Network Infrastructure Setup Report for Fayetteville, NC Office

by | Aug 18, 2024 | Marketing

Scenario
Throughout this course, you have been writing various reports as parts of Milestones One and Two for an advertising firm that is opening a new office in Fayetteville, NC.

This mid-size advertising firm already has offices in Albany, NY, and Springfield, MA. The Albany headquarters is home to the executive team and 150 employees. The headquarters also stores the corporate data and is the corporate internet backbone. It hosts the IT department that centrally manages all LAN services, including the wireless LAN. The IT department also manages the wide area network (WAN) that connects the two offices via site-to-site virtual private network (VPN) tunnels. The Springfield office hosts about 50 employees. Approximately 50% of these employees are mobile, defined as traveling more than 80% of the time.

To hire and retain the best talent, the firm allows employees to work from home. This removes the constraint that employees have to live within commuting distance from the firms offices. Remote and mobile employees are provided access to the corporate network via a VPN client. The VPN client requires employees to have access to reliable internet services to allow for effective collaboration across teams and for access to media content. The company provides all employees with a laptop with full disk encryption, data loss prevention (DLP), and antivirus software. The IT department manages all corporate laptops and has the ability to log into all systems for support. This means that all laptops are centrally managed by the one IT department.

Due to an increase in opportunities for expansion to new markets, the firm has embarked on an initiative to hire and train new college graduates for the companys Future Vision program. Future Vision focuses on expansion beyond the regional northeast footprint. The initiative is to hire graduates into the marketing, finance, and IT departments. You were hired as part of the Future Vision program and have been working at this for some time now. You have spent a considerable portion of your time troubleshooting and analyzing the organizations computer network to keep it running smoothly. Your direct supervisor and lead network administrator have been very impressed with your skills and fast learning abilities.

To determine whether you are ready to take on more responsibility, you have been asked for your input regarding the new Fayetteville, NC, office setup project. Your task is to conduct research on this area and deliver a report to the team with key considerations and recommendations for the setup of the network infrastructure. The Fayetteville office will be home to 50 employees, including the new executive vice president of sales and marketing. All the possible sites have offices located in an office building with access to fiber, cable, and T1 internet service providers. In addition to the standard network, the site must support live video teleconferencing calls with employees based at the other sites. It must also reliably send print jobs to billboard printers located in the company headquarters in Albany.

Directions
The primary goal of the project is to consolidate your findings from Milestones One and Two and compose a succinct and complete solution that you will present to the firms executive leadership team about the type of network they should design and implement at the new location.

It is recommended that you incorporate the feedback you received from your instructor on Milestones One and Two. You can use this feedback to succinctly refine your recommendations into a polished report.

Specifically, the following areas must be addressed in the report for the project:

Key Considerations
Explain your key considerations for the project.
Explain the OSI stack in relation to a modern communications network and how it influenced your network design.
Describe the important IP range considerations for a company of your size.
Summarize, in your own language, the strategic goals of the company, and detail how the network solution you are presenting aligns with these goals.
Remember that these key considerations were addressed in Milestone One:
Communications media and mode of data transport for the new network
Common network hardware components for this new location
In addition, you can make relevant changes to your report based on your instructors feedback from Milestone One.
LAN Topology
In Milestone One, you described the LAN topology possibilities and the strengths and weaknesses.
Provide your final revised solution for optimal support that may include any feedback from the instructor from previous milestones.
Internet Service Provider
In Milestone Two, you described the possible ISP solutions available to meet the needs of the company in its new location. The section was based on your research into actual providers at the Fayetteville, NC, location.
This section should include an explanation as to how the chosen internet provider meets the business goals and objectives of the firm.
Provide your solution, along with any feedback from the instructor.
Hardware and Software, Printer, and Bandwidth: In this section, you will include these additional parts from Milestone Two in your report. You can use your diagram from Milestone Two as a starting point for these three items.
Explain your proposed hardware and software solutions to meet the needs of the new office location.
Describe your printer configuration solutions to meet the distance printing needs of the new office location.
This could include considerations for tracking devices, automating driver distribution, and controlling access.
Explain your bandwidth and device solutions to meet the teleconferencing needs of the new office location.
Potential Errors: In this section, you will discuss common network errors and how your proposed solution will minimize and address these issues.
Based on your previous report, anticipate common network errors that the new location may encounter.
Describe effective troubleshooting approaches to the errors you identified, such as problem isolation, trace routing, and pinging.
Explain how these approaches would ensure the resolution of the errors. Be sure your response is specific to the business location.
Additional Considerations: In this section, you will make recommendations for industry standard documentation for ongoing network support.
Identify options for network monitoring that includes maintenance for network hardware and software (for example, port scanning, interface monitoring, packet flow monitoring, etc.).
Identify patch management options that will help acquire, test, and install multiple patches on existing applications.
Describe how you will control inventory, including how to discover and track assets on your network.

