computer networking: network design & architecture

8/12/2019 Computer Networking: Network Design & Architecture

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Running Head: Network Design & Architecture Proposal

Computer Networking:

Network Design & Architecture

February 12, 2014


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2Network Design & Architecture Proposal

2014 N2IT4U Wichita, KS All rights reserved

(Document Source Information: Heffron-Blake, Darla. (2014, February).Computer Networking:

Network Design & Architecture. Wichita, KS: N2IT4U, Retrieved #DATE#, From http://______

Contents

Project Outline .................................................................................................................... 3

Distributed Network Requirements Analysis ..................................................................... 5

Communication Protocols Analysis and Recommendations .............................................. 7

The OSI Model ................................................................................................................ 8

The TCP/IP Model ........................................................................................................ 10

Advantages, Disadvantages, and Recommendations .................................................... 13

Network Traffic Analysis and Recommendations ............................................................ 15

Bandwidth and Consumption ........................................................................................ 17

Network Congestion and Control Algorithms .............................................................. 18

Network Design and Architecture .................................................................................... 20

The Infrastructure .......................................................................................................... 20

Software ........................................................................................................................ 23

Cloud Computing .......................................................................................................... 23

Future Needs Analysis and Recommendations ................................................................. 25

References ......................................................................................................................... 26


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Project Outline

In 2006 I bought a domain name, in hopes of starting a web development business tocreate and host websites for individuals and small businesses. Time went on and career changes

left me with little to no time to work on creating a solid structure for this business. However, in

hopes of stepping foot in the right direction, Id like to research, develop and regain the

knowledge needed to make this dream a reality. I plan for this business to expand to have servers

in several locations to hold the information my customers will need to be competitive and

productive. The distribution of systems will create a better means of communication without the

hassle of excessive travel, and the ability to troubleshoot and teleconference with clients and

employees will allow me to keep costs low.

Though this organization is currently just a hypothetical business, I project it has the

potential to expand and reach a global customer base. I want to start off a little grounded with

very few clientele and later work to expand with employees in California, New York, Texas,

Washington, and of course here in Kansas. I want to see this business really take off within the

next two to five years, depending of course on the costs and allowable time to build and maintain

it. Therefore, through this project, I intend to gather the necessary information about distributed

networks, communication protocols, network traffic, network design and architecture, and the

possible requirements to maintain a strong, competitive edge for the future of my company.

Distributed networking will allow the company to expand globally by letting our users

access the information they need from their own locations as I will explain in the next section.

However, in building the appropriate network, I must examine other required information such

as communication protocols. So that my customers have a speedy and pleasant experience

communicating with my system(s), I must also examine the appropriate requirements for

network traffic. I would not want unhappy customers due to them not being able to access theinformation they need in an efficient and rather effective manner. Next I will need to have a

network design in mind. This network structuring, or architecture, will allow me to create a fully

functioning network with the potential to span the globe. With this research and development of


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information obtained, I will have a great start to building the web development business of the

future.


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Distributed Network Requirements Analysis

Distributed networks are, in its most general terms, a group of computers connected

together over many networks providing a single line of communication to retrieve data. The use

of a distributed network allows the processing of data to be easily accessible for many client

systems and allows for processing of data to be spread throughout the network. A network in and

of itself is a group of computing devices: computers, printers, servers, etc. A distributed network

allows many of these components to be connected over the internet to process vast amounts of

data and allows the processing of that data to occur at many different locations, not just on the

machine you happen to be working on at the time (Techopedia, 2010).

Distributed computing systems are a collection of independent computers that appear to

its users to be a single system. A couple of examples of distributed systems are the internet and

intranets. The internet of course is the net of nets where everyone has global access to data, and

services with no single authority. It is open ended meaning that it is so enormous that one could

spend a lifetime scanning the internet and never come to the end of its boundaries. An intranet is

a collection of computing devices like computers, printers, routers, switches, and servers that can

communicate with each other on a smaller scale without having to get out onto the internet toprocess their data. Local area networks or LANs are a great example of distributed computing

systems via an intranet (Techopedia, 2010).

