or extreme weather conditions, can impact network infrastructure and contribute to brownout events. Electrical disturbances or power outages can disrupt network equipment and lead to temporary connectivity issues or hardware failures.

Employing robust power backup solutions, surge protectors, and environmental monitoring systems can mitigate the impact of environmental factors on network reliability.

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Network brownouts are all about messing with your network performance. And because they're so sneaky, you need a way to keep an eye on your network performance constantly. And you can't be expected to do that all on your own, right?

Here's the deal: since brownouts are all about network performance, you don't need some big, complicated network management platform. What you need is something that's focused on looking at your network performance from your users' perspective. That's where tools like Obkio Network Performance Monitoring come in handy.

Using Network Monitoring Agents, Obkio continuously tracks the performance of the entire network with synthetic traffic. The Agents measure network metrics, detect network problems, and gather data to assist in troubleshooting.

• Real-Time Insights: Using real-time data, gain immediate insight into the operation of your network.
• Proactive Alerts: Get informed before users are impacted by network problems.
• Historical Analysis: Examine historical data to identify patterns and reoccurring issues.
• Simple to Use: A fast and intuitive setup process allows you to begin troubleshooting immediately.
• Support Available 24/7: Our team of network experts is here to help and make sure your network experience runs well.

Waiting till the next network brownout spoils your day is not worth it. Seize the initiative today and enjoy a more reliable and efficient network.

Network brownouts can originate from various points within a network, making it essential to pinpoint the source accurately for effective troubleshooting. To achieve this, deploying Obkio’s Network Monitoring Agents across key network locations like offices, data centers, and clouds is imperative.

These agents continuously measure network performance by exchanging synthetic traffic, providing valuable insights into network metrics and identifying potential issues.

Here's how you can effectively monitor and troubleshoot network issues:

• Install Local Agents in targeted office locations experiencing network performance issues. These agents, available for MacOS, Windows, Linux, and more, gather real-time data on local network performance, enabling localized troubleshooting efforts.
• Deploy Public Monitoring Agents over the Internet, managed by Obkio, to compare performance up to the Internet and determine if network issues are global or specific to certain destinations. Utilizing agents hosted on AWS or Google Cloud enhances the breadth of monitoring capabilities and aids in comprehensive troubleshooting.

Synthetic monitoring not only helps you simulate data but also allows you to spot network brownouts even during periods of no real traffic. Yep, you heard that right! With synthetic traffic, you can identify these issues before they even have a chance to affect your real users.

To test performance and simulate typical user behaviour, synthetic monitors such as Obkio automatically generate and deliver simulated traffic (in the form of UDP packets) from a Monitoring Agent to your application or network.

Obkio's Monitoring Agents interconnect by exchanging this fake traffic, enabling you to keep a close eye on network performance at various locations without compromising user privacy or requiring modifications to network device configurations.

And the best part? Synthetic monitoring and traffic do not require packet capture, making it a hassle-free solution for proactive network monitoring.

Having access to comprehensive network performance data is paramount. It provides invaluable insights into the health and functionality of your network, enabling you to pinpoint issues, determine their root causes, and implement effective solutions.

Once you've deployed Obkio Monitoring Agents across your network, they will start gathering crucial network metrics and present them through Obkio's Network Response Time Graph. Here are some key metrics to focus on:

