Patent ID: 7603460

Claim:
A computer-readable storage medium including computer-executable instructions facilitating diagnosis of communications problems experienced by a first wireless device in a wireless network, wherein the first wireless device is either a wireless computing device or a wireless access point, the computer-executable instructions executing on the first wireless device and performing the steps of: determining that a communications problem exists in the wireless network; broadcasting a request to one or more neighboring wireless devices for assistance in diagnosing the communications problem, wherein the neighboring wireless devices that hear the request for assistance switch to an eavesdropping mode; responding to diagnostic session requests sent by a second wireless device in a diagnostic session; and receiving information about the diagnostic session from at least one of the neighboring wireless devices in the eavesdropping mode, which serves as an eavesdropping client, the information about the diagnostic session based on monitoring, by the eavesdropping client, of times of receipt of the diagnostic session requests sent by the second wireless device to the first wireless device and of times of receipt of corresponding diagnostic session responses sent by the first wireless device to the second wireless device, the received information about the diagnostic session facilitating diagnosis of the communications problem.