Tools That Earn Their Place

Base configuration templates for Cisco Catalyst, Aruba CX, and ALE OmniSwitch. Generates a starting point from your VLAN scheme and management addressing. Saves the first 30 to 60 minutes of every new switch deployment.

IPv4 CIDR inspection and FLSM subnetting. Paste a CIDR like 10.42.67.0/24 to get network, broadcast, mask, wildcard, host range, and binary. Switch to subnet mode to split a parent network into equal-size children. Runs entirely in the browser, no telemetry, no signups. Saves time and prevents mistakes during commissioning.

Door hardware to cable BOM. Pick the door type, lock, reader, REX, DPS, supervision, and any auxiliary devices, and the tool builds the cable list with Belden part numbers, EOL resistor counts, and callouts for the gotchas (local power supplies, maglock code path, ADO interface modules). Plenum and riser cables resolve automatically. Multi-door projects roll up into a project totals view.

Wizard-driven PowerShell script generator for Windows workstation and server hardening. Two deployment modes: Local PC (BETA) produces a per-machine .ps1 that runs locally; Domain Joined PC (ALPHA) produces a Set-GPRegistryValue-based GPO creation script you run from a DC or admin workstation with the RSAT Group Policy Tools. Pick a baseline (DISA STIG, CIS L1, NSA/CISA, CCCS, CMMC L2 / CPCSC, or Minimum Viable), toggle 37 individually-sourced controls plus 27 debloat targets, and download a SHA-256 fingerprinted output. Every control sourced from a published standard.

A purpose-built Windows SCHANNEL configuration utility. Toggle SSL 2.0 through TLS 1.3 by Client and Server role, order cipher suites, apply one of six built-in templates (NIST SP 800-52 Rev 2, CIS Benchmark L1 / L2, Genetec SC 5.11+, PCI DSS 4.0, FIPS 140-2, Windows Default), and export a deployable PowerShell script or .reg file. Portable Windows EXE, no installer.

The default SSH and serial console client for Windows. Lightweight, no install required. Save sessions for every switch and firewall in your environment, and you stop wasting time typing IPs and credentials. Still the right tool 25 years on.

Better serial console handling than PuTTY for some specific scenarios, including TFTP server functionality built in for IOS image transfers. Worth having installed alongside PuTTY rather than choosing one.

Tabbed connection manager that handles SSH, RDP, VNC, telnet, and serial in one window. When you are managing 40 switches and 12 servers, the tab interface saves real time. Open source and stable.

The packet capture and analysis tool. If you do network or physical security work and you are not comfortable in Wireshark, fix that. Camera streams, ARP storms, BPDU floods, RTSP negotiation issues, all of it shows up in a capture before it shows up anywhere else.

Network discovery and port scanning. Use it on your own networks during commissioning to verify what is actually reachable, what is listening, and what should not be. Output is parseable for documentation and audit reports.

Lighter-weight than Nmap for a quick "what is on this subnet" sweep. Useful when you are documenting an environment that nobody has documented in three years.

Windows-native alternative for fast LAN scans with hostname and MAC vendor lookup. Drops a clean list you can paste into a spreadsheet.

Path analysis with continuous latency tracking. When a customer says the network is slow at random times, leave PingPlotter running for 24 hours and you have evidence instead of opinion. Free version is enough for most diagnostics.

Throughput testing between two endpoints. Confirm a 10 Gbps link is actually delivering 10 Gbps, or that a building uplink is not the bottleneck someone thinks it is. Lives on every IT bench it should.

SCP and SFTP file transfer with a Windows Explorer interface. The standard tool for moving config files, firmware images, and logs between switches, servers, and your workstation.

Text editor that handles Cisco, Aruba, and ALE configs without choking on the file size. Syntax highlighting plugins exist for most network OSes. Always installed on a working bench.

When you outgrow Notepad++, this is where you go. Extensions for Ansible, YAML, JSON, network config templating. Cross-platform if you bounce between Windows and macOS.

Local password vault with no cloud dependency. Appropriate for the credentials you should not be storing in a SaaS password manager: device enable secrets, infrastructure root credentials, recovery accounts. Database file backs up wherever you back up other critical data.

Cross-device password manager for everyday accounts and customer credentials where shared access is required. Self-hostable if you do not want the SaaS dependency.

Screen and audio recording for documenting troubleshooting sessions, capturing camera output, or recording training material. Free, capable, and the default for anyone producing technical video.

Slipstream Windows ISOs with the components you actually want and the ones you do not removed before the installer ever runs. Strip optional features, pre-apply updates, integrate drivers, bake in unattended setup answers. The right tool when you are deploying a hardened workstation image across multiple identical operator consoles and do not want to debloat each one after the fact. Free for personal use; paid for commercial.