• Latency: Latency measures the delay in data transmission between network points.
• Packet Loss: Packet loss occurs when data packets fail to reach their destination.
• Bandwidth Utilization: Monitoring bandwidth consumption provides insights into network capacity usage.
• Throughput: Throughput gauges the actual data transfer rate, accounting for factors like latency and packet loss.
• Jitter: Consistently high jitter levels can disrupt real-time applications like VoIP or video conferencing, affecting call quality or video streaming.
• Network Error Rate: Tracking network error rates aids in identifying data integrity issues, potentially stemming from faulty cables, hardware malfunctions, or electromagnetic interference.
• Network Traffic Patterns: Analyzing traffic patterns unveils unusual behaviour or potential security threats, such as sudden spikes in usage or patterns indicative of malicious activity.
• Network Topology Changes: Monitoring changes in network topology helps prevent configuration errors and security breaches, ensuring network stability and resilience.
• DNS Resolution Time: DNS resolution time assesses the speed of domain name resolution to IP addresses.
• Quality of Service (QoS) Metrics: QoS metrics evaluate the performance of specific services or applications, guaranteeing consistent performance and prioritizing critical applications.
• Firewall and Security Metrics: Monitor security events, intrusion detection, and firewall rule metrics to identify and address security threats.
• Network Device Health: To identify hardware malfunctions or incorrect setups, keep an eye on the condition and functionality of network equipment, including switches, routers, and access points.

It is now necessary for you to start using Obkio's Network Device Monitoring tool to keep an eye on your network devices.

The foundation of every LAN infrastructure is its network devices, and keeping an eye on them can give you important information about the functionality and health of your LAN. You can monitor network devices to keep an eye on the health and status of important parts like servers, switches, routers, firewalls, and access points. This assists you in locating hardware malfunctions, overheating concerns, or other issues that can interfere with network functionality.

The performance of network devices plays a critical role in determining the overall health and efficiency of the network, and issues with these devices can contribute to or directly cause network brownouts.

Bandwidth Utilization: Network devices, such as routers, switches, and firewalls, manage the flow of data across the network. If these devices become overwhelmed with traffic or experience high levels of bandwidth utilization, it can lead to network congestion. Congestion results in slower data transfer rates, and increased latency, and ultimately contributes to network brownouts.

Packet Loss: Network devices may experience packet loss due to various reasons, such as network congestion, hardware issues, or misconfigurations. Packet loss can degrade the quality of network communication, leading to retransmissions and increased latency. In severe cases, packet loss can contribute to network brownouts by disrupting the flow of data.

Latency: The latency introduced by network devices can impact the overall responsiveness of applications and services. High latency can lead to delays in data transmission and application response times, contributing to the perception of a slow or degraded network – a characteristic of network brownouts.

Device Errors and Failures: Malfunctions, misconfigurations, or hardware failures in network devices can directly impact their performance. When critical devices, such as routers or switches, experience errors or failures, it can disrupt the normal flow of network traffic, leading to brownouts or even network outages.

Quality of Service (QoS) Issues: Inadequate QoS configurations on network devices can result in improper prioritization of traffic. This can lead to degraded performance for critical applications during periods of high network activity, contributing to brownouts for specific services.

Insufficient Resources: Network devices may experience performance issues if they have insufficient resources, such as CPU, memory, or buffer space. Inadequate resources can result in dropped packets, increased latency, and overall degraded network performance, contributing to brownouts.

When you suspect there's something wrong in your network, pinpointing the exact issue can be challenging. However, leveraging the data collected from your network monitoring efforts can provide valuable insights into the problem's nature and scope.

Here's how to identify and troubleshoot common network issues efficiently:

1. Define the Problem:

The first step in troubleshooting is defining the problem accurately. Identify specific symptoms like slow performance, dropped connections, or application errors to narrow down potential causes and solutions.

2. Locate the Issue:

Once you've identified the problem, determine where it's occurring within your network. Utilize network monitoring tools provided by Obkio to pinpoint areas experiencing traffic slowdowns or packet loss.

3. Determine the Cause:

Understanding the root cause of the problem is crucial for effective resolution. Identify hardware or software failures, configuration errors, or network design issues contributing to the problem.

4. Establish the Timeline:

Determine when the issue first occurred and how it has progressed over time. Review logs, monitoring data, or user reports to create a timeline for resolution.

5. Collaborate with Stakeholders:

Identify the individuals or teams responsible for the affected network segment. Collaborate with IT professionals, vendors, or service providers to troubleshoot effectively and resolve the issue promptly.

When faced with network issues occurring across multiple sessions, leveraging Obkio's Network Device Monitoring feature can provide valuable insights into the root cause.

