Network troubleshooting commands for Windows

The Windows troubleshooting commands discussed in this document fall into three categories:

Determine which groups a user belongs To generate a list of groups that a user belongs, open a prompt and enter the following commands:

net user /domain with an actual user name. For example:

net user jdoe /domain

Helpful commands entered from the > Run dialog box Select Start > Run to execute any of the following commands.

mstsc Opens the Remote Desktop (RDP) tool winmsd Opens the System Information dialog box inetcpl.cpil Opens the Internet Explorer Properties dialog box odbccp32.cpl Opens the ODBC Data Source Administrator mmc Opens the Management Console (MMC) services.msc Opens the Windows Services dialog box eventvwr.msc Opens the Windows dsa.msc Opens the Active Directory User and Computers management console dssite.msc Opens the Active Directory Sites and Services management console adminpak.msi Launches the Administration Tools Pack installer dxdiag Opens the DirectX Diagnostic Tool \\< Name or IP>\C$ Opens a UNC to the C: share cmd Opens the Windows Command Prompt using the 32-bit cmd shell

Command-line tools for troubleshooting network connectivity This list contains some common commands for troubleshooting network connectivity. Select Start > Runand then cmd to access the appropriate command prompt. Activating a command window viaStart > Programs > Accessories does not allow all of the following tools to run correctly.

arp -a Shows gateway MAC address. gpresult Starts the Result tool /all Displays the full TCP/IP configuration for all adapters Flushes the DNS resolver cache. Helpful when ipconfig /flushdns troubleshooting DNS name resolution problems Obtains info from WINS or LMHOST (discovers who is nbtstat -a logged on) Gets info from WINS or LMHOST (discovers who is logged nbtstst -A on) nbtstat -R Purges and reloads the remote cache name table nbtstat -n Lists local NetBIOS names. Useful for detecting errors when browsing WINS or nbtstat -r NetBIOS -ab The b switch links each used port with its application netstat -an Shows open ports Locates only lines with the number 15868 and redisplays netstat -an 1 | "15868" every one second netstat -an | find "LISTENING" Shows open ports with LISTENING status net use Retrieves a list of network connections net use file://1.2.3.4/ Sees if the machine can poll IP 1.2.3.4 net user Shows user account for the computer net user /domain Displays user accounts for the domain net user /domain Shows account details for specific user net group /domain Shows group accounts for the domain net view Displays domains in the network net view /domain Specifies computers available in a specific domain net view /domain: | Shows user accounts from specific domain net view /cache Shows workstation names Looks up IP/hostnames and displays information helpful in diagnosing DNS issues ping -a Resolves IP to Hostname ping -t Pings host until stopped set U Shows which user is logged on set L Shows the logon server telnet Confirms whether the port is open net use %LOGONSERVER%