Ethernet device

An Ethernet device comprising a transceiver and one or more processors, the Ethernet device configured to:

• transmit a request message to a statically-configured second Ethernet device on an Ethernet network, wherein the request message is encoded according to a layer-2 protocol and a payload of the request message comprises a request for a second device network configuration from the second Ethernet device;
• receive a reply message from the second Ethernet device, wherein the reply message is encoded according to the layer-2 protocol and a payload of the reply message includes the second device network configuration of the second Ethernet device;
• compare the second device network configuration to a local device configuration of the Ethernet device;
• and
• route a diagnostic signal based on a mismatch between the second device network configuration and the local device configuration.

A computer-implemented method for controlling an Ethernet device and diagnosing network configuration errors, the method comprising:

• causing transmission of a request message from the Ethernet device to a statically-configured second Ethernet device on an Ethernet network, wherein the request message is encoded according to a layer-2 protocol and a payload of the request message comprises a request for a second device network configuration from the second Ethernet device;
• obtaining a reply message received by the Ethernet device from the second Ethernet device, wherein the reply message is encoded according to the layer-2 protocol and a payload of the reply message includes the second device network configuration of the second Ethernet device;
• comparing the second device network configuration to a local device configuration of the Ethernet device;
• and
• routing a diagnostic signal based on a mismatch between the second device network configuration and the local device configuration.