Here's how to troubleshoot effectively using this feature:

1. Monitor Network Metrics:

Obkio gathers a range of network metrics including latency, packet loss, and bandwidth utilization for the monitored devices. These metrics furnish detailed insights into device performance and potential issues.

2. Compare Data from Both Sessions:

• In cases where network issues persist across multiple sessions, leverage Obkio to compare data from both sessions for the involved devices.
• Look for patterns or anomalies in device metrics during the issue occurrence. Monitor for spikes in latency, packet loss, or unusual increases in bandwidth usage.
• By comparing data from both sessions, ascertain whether the issue stems from your network devices or if it's related to the Service Provider's network or internet connectivity.

3. Analyze Device Metrics:

• If irregularities or performance issues are observed in the metrics collected by Obkio for your network devices during the sessions, investigate further.
• For instance, high latency or packet loss on router interfaces may indicate congestion or configuration issues within your network infrastructure.

In the event that your devices show no resource problems, the network problem is most likely being caused by your service provider.

• Should Obkio's device metrics demonstrate that your network devices are operating smoothly during the sessions, this could indicate that the problem is occurring farther upstream, possibly in the network of your service provider or on the internet.
• In these situations, you can get in touch with your service provider and provide them access to the device monitoring data to demonstrate that the problem is beyond your control and could need their help.

In order to provide your service provider with the precise location of the network problem, you can now gather the final bit of information.

Use Obkio Vision, a free Visual Traceroute application from Obkio that interprets Traceroute findings continually to help you find network issues in your WAN and internet.

Service providers play a crucial role in the overall connectivity and performance of the Internet, and disruptions or inefficiencies within their networks can directly impact the quality of service experienced by end-users and lead to network brownouts.

• Network Congestion: High traffic levels in service provider networks during peak hours can lead to slower data transfer rates, increased latency, and brownouts.
• Routing Issues: Problems with routing decisions or misconfigurations within the service provider's network can result in packet loss, increased latency, and network instability, contributing to brownouts.
• Equipment Failures: Hardware failures, such as router or switch malfunctions, within the service provider's network, can disrupt normal traffic flow, causing degraded performance and brownouts.
• Interconnection Issues: Connectivity problems between different service provider networks or at interconnection points can impact overall network performance, affecting content delivery and services.

To get assistance with troubleshooting, you should contact your service provider (ISP or MSP). You won't, however, have to put up with level 1 support instructing you to simply "reboot your modem." With all the information you've gathered with Obkio, you can hold your service provider responsible and provide them with all the tools they require for troubleshooting.

• To obtain technical support, use the screenshots of your Vision dashboard, traceroutes, or monitoring sessions to get in touch with your ISP.
• Using a public URL, share Live Traceroute results with your internet provider.

• You can designate a temporary Read-Only User for your ISP in your Obkio account if they would like to examine your data further.

Preventing network brownouts requires a proactive approach to network monitoring, encompassing various strategies and best practices aimed at enhancing network reliability and resilience. By implementing preventive measures and adopting proactive monitoring techniques, businesses can minimize the risk of brownout events and ensure uninterrupted network operations.

Here are some effective strategies for preventing network brownouts:

1. Capacity Planning:

Conduct regular capacity planning exercises to assess current network usage patterns and anticipate future demands. By understanding the network's capacity limits and potential bottlenecks, businesses can proactively scale their infrastructure to accommodate growing traffic volumes and mitigate the risk of congestion-related brownouts.

2. Invest in Proactive Network Monitoring Solutions:

Detecting network brownouts swiftly is crucial for minimizing their impact. Unfortunately, these issues often go unnoticed by IT teams, with customers or employees being the first to report them. Quick detection enables prompt resolution, preventing prolonged disruptions.

