You’re in the process of e-filing your taxes, but your tax program gives you this message: “You are unable to e-file: Network Error.” Which of these would be the most logical process to follow to check your network connection to the IRS?
A) Ping your gateway, your Internet IP address, and an external Internet site like Google DNS (8.8.8.8). Perform a traceroute to the IRS server.
B) Perform a traceroute to the IRS server. Try to telnet to the IRS IP address.
C) Traceroute to Google DNS (8.8.8.8). Ping your external Internet IP address.
D) Ping the IRS server. Ping Google DNS (8.8.8.8). Ping your external Internet IP address. Ping your gateway.
E) Decide if your margarita is with or without salt. Watch a rerun of “House.”
The answer: A) Ping your gateway, your Internet IP address, and an external Internet site like Google DNS (8.8.8.8). Perform a traceroute to the IRS server.
When you’re having network problems, it’s useful to know exactly where the conversation breaks down. If you start locally and expand your test outward, you’ll know exactly where the breakdown occurs.
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Want to know more? Watch “Network Troubleshooting Tools.”There are many network troubleshooting tools available at the command line. In this video, you’ll learn how to use tools such as ping, tracert, nslookup, netstat, and many others. |