The Management of Associated Benefits Company - Assignment Example

A NETWORK DESIGN FOR ASSOCIATED BENEFITS COMPANY 6 October 2011 A NETWORK DESIGN FOR ASSOCIATED BENEFITS COMPANY Introduction This document is a report from a computer network consultant to the management of Associated Benefits Company (a company in the medical industry) regarding the interconnection of its stand-alone computers through a local area network (LAN). The report is organized in a number of sections: a letter to the managing director explaining the reason to implement a LAN, a preliminary investigation report, equipment outline, costs table, physical building layout diagram, logical network diagram, physical network diagram, written justification, implementation plan, training schedule, and advice to incoming network administrator. 1. Letter to Manager Small-Medium Company Ville Street PO Box 1111 Melbourne 7 September 2011 Mr. Johnson Kitts Managing Director Associated Benefits Company PO Box 1235 Sydney 2000 Dear Mr. Johnson: I am writing this letter to show that indeed there is need to interconnect the 46 stand-alone computers within Associated Benefits Company through a local area network (LAN). A LAN would indeed facilitate the growth of the company in a number of ways. It would greatly reduce the gap between the various sections of the company. It would allow staff, managers and other stakeholders to quickly access information and programs stored in remote and different computers. It would make it possible to quickly and efficiently share programs and information among staff. A LAN would thus create a borderless environment regardless of the physical demarcation by floors, walls and sections of the company, while ensuring security of data and information. A properly setup LAN would improve the security of data and information. A number of security measures are available for computer networks to allow only authorized persons to access certain resources, while restricting access to unauthorized persons. Actually, the centralization of the system would allow easier administration, monitoring and control of data, information and other resources on the network. This would not be easy to achieve with stand-alone computers. The LAN would also provide benefits in terms reduced time wastage and reduced cost of operation. An employee at the reception area in first floor would not need to walk to the research and development section in third floor to access certain resources. In addition, storage of data and information in a central server would eliminate the need to store software on each an every client computer (Hughes, Kenny, Olekalns & Wilson, 2009). A LAN would also allow greater flexibility in the company because it increases the possibility of connecting devices from different vendors. It is also highly reliable as a means of storing and accessing resources because network resources can be accessed through multiple points. These benefits of LAN outweighs the cost its implementation in the long run. I therefore make a recommendation to Associated Benefits Company that the stand-alone computer system be replaced with a local area network. Your sincerely, The IT consultant 2. Preliminary Investigation Report a) Introduction The IT consultant has conducted a preliminary investigation report and uncovered a number of issues surrounding the system used by the Associated Benefits Company. The report concludes that it is valuable for the company to implement a LAN to replace the stand-alone computers system. b) Findings i) Existing issues The preliminary investigation reveals a number of issues in the Associated Benefits Company: The company has been using computers for several years but in a stand-alone setup. The current system (of stand-alone computers) is inefficient in several aspects: The speed of accessing resources located at remote computers is very low since personnel have to walk to different rooms and/or different floors. The decentralized nature of administration of the stand-alone computers is a source of security lapses. A consultant who had earlier surveyed the business practices of the company revealed that lack of a computer network infrastructure was greatly limiting the growth of the company. There are also concerns about the administration and security of a networked system and the resources within the network. ii) Existing hardware and software There are existing hardware (personal computers (PCS)) in the company’s premises. A total of 13 PCs are located at floor 1, which includes 1 PC at the reception area, 1 PC at the boardroom, and 11 PCs at the industry consulting section. At floor 2 there are 20 PCs - 7PCs at the finance section and 13PCs at the sales and marketing section. At floor 3 there are 13PCs – 11PCs at the research and development section and 2 PCs in the computing section. The existing software include application software for various tasks and desktop operating system which is installed on each PC. c) Conclusion and recommendation A LAN is indeed valuable for Associated Benefits Company. The stand-alone computers should be interconnected in a local area network (LAN). The LAN will need a server computer that can store large amount of data and process data quickly. Additional software will be installed to support the LAN platform. 