Networking Basics

IP addresses, subnets, ping, and industrial switches the stuff between the PLC and everything else it talks to. When a VFD won't connect or an HMI can't see the PLC, it's almost always a networking problem. Learn to diagnose it fast.
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What You'll Learn

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Assign and troubleshoot IP addresses

Give every device a unique, valid IP and immediately spot the conflictsand mismatches that kill communication between PLCs, drives, and HMIs.

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Apply subnet masks correctly

Understand why a PLC at 192.168.1.1 can't talk to a VFD at 192.168.0.50 even though they're on the same physical cable and how to fix it.

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Use ping to diagnose connectivity

The first tool you reach for when a device won't communicate. Know what each response means and exactly where to go next.

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Configure your laptop for any machine network

Set a static IP, get on the device's subnet, do your work, and change it back without breaking your plant network connection.

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Choose between managed and unmanaged switches

Know which type belongs in a standalone machine cell versus a plant-wide backbone and why it actually matters.

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Map a machine's network topology

Document every networked device: IP address, switch port, device role. The documentation that nobody ever has but everyone desperately needs.

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Understand OT network security basics

Why the automation network should be separated from the IT network, and the minimum security practices every controls engineer should know.

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Read a plant network architecture diagram

Understand the layers field, control, supervisory and where PLCs, HMIs, drives, and historians each live in the stack.

Who This Is For

Technicians

You're already working on machines but want to understand the hardware well enough to troubleshoot faster without calling an engineer every time.

Early-Career Engineers

You can write code but the panel hardware is still fuzzy. This fills in the physical layer — the stuff between the PLC and the motor.

Career Changers

Coming from electrical, mechanical, or IT? This module gives you the controls-specific hardware context that textbooks gloss over.

Course Lessons

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