PacketBomb Fundamentals Course Closed – PacketBomb

PacketBomb Fundamentals Course Closed

The most frustrating thing is getting a call and hearing the words "the network is slow." I'd like to be able to dig deeper and see what is going on.

Brandon C. 
Level 3 Engineer

Hi, I'm Kary with PacketBomb.com

I remember when I first downloaded Wireshark after someone complained about the network being slow and none of our reporting tools or graphs showed utilization issues or drops or anything. Every network professional knows that Wireshark is good for figuring out network issues and that packet analysis is an essential skill, right?

I fired it up and scrolled down and down and down while staring at all those green and blue packets and scary looking red and black packets. Were those the problem? Where do I start? How would I know if I was looking at a problem or not?

Learning to use Wireshark to solve problems is overwhelming.

When there's a high visibility issue people complain loudly and you're expected to fix it. Managers and VPs and more are looking over your shoulder. You're anxious, nervous, and hoping you can save the day.

But the fact is I have talked to many poor souls that have spent weeks beating their heads against a network problem. They have swapped out cables, moved ports, reformatted machines, replaced switches and routers, yet nothing they do solves the problem. Do you know why?

Because they don't know how to figure out what the problem is.

They take a trial and error approach to see if they get lucky. Sometimes it works. Sometimes it doesn't.

They might google and find PacketBomb and ask me for help. After they send me a packet capture, I usually can tell them what the problem is or where to go next to solve the problem in 30 minutes or less.

Here's one of many examples.

Brandon had users that were experiencing very slow web page load times. The problem had been ongoing for weeks and no one could figure out why. A few minutes analyzing a packet capture turned up the problem and it was fixed. From weeks of headaches to a quick solution with packet analysis. You can watch the case study here:

Would you like to be able to see through all the noise and silence the finger point critics?

Imagine when someone blames the network that you're able to show clearly with definitive proof that the issue is not the network. You can do this because everyone knows that packets don't lie and you know what the packets are saying.

Packet analysis may not solve every problem immediately but it will tell you what is the issue is not and it will tell you where to look next. It can get the issue off your plate so that you can work on your other projects.

And you can do this in minutes. Not hours. Not days. Certainly not weeks. That's what learning packet analysis will do for you.

The PacketBomb Fundamentals course is your first step on this journey.

PACKETBOMB CAN GET YOU THERE BUT...

...you've got to walk before you can run

One time I opened a bug with the developers for a customer performance issue. Multiple tech support folks had already tried to solve it and after it was escalated to me, I couldn't figure it out either. It took two more weeks of back and forth with development, support, and the customer until the devs figured it out.

Wanna know what it was?

Duplex mismatch.

I wanted to crawl into a hole in the ground and not come out for a month. I felt terrible and embarrassed for wasting so much of development's and the customer's time. Should the problem have been caught before it was escalated to me? Sure.

But I tried to jump into deep analysis while overlooking the fundamentals and it was costly to my company, the customer, and more importantly, my reputation.

PacketBomb Fundamentals isn't about the deep analysis - it's about teaching you what you need to know and do before you go deep. It's about laying the proper groundwork to set yourself up for success.

The PacketBomb Fundamentals course will build your knowledge in packet analysis from the ground up with two hours of video content in a step-by-step course with downloadable cheat sheets, references, and a case study exercise.

In this course, you'll learn what to do before you ever fire up Wireshark. I'll go over how to narrow down a problem so it's less overwhelming. How to understand the problem better than the people who are reporting it. If you define the problem specifically, the analysis is so much easy later.

Here's a lesson from the course on defining the problem:​

Then we'll talk about where in the network that it's ideal to capture the data. Once you've identified where, we'll go over in-depth the options for how to capture the data. We'll cover what to do for easily reproducible issues and hard, intermittent issues.

Here a snip of lesson on capturing the data:​

Once you do the capture, how do you know you got what you needed? We talk about that too. Along the way, I'll give you downloadable reference and cheat sheets that you can save on your computer, phone, in the cloud, or print out and tape to your bathroom mirror. There's also additional reference material to read along with the lessons.

