What Is a Protocol Analyzer?
A protocol analyzer is a measuring instrument used for testing and troubleshooting during system development between devices with digital communication functions, such as PCs, or for network maintenance.
There are various places to verify and analyze digital communication lines, indoors and outdoors. For this reason, protocol analyzers are available in battery-powered types that can be used outdoors as equipment, types that are connected to a PC, and application types that are installed on a PC, allowing them to be used at different levels and in different environments.
Usage of Protocol Analyzers
Protocol analyzers are used to analyze and solve problems such as data anomalies or communication failures in data communication between computers.
Even if a communication failure does not occur, periodic network maintenance is necessary to ensure that network line speeds are safe and normal. In this way, it is also effective for periodic network maintenance.
It is also used to verify communications during the development of network equipment or to check and verify communications when new communications equipment is installed or modified.
Thus, protocol analyzers are necessary to check and verify that the data transmitted and received over digital communication lines conform to communication protocols.
Principles of Protocol Analyzers
A protocol analyzer is a device or software that analyzes communication standards (communication protocols).
Basically, it is a device that monitors communication packets flowing through a data line. However, if it is a high-performance protocol analyzer, it can monitor data down to the bit level, and certain models also incorporate the functionality of a logic analyzer.
However, when analyzing the waveforms of signals flowing over digital communication lines, such as with an oscilloscope, it is necessary to select a special, high-performance model.
Today, there are a great many different types of communication protocols. We have not found any protocol analyzers that can handle all of them.
Therefore, as a choice of equipment, a model with general-purpose functions, such as a multi-protocol analyzer, can be used for all commonly used communication protocols, making it versatile.
Also, depending on the contents to be analyzed, the analysis time of a protocol analyzer is limited by the implemented memory. For this reason, selecting a model with sufficient memory for long-term analysis is necessary.
For simple analysis that monitors communication data, application-type protocol analyzers are available. Some of these products are available at low cost or free of charge.
Dedicated protocol analyzers are available for video and wireless protocol analysis. These protocol analyzers specialize in the corresponding protocol analysis and can even perform compliance testing, but they are costly.