 

Sample solution

Dante Alighieri played a critical role in the literature world through his poem Divine Comedy that was written in the 14th century. The poem contains Inferno, Purgatorio, and Paradiso. The Inferno is a description of the nine circles of torment that are found on the earth. It depicts the realms of the people that have gone against the spiritual values and who, instead, have chosen bestial appetite, violence, or fraud and malice. The nine circles of hell are limbo, lust, gluttony, greed and wrath. Others are heresy, violence, fraud, and treachery. The purpose of this paper is to examine the Dante’s Inferno in the perspective of its portrayal of God’s image and the justification of hell. 

In this epic poem, God is portrayed as a super being guilty of multiple weaknesses including being egotistic, unjust, and hypocritical. Dante, in this poem, depicts God as being more human than divine by challenging God’s omnipotence. Additionally, the manner in which Dante describes Hell is in full contradiction to the morals of God as written in the Bible. When god arranges Hell to flatter Himself, He commits egotism, a sin that is common among human beings (Cheney, 2016). The weakness is depicted in Limbo and on the Gate of Hell where, for instance, God sends those who do not worship Him to Hell. This implies that failure to worship Him is a sin.


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God is also depicted as lacking justice in His actions thus removing the godly image. The injustice is portrayed by the manner in which the sodomites and opportunists are treated. The opportunists are subjected to banner chasing in their lives after death followed by being stung by insects and maggots. They are known to having done neither good nor bad during their lifetimes and, therefore, justice could have demanded that they be granted a neutral punishment having lived a neutral life. The sodomites are also punished unfairly by God when Brunetto Lattini is condemned to hell despite being a good leader (Babor, T. F., McGovern, T., & Robaina, K. (2017). While he commited sodomy, God chooses to ignore all the other good deeds that Brunetto did.

Finally, God is also portrayed as being hypocritical in His actions, a sin that further diminishes His godliness and makes Him more human. A case in point is when God condemns the sin of egotism and goes ahead to commit it repeatedly. Proverbs 29:23 states that “arrogance will bring your downfall, but if you are humble, you will be respected.” When Slattery condemns Dante’s human state as being weak, doubtful, and limited, he is proving God’s hypocrisy because He is also human (Verdicchio, 2015). The actions of God in Hell as portrayed by Dante are inconsistent with the Biblical literature. Both Dante and God are prone to making mistakes, something common among human beings thus making God more human.

To wrap it up, Dante portrays God is more human since He commits the same sins that humans commit: egotism, hypocrisy, and injustice. Hell is justified as being a destination for victims of the mistakes committed by God. The Hell is presented as being a totally different place as compared to what is written about it in the Bible. As a result, reading through the text gives an image of God who is prone to the very mistakes common to humans thus ripping Him off His lofty status of divine and, instead, making Him a mere human. Whether or not Dante did it intentionally is subject to debate but one thing is clear in the poem: the misconstrued notion of God is revealed to future generations.

 

References

Babor, T. F., McGovern, T., & Robaina, K. (2017). Dante’s inferno: Seven deadly sins in scientific publishing and how to avoid them. Addiction Science: A Guide for the Perplexed, 267.

Cheney, L. D. G. (2016). Illustrations for Dante’s Inferno: A Comparative Study of Sandro Botticelli, Giovanni Stradano, and Federico Zuccaro. Cultural and Religious Studies, 4(8), 487.

Verdicchio, M. (2015). Irony and Desire in Dante’s” Inferno” 27. Italica, 285-297.

Sample Answer

Sample Answer

 

Network Infrastructure Setup Report for Fayetteville, NC Office

Executive Summary

This report presents a comprehensive plan for the network infrastructure setup of the new Fayetteville, NC office of our advertising firm. The proposed solution aims to streamline operations, enhance communication capabilities, and support the company’s strategic goals of expansion and innovation. The recommendations are grounded in research and analysis of relevant technologies and methodologies to ensure an efficient and scalable network.

Key Considerations

1. Communications Media and Transport Mode

The new office will utilize fiber optic internet connectivity due to its high bandwidth capabilities and reliability, particularly essential for live video teleconferencing and large data transfers. The internal network will employ Ethernet cabling (Cat6 or higher) for LAN connections, ensuring optimal speed and minimizing latency.