Deploy robust network monitoring tools and solutions to continuously monitor network performance, traffic patterns, and device health. Real-time monitoring allows IT teams to identify potential issues or anomalies promptly, enabling proactive intervention before they escalate into brownout events. Utilize performance metrics, such as latency, packet loss, and bandwidth utilization, to assess network health and identify areas for optimization.

3. Keeping Hardware Up to Date:

As network demands escalate, staying ahead by investing in the latest network infrastructure is imperative. In today's landscape, where organizations heavily rely on IT resources, cutting corners on network infrastructure is not an option. Ensuring all hardware components are up to date and capable of meeting increased requirements is vital. Upgrading to the latest technology enables organizations to better accommodate rising network demands and enhance network performance and reliability.

4. Traffic Management:

Employ traffic management techniques, such as Quality of Service (QoS) policies and traffic shaping mechanisms, to prioritize critical applications and ensure equitable resource allocation. Employing network segmentation and load-balancing techniques can effectively optimize bandwidth usage.

Network segmentation divides the network into distinct segments based on their role, allowing for efficient resource allocation and minimizing the impact of issues within individual segments.

Load balancers evenly distribute traffic across the network, preventing congestion on specific servers or components – a primary cause of brownouts and blackouts.

5. Redundancy and Failover:

Implement redundancy measures, such as redundant network links, failover mechanisms, and backup power supplies, to ensure continuous network availability. Redundancy reduces single points of failure and enhances network resilience, minimizing the impact of hardware failures, outages, or brownout events on business operations.

Regularly test failover mechanisms and disaster recovery procedures to validate their effectiveness and readiness to mitigate brownout-related disruptions.

6. Collaboration and Communication:

Foster collaboration between IT teams, network administrators, and business stakeholders to proactively address network challenges and prioritize preventive measures. Establish clear communication channels and incident response protocols to facilitate rapid problem resolution and minimize the impact of brownout events on business operations.

Distinguishing between brownouts and blackouts is crucial for understanding their respective impacts and implementing appropriate mitigation strategies. Many people may think they're dealing with blackouts when they have brownouts, but they represent different levels of network performance issues and have different causes.

If you misdiagnose the issue, you're not going to take the right steps to troubleshoot. While both brownouts and blackouts entail disruptions to network operations, they differ significantly in their nature, severity, and implications.

• Nature: Network brownouts manifest as subtle fluctuations in network performance, characterized by intermittent disruptions such as packet loss, latency spikes, and reduced bandwidth availability.
• Severity: Brownouts are typically less severe than blackouts, as they do not result in complete network unavailability. Instead, they cause varying degrees of performance degradation, affecting user experience and productivity.
• Implications: Brownouts can lead to decreased productivity, impaired user experience, and revenue losses for businesses. While not as immediately disruptive as blackouts, brownouts can still have significant long-term consequences if left unaddressed.

• Nature: Network blackouts involve complete or near-complete loss of network connectivity, rendering network resources and services inaccessible.
• Severity: Blackouts are severe disruptions that bring network operations to a halt, resulting in widespread service outages.
• Implications: Blackouts can have catastrophic consequences for businesses, causing extensive downtime, loss of revenue, and reputational damage. The impact of blackouts is immediate and severe, requiring urgent intervention to restore network functionality and minimize disruptions.

In summary, while both network brownouts and network blackouts disrupt network operations, they differ in terms of severity and impact. Brownouts entail intermittent performance degradation, affecting user experience and productivity, while blackouts result in a complete loss of connectivity, leading to widespread service outages and significant business disruptions. Network performance monitoring tools can be utilized to identify and troubleshoot both types of disruptions effectively.

Now armed with insights into identifying, troubleshooting, and preventing network brownouts, it's time to reflect on the state of your company's network health. Are you confident that there are no issues lurking undetected by your network administrators? Don't wait for customers to report poor network performance – take proactive control of your network with Obkio's Network Monitoring tool.

Empower your business to thrive in the digital landscape by prioritizing network health and reliability. With Obkio, you can navigate the challenges of network brownouts with confidence, safeguarding your business's success and reputation in an ever-evolving digital world.

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