Troubleshoot Devices Using the Conversational Assistant

SUMMARY You can troubleshoot wireless or wired clients, access points (APs), switches, and WAN edge devices using the conversational assistant function of the Marvis® Virtual Network Assistant.

In the conversational assistant window of Marvis, you can select Troubleshoot > Device and you're ready to start troubleshooting. You can simply enter a phrase such as "troubleshoot device name" and Marvis can display the details. You can use these details to troubleshoot and fix the issue. The following sections explain how you can use phrases in the conversational assistant to troubleshoot each device type.

Troubleshoot a Wireless Client

You can view failures of a wireless client and its associated access point (AP).

To check whether a wireless client is experiencing any issues, enter a phrase such as "How is client" or "Troubleshoot client for 5 july" in the conversational assistant window.

Here's an example that shows the details Marvis provides for the phrase "troubleshoot client name." In this case, Marvis reports that the client is experiencing the following issues:

An authentication error due to an incorrect Wi-Fi password
Poor coverage due to low signal strength

You can click each of the issues to view details about the issue. You can click the Failure Timeline, Client Insights, or Scope of Impact option for more details. In some cases, Marvis also provides recommendations to fix the issue, as the screenshot shows:

Troubleshoot Unhappy Wireless Clients

To determine which clients are experiencing connectivity issues (which we also refer to as unhappy clients), use phrases such as, "troubleshoot clients" or "unhappy clients" without providing details. Marvis displays a list of clients that are experiencing issues. You can select any client from the list to view the details.

Here is an example that shows the details that Marvis displays for "unhappy clients":

Troubleshoot Wired Clients

You can troubleshoot wired clients to see:

The switch and the switch port to which the wired client is connected.
Connection failures.
Switch health.
Interface status.

To view wired clients that are experiencing issues, use phrases such as the following:

Show problems with <wired client mac>
Was there any issue with <wired client> yesterday

In the following example, Marvis shows that the wired client experienced a DHCP failure. If you click DHCP Failure, you can view more details as the screenshot shows:

Troubleshoot APs

To troubleshoot an access point (AP), use one of the following phrases:

What’s wrong with <AP name>
Show me problems for <AP mac>

Here's a sample screenshot that shows the output for "What’s wrong with <AP name>." In this case, Marvis indicates low power on one of the AP ports that is connected to a switch. If you click the issue, Marvis displays detailed information as the screenshot shows:

Troubleshoot Unhappy APs

Marvis can show you which APs are experiencing issues (which we refer to as unhappy APs).

To check for unhealthy APs or APs on which clients are unhappy, simply enter the phrase "troubleshoot APs" or "unhappy access points" in the conversational assistant window without providing details. You can select any AP from the list to view the troubleshooting results for that AP.

In the following screenshot, you can see that Marvis lists the APs that are experiencing issues. If you click an AP, Marvis shows the issues for that AP. In the screenshot, Marvis reports low power on a port. You can click the issue to view more details.

Troubleshoot Switches

To troubleshoot switches, use phrases such as:

How is <partial name of a switch>
show me issues for <switch>

Here is a sample screenshot that shows the results for "How is id-cup." You can click a switch to view more details about the issue.

Troubleshoot Unhappy Switches

Marvis can show you the switches that are experiencing issues (which we refer to as unhappy switches).

To check for unhappy switches, simply enter the phrase "troubleshoot switches" or "unhappy switches" in the conversational assistant window, without providing details. You can select any switch from the list to view the troubleshooting results for the switch.

In the following example, you can see that Marvis displays all the switches that are experiencing issues. You can click any switch to view the issues. In this case, Marvis indicates that a chassis alarm has been triggered.

Troubleshoot WAN Edge Devices

To troubleshoot WAN edge devices, use phrases such as:

Show problems with <WAN edge mac>
What's wrong with <WAN edge>

The following screenshot shows the details that Marvis displays for the "What's wrong with <WAN edge>" phrase:

Troubleshoot Unhappy WAN Edge Devices

To check for unhappy WAN edge devices, simply enter the phrase "troubleshoot WAN edges" or "unhappy WAN edges" in the conversational assistant window, without providing details. You can select any WAN edge device from the list to view the troubleshooting results for the device.

In the following example, you can see that Marvis displays all the WAN edge devices that are experiencing issues. You can click any device to view the issues.

Quick Reference to Troubleshoot Devices

The following table summarizes the phrases presented in the related topics. You can use this table as a point of reference when you troubleshoot devices in a Mist network using the conversational assistant function of Marvis.

To Troubleshoot	Use
A wireless client	How is `client` Troubleshoot `client`
Unhappy wireless clients	troubleshoot clients unhappy clients
A wired client	Show problems with `wired client mac` Was there any issue with `wired client` yesterday
An AP	What’s wrong with `AP name` Show me problems for `AP mac`
Unhappy APs	troubleshoot APs unhappy access points
A switch	How is `partial name of a switch` show me issues for `switch`
Unhappy switches	troubleshoot switches unhappy switches
A WAN edge device	Show problems with `WAN edge mac` What's wrong with `WAN edge`
Unhappy WAN edge devices	troubleshoot WAN edges unhappy WAN edges
List device, users (wired or wireless clients), firmware version	List APs with Version `version-number` List switches on site `site-name`

ON THIS PAGE