A Network Administration Toolkit

I like to use the right tool for the job if it is available. In ten years of managing networks I have picked up a few favorite tools and techniques that each has its place in my network administrator's toolbox. Another administrator would likely prefer a different set of tools but these are the ones that I like. Likewise, a system administrator would likely not call these tools her favorite because they are not the right tools for that job. The tools described below or ones like them will be useful to any network administrator and they are all open source.