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| 7.1 |  | Troubleshooting the Application Layer |
| 7.1.6 |  | Accessing support resources |

In most cases, network problems can be resolved without assistance from any outside technical support. However, some problems may seem to be too elusive and professional help is required. This is when Cisco Systems Technical Assistance Center (TAC) should be utilized.

It is suggested the following be completed before calling Cisco (TAC):

- Have the service contract number ready. TAC will ask for it.
- Have a diagram of the network, or the affected portion of the network. Make sure all IP addresses and associated network masks or prefix lengths are listed.
- List the steps already taken and their results compiled for the TAC engineer.
- If the problem appears to be with only a few routers (fewer than four), capture the output from show tech command from these routers.

Dial-in or Telnet access also helps considerably in effective problem resolution.