2. OSI Model Influence

The OSI (Open Systems Interconnection) model is crucial in designing a modern communications network. Each layer of the OSI model impacts design decisions:

– Physical Layer: Fiber optics and Ethernet cables will be used.
– Data Link Layer: Ethernet protocols will govern LAN operations.
– Network Layer: IP addressing and routing protocols (like OSPF) will determine device communication paths.
– Transport Layer: TCP will enable reliable data transmission for applications.
– Application Layer: Software solutions (e.g., VoIP, video conferencing tools) will operate here.

Understanding the OSI stack ensures compatibility and efficiency in communication across the network.

3. IP Range Considerations

Given that the firm will have approximately 50 employees in Fayetteville, an appropriate IP range must be designated. A private IP address space (e.g., 192.168.1.0/24) can accommodate up to 254 devices, providing sufficient room for current and future growth. This range offers security while enabling effective internal communication.

4. Strategic Alignment

The strategic goals of the firm include expanding into new markets while retaining talent and fostering a collaborative work environment. The proposed network infrastructure aligns with these goals by:

– Facilitating remote work capabilities through robust VPN access.
– Supporting real-time collaboration via video conferencing setups.
– Ensuring efficient data management and retrieval processes for remote employees.

LAN Topology

After evaluating various topology options, I recommend a star topology for the new Fayetteville office. This setup involves connecting all devices to a central switch, enhancing reliability and performance:

Strengths:

– Ease of Troubleshooting: Isolated faults without affecting the entire network.
– Scalability: Easy to add new devices without disrupting existing connections.

Weaknesses:

– Central Point of Failure: If the central switch fails, all connections go down. However, redundancy solutions can mitigate this risk.

Internet Service Provider (ISP)

Research indicates that several ISPs provide fiber optic services in Fayetteville, NC. Based on reliability, speed, and service quality, Spectrum Business is recommended. Their services meet the following business goals:

– High Bandwidth: Supports video conferencing needs.
– Reliability: Minimizes downtime, ensuring continuous operations.
– Scalability: Easily upgradeable plans to accommodate future growth.

Hardware and Software Solutions

Proposed Hardware

1. Cisco Catalyst Switches: For managing internal traffic efficiently.
2. Wireless Access Points (WAPs): Cisco Aironet series for robust wireless coverage.
3. Firewall (e.g., Fortinet): To secure the network against external threats.

Proposed Software

1. VPN Client (Cisco AnyConnect): For secure remote access.
2. Collaboration Tools (Microsoft Teams/Zoom): For video conferencing and team collaboration.
3. Network Monitoring Software (SolarWinds): For real-time monitoring of network performance.

Printer Configuration Solutions

To address the distance printing needs:

1. Networked Printers: Establish network printers in Fayetteville that connect directly to the corporate network for seamless access.
2. Print Server Setup: A dedicated server to manage print jobs from remote locations efficiently.
3. Access Control: Implement printer permissions based on user roles to ensure secure printing.

Bandwidth and Device Solutions for Teleconferencing

To support teleconferencing:

1. Dedicated Internet Bandwidth: Allocate a portion of the ISP’s bandwidth specifically for video conferencing applications to ensure quality.
2. Quality of Service (QoS): Implement QoS policies on routers to prioritize teleconferencing traffic over other data types, ensuring minimal latency.

Potential Errors and Troubleshooting Approaches

Common Network Errors

1. Connectivity Issues: Devices unable to connect to the network.
2. Latency Problems: Delays in data transmission affecting video quality.
3. Print Job Failures: Print jobs not reaching printers.

Troubleshooting Approaches

1. Problem Isolation: Determine if issues are localized or widespread (e.g., testing individual devices).
2. Trace Routing: Use traceroute commands to identify where data packets are being delayed or lost along the network path.
3. Pinging: Regularly ping devices to check connectivity status.

These troubleshooting methods will ensure rapid resolution of network issues, minimizing downtime and enhancing productivity.

Additional Considerations for Ongoing Network Support

Network Monitoring Options

1. Port Scanning: Regular scans to identify unauthorized devices on the network.
2. Interface Monitoring: Track performance metrics of network interfaces to identify potential bottlenecks.

Patch Management

Implement automated patch management solutions (e.g., WSUS for Windows environments) to continuously acquire and deploy updates across devices, ensuring security and performance.

Inventory Control

Utilize asset management software (e.g., SolarWinds or Spiceworks) to discover and track devices on the network effectively, maintaining an up-to-date inventory for troubleshooting and planning purposes.

Conclusion

The proposed network infrastructure for the new Fayetteville office is designed to meet current operational needs while allowing for future growth as part of the firm’s strategic expansion goals. By focusing on reliable connectivity, efficient hardware/software solutions, and proactive monitoring/troubleshooting methods, this plan aims to foster a collaborative work environment that supports both remote and on-site employees effectively.

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