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If I'm on a Windows 7 or for example standard Ubuntu machine and I want to check if a server is up, what are good alternatives to ping? For example if ping is disabled and do not answer, what can I then use?

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What do you mean by "what can I then use"? What can you then use to do what exactly? – Matthieu Cartier Jan 31 '11 at 14:01
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you could try connecting to whatever sevice that server provides? – TZHX Jan 31 '11 at 14:24
@neurolysis: Check if the machine is alive and "in range" in the network. – Svish Feb 1 '11 at 11:45
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Maybe you could use a port scanner, so if a port is open (for example netbios, http or anything else) you will get reply and know that machine is alive.

Or if you know username or password, can use SNMP or WMI and try to get information about machine.

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Yup, that'll do it. Or if you know what's running on the server (FTP, SMTP, etc) you could try to telnet onto the relevant port assuming it's the default port – Ciaran Jan 31 '11 at 22:45
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up vote 0 down vote

You also can use telnet with the proper port (if you know which service is serving by this server)

if the server is yours and is invisible from internet, you can create automated script on the server to put a file with timestamp somewhere on public ftp server from time to time and check that file.

If the server is invisible from internet and you own a visible web server somewhere, you can create automated script on the server to get some page (even non existing one) from the web server and monitor web server's log files for the pattern.

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