3. Equipment Outline The following equipments are necessary for the implementation of the Associated Benefits Company local area network: One Router. Seven managed switches with 24 ports. 100Base-T Ethernet cables (twisted pair network cable). 126 RJ 45. 47 Network interface cards 46 Client computers. One server computer. Note that the 46 client computers are already available and therefore no need to purchase more personal computers. 4. Costs Table Table one below shows various network items that will be purchased for the ABC LAN. It includes the approximated quantity and cost of the items. Items that are already purchased before the design of the LAN are not included. Table 1 – Quantity and cost of items to purchase for the network Item Quantity unit price Total price 1. Cisco router 1 $442 (Umart, 2011 a). $442 2. Cisco managed switches 8 $140 (Getprice, 2011; Umart, 2011b) $1,120 3. RJ 45 126 $0.72 (Australia Computer Online, 2011). $90.72 4. Twisted pair cable 500 meters $3 (Australia Computer Online, 2011). $1500 5. Network interface card (NIC) 47 $20 (Australia Computer Online, 2011). $940 Total Cost &4,092.72 6. Physical Building Layout Diagram(s) Figure 1 - Floor 1 Building Layout Figure 2 - Floor 1 Building Layout Figure 3 - Floor 1 Building Layout 7. Logical Network Diagram 8. Physical Network Diagram 9. Written Justification Ethernet technology was chosen for the ABC LAN because of the many benefits it would have to the company. Specifically, the 100Base-T Ethernet or Fast Ethernet is preferred because it supports high speed data transfer (100 megabytes per second). One of the most valuable advantages of Ethernet is low cost. Actually, it is the least expensive alternative technology for implementing a high speed local area network (Gilbert, 1995). A bus-star mixed topology is implemented to allow the advantage of faster-bandwidth bus segments and the benefits of a star topology. The bus segments connects the longer distances – between the building floors and between the physical sections. Bus topology is inexpensive and a star topology is easy to manage. A router was installed on the network to enhance security of the network resources. For scalability reason and to allow multiple connections of devices to the network, switches with 24 ports were preferred. These managed switches are preferred over unmanaged switches so as to allow greater control of the LANs, including configuring, managing and monitoring the LAN and the switches themselves (Thomas, 2001, p.39). The network interface cards (NIC) are also necessary to allow the personal computers, laptops, and server to connect to the network. Cisco and D-Link brands for router and switches respectively are chosen because of their long history of reliability and support by the manufacturer (Fehmi et al, 2006, p.139). A server is necessary to allow central storage and access of the company’s network resources. The centralization allows easier administration and control of the network resources. A twisted-pair cable is selected to connect the devices because it allows reliable and relatively high speed connections and is the least expensive of the cables used in LANs. The prices of the personal computers are not listed on the cost table on the assumption that the existing PCs are adequate for the network. The information on laptops and other devices that are likely to be connected to the LAN, including prices of these components is also beyond the scope of this report. 10. Implementation Plan The implementation of the Associated Benefits Company LAN will be done in the following steps. Table 3 – Network implementation schedule Task Duration Person in charge 1. Preparation 2 days Project manager 2. Staffing and training 2 days Project manager 3. Network installation 3 days Project manager 4. Testing 1 day Project manager 5. Maintenance and training Network lifetime Incoming network administrator Step 1 – Preparations The initial phases involves preparation of the site and ensuring that tools and equipments to be used are available. Step 2 – staffing and training This stage involves assembling a team of experts for the project. It also includes initial training of the company’s staff. This training will provide basic information on the network, including how to use it. Step 3 – Installation of the network This step involves the actual installation of the network. This includes fixing of the network cables, fixing of network interface cards to PCs, physical connection of the network devices, and physical set up of the router, switches, server and terminals. It will also include various configurations, including configurations of routers and switches, and allocation