Restore the Front-Desk Link

Marigold Press · small-office network · physical-layer triage
N10-009 · 5.1 N10-009 · 5.2 N10-009 · 5.5 AP NET · 2.1.A AP NET · 1.1.A

Scenario

Marigold Press is a three-room print shop. This morning the front-desk machine, LOBBY-PC, can no longer reach the file server PRESS-SRV in the back utility room — orders won't save and the shared price list won't open. The only thing that changed: the front-desk staffer slid the desk over last night to wedge in a new label printer, rolling her chair across the floor cabling a few times in the process. Everything else on the 10.20.5.0/24 network is fine.

You're the part-time tech. Work the problem from the bottom layer up: confirm the symptom, read the diagnostic signals, find the root cause, fix it with a known-good spare, and verify. Use the console, the link-status bay, the status page, and the bench.

Network map

LOBBY-PC .41 / DHCP jack B2 CORE-SW .2 PRESS-SRV .10 GW-RTR .1 → WAN

Link-status bay — click a jack to inspect

LOBBY-PC NIC
no link
Wall jack B2
no carrier
CORE-SW · port 7
up · waiting
Inspect the NIC and wall-jack lights to read the carrier state.

Diagnostic tools

LOBBY-PC command shell. Try: help
Ethernet
Media disconnected · no IP from DHCP
IPv4 address
169.254.18.7
Subnet mask
255.255.0.0
Default gateway
—
Link speed
—

Physical-layer actions. Try the cheapest, least-disruptive fix first, then escalate to a known-good spare if the link stays down.

Known-good spares bin

Task checklist — auto-checks as you work

    Questions

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