Then we get into how to setup Wireshark to optimize your chance for success - for increasing the odds of spotting the issue. We go over profiles, configurations, preferences, and coloring rules and how to use them to your advantage. You'll be able to download and use the Wireshark configuration profile from the course.

Here's the entire lesson on setting up Wireshark:​

After that, we'll go over your analysis first steps. Where to start, where to look, and how to approach the daunting task of finding a needle in a haystack.

Lastly, you'll be able to apply all that you've learned in a real life case study submitted by a PacketBomb student. A user is getting their Remote Desktop Connections disconnected and you get to do the analysis.

By the end of the course, you'll be much more familiar and comfortable with Wireshark. You'll be able to do some basic analysis and you'll be setup to continue your journey to becoming an expert.

Here's the course outline:

Unit 1: Before Analysis ~ 31 min


  1. Defining the Problem w/ exercise
  2. Capturing the Data w/ exercise
  3. Verifying the Data w/ exercise

Unit 2: Wireshark Setup ~ 39 min


  1. Configuring Wireshark
  2. Working with Profiles
  3. Display Filters and Coloring
  4. Unit Exercise

Unit 3: Analysis First Steps ~ 32 min


  1. PCAP Summary w/ exercise
  2. Conversations w/ exercise
  3. Finding the Delay w/ exercise

Course Wrap Up ~ 17 min


  1. Case Study Example
  2. Wrap Up

Troubleshooting is a unique skill that I believe requires patience, confidence, and the drive to determine root cause. Kary is one of the best troubleshooters I have come across in my 14 year career. By utilizing various trace analysis tools and logical deduction Kary has helped me solve numerous problems. Learning how to break down a problem in a divide and conquer type manner along with learning how to fully utilize trace analysis tools has taken my troubleshooting skills to the next level.

Tim M. 
Level 4 Engineer

PRICE

The PacketBomb Fundamentals course offer has expired

There's almost too much information out there and without knowing where to start, it's [packet analysis] a little overwhelming

Lauren M. 
Technology Evangelist

Questions


Can you learn Wireshark and packet analysis on your own with free materials?

Sure, I've put out lots of free content that has helped thousands of people. Those videos and others like them show you one scenario that is isolated - it's one piece of the puzzle. The aim of my PacketBomb courses is to build your knowledge and skill from the ground up. You may already know a lot based on experience, but you don't know what you don't know.

What if you don't know much about networking?

This course is designed for someone that already understands networking fundamentals and is looking to specifically learn Wireshark and packet analysis.

What if you have a lot of experience already?

I encourage you to go through the entire course. Check out all the downloadable content. Read all the reference material. Go through the exercises and case study and see if you can answer all the questions without looking at the answers. If after 14 days you don't think you got enough value out of the course, I will refund your money.

How long do you have to complete the course?

This is a self-paced course that you can complete in your own time. Holidays coming up? No problem, get back to it after you've eaten all the food. Vacation? Hey, the site is mobile friendly so take me on the cruise with you. Or pick it up when you come back. And you have lifetime access so you can come back to it again and again.

14 DAY MONEY BACK GUARANTEE

For any

For any reason you don't think this course is for you, I will refund your money up to 14 days after purchase

If you've never had a mentor...

If you're constantly worrying about what you don't know...

If you're feeling overwhelmed every time you open Wireshark...

This course is for you.

Stop putting off learning a skill you know will take your career to the next level and start mastering packets. PacketBomb courses can get you there and PacketBomb Fundamentals is the first step.

I have been looking for something like this for a long time and this is the first course that is so well laid out. I really appreciate the logical step by step method with real world examples that can be used right away on the job. The explanations are clear and concise and the exercises are great for making sure the student has grasped and remembered the topic (while having a chuckle).

I highly recommend this course.

George M. 
Network Engineer

PACKETBOMB FUNDAMENTALS

The offer has expired