of IP addresses to every devices on the network. Step 4 - Testing This phase will involve testing the network to makes sure that devices are communicating properly. The testing will look at both the logical and physical aspects of the networks such as proper configuration of IP addresses and masks, proper cable connections, and proper functioning of equipments. McCullough (2001, p.167) has noted that testing is an important step in the process of network implementation. Step 5 – Maintenance and Training The responsibility of maintaining the LAN will be left to the incoming network administrator. Maintenance will be a continuous process (Tomsho, Tittel & Johnson, 2007). The maintenance needs will dictate the kind of resources and experts to involve. More training will be conducted through the guidance of the internal network administrator on how to best utilize the LAN and enhance security of the network resources. 6. Training Schedule Table 2 below shows a simple training schedule for the ABC company staff who are the users of LAN. The training is conducted in the second step of the network implementation. Table 2 - A simple training schedule Training item Duration 1. The key changes of the old system 20minutes 2. Starting up the network 15 minutes 3. Accessing the network and password protection. 30 minutes 4. Loading programs and applications 30 minutes 5. Data storage and retrieval 30 minutes 6. Data backup 15 minutes 7. Virus detection and protection (Marchek, 2002, p.4). 20 minutes Two important documents will be provided by the network design team. A design manual will be provided for the incoming network administrator, while a users manual will be created for any user of the system. The design manual documents the design of the system and might be useful during maintenance of the system. The users manual provides guideline to users on how to access and use the network. 8. Advice to incoming Network Administrator The incoming Network Administrator must know a number of things to be able to maintain and run the network. First, the administrator must be conversant with each and every component of the network. He or she must be able to troubleshoot the network in case there is a problem. Therefore, the administrator must know the design and operation of the network. He or she must know the IP addressing and configurations on the network, and software used (Hughes, Kenny, Olekalns & Wilson, 2009). The administrator must also understand the users of the system and how to implement security policies. He or she should be able to allocate user accounts and passwords appropriately as well as know how to detect network threats and protect the network. 9. Conclusion This report is presented to the management of the Associated Benefits Company and highlights the need for a LAN in the company as well as provides information on the designs, implementation and management of the network. A letter to the managing director explains the reason to implement a LAN. The reports also includes a preliminary investigation report, an outline of equipment to purchase, costs of items to be purchased, physical layout of the building, logical and physical network diagram, written justification for the design an configurations of the network, an implementation plan, a training schedule, and advice to the incoming network administrator. References Australia Computer Online. (2011). Wired Network Cards. Retrieved on 5 October 2011 from http://www.computeronline.com.au. Fehmi, A.B., Luigi, I. L., Mercelo, D. A., Konstantin, K., Serge, F. (2006). On the feasibility of power control in current IEEE 802.11 devices. pp. 5 - 473. Getprice (2011). D-Link DES1024DG Networking Switch. Retrieved on 5 October from http://www.getprice.com.au/D-Link-DES1024DG-Networking-Switch.htm. Gilbert, H. (1995). Ethernet. Retrieved on 5 October 2011 from http://pclt.cis.yale.edu/pclt/COMM/ETHER.HTM. Hughes, K., Kenny, I., Olekalns, J., & Wilson, M. (2009). Software Essentials. (2nd edn.). NSW: Pearson Education Australia. Marchek, S. (2002). User Security Training: Protecting Today’s Network. Global Information Assurance Certification Paper. Retrieved on 7 October 2011 from http://www.giac.org/paper/gsec/1469/user-security-training-protecting-todays-network/102746. Mawson, D. (2000). Installation and Configuration of Software. Sydney: Software Publications. McCullough, A. (2001). Designing a wireless network. Waltham, USA: Syngress. Thomas, M. (2001). Cisco Internetwork Design. New York, NY: McGraw-Hill Professional. Tomsho, G., Tittel, E., & Johnson, D. (2007). Guide to Networking Essentials. (5th edn.). USA: Thomson Course Technology. Umart (2011 a). Cisco 877 Security Router(CISCO877-K9). Retrieved on 5 October from http://www.umart.com.au/pro/products_listnew.phtml?id=10&id2=122&bid=4&sid=70359. Umart (2011b). D-Link DES-1024R+ 24 Port Switch rackmount. Retrieved on 5 October from http://www.umart.com.au/pro/products_listnew.phtml?id=10&id2=121&bid=2&sid=19653. Read More