The most recent example of distributed systems is the mobility and ubiquitous computing

system. By embedding microprocessors in everyday devices, we now have refrigerators that

create shopping lists for us, watches that give us up to the minute weather reports, and of course

phones that can gather on location information for events that are happening in our specific area.

These systems are becoming ever more popular due to their convenience, popularity, and ease of

use. We are a society of instant gratification, therefore, the wave of ubiquitous computing has

exploded throughout the globe (Search, 2010). I believe this will be the most challenging part of

my research due the current lack of experience associated with mobile programming and mobile


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accessibility. With our society being one of instant gratification, my customers will gain an even

greater projected client base because of the use of this technology. I myself have experienced

being somewhere I have not been accustomed to being and had to search out on my mobile smart

phone directions to local restaurants, places to buy goods, and the less expensive places for

services. Most of us have a phone in hand on a daily basis and could not even tell someone

where the nearest Yellow Pages is located. Better even, web pages not only provide information

to the customers on the name, address and contact information, they provide daily specials,

useful tips and tricks, embedded map generators that provide turn-by-turn directions on how to

get to their location. It just makes sense to be on the web.

The importance of distributed networks is to allow more clients the access to data quickly

and more effectively. We also have the ability to stretch out to other companies, other cities,

states and countries to obtain the information we need. In utilizing distributed systems and

distributed networks, businesses can expand their client base, companies can process more

information and the amount of data to be passed back and forth between companies and

consumers is no longer limited to catalogs, order forms, and snail mail.

Some of the challenges of creating or establishing a distributed system and distributed

networking is the age and ability of some of its pieces. Some networks within the system may

not be protected or even compatible with other pieces. Some may even be so old that theinformation needing to pass will not be retrieved due to the complexity of its request. Updating

systems to accommodate such traffic within the system could be costly and unrealistic to

achieve. However, the benefits potentially outweigh the challenges based on the vast amount of

new consumers companies would gain from the upgrades (Usenix, 1999).


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Communication Protocols Analysis and Recommendations

In order to provide an analysis or a recommendation on communication protocols, I mustfirst gather information on what a communication protocol actually is. In doing so, I have taken

to the web, our book, and previous books I have examined in the past to find the required

information. In the simplest terms, a protocol is the way in which data is communicated back and

forth between systems. A protocol is defined in Tanenbaum as a set of rules governing the

format and meaning of the packets, or messages that are exchanged by the peer entities within a

layer (2011), simply put it is a set of rules used by communication devices, such as hardware

and/or software procedures, that allows communications to take place within a computer or

through a network (White, 2004). Information must meet certain criteria to be passed to and from

machines. Without meeting this criteria the information cannot be passed. Most systems will not

simply communicate directly to and from a single machine, the information will pass through

whats called a protocol stack. This is a list of protocols used bya certain system, one protocol

per layer (Tanenbaum, 2011), therefore, standards have been developed over the years to handle

the communication of information from machine to machine, or system to system.

These standards were developed to provide the appropriate rules and regulations for

information to pass or communicate, more so with all the different and complicated systems that

are so widespread and located globally, these standards play a huge part in allowing the

communication of information to process error free and without complication or congestion,

which I will explain later in this project. Network architecture is a communications model that

sets up layers for information to pass through. It consists of the philosophy and concept for

enabling communications between multiple locations and multiple systems. The goal of network

architecture is to promote an open, simple, flexible and efficient telecommunications

environment by using, among other standard equipment and interfaces, standard protocols(Blume, 2010). When a command is sent through the system, it will pass through several layers

before it is actually sent out to another system to complete the communication loop. Two very

popular architectures that are currently in use are the OSI model and TCP/IP model. These two


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architectures allow for message passing by adding routing information as headers, piecing

together packets of information so that the lines of data are easily sent and received, and by

making sure that the information is passed cleanly and effectively.

The OSI Model

The most basic standard in practice since the early to middle 70s has been the OSI

model. Developed by Honeywell Information Systems, headed by Mike Canepa and Charlie

Bachman for the purposes of distributed database development, the original seven layer

infrastructure was the 1977 result of collaborated work being done for IBMs system network

architecture (SNA), protocols for ARPANET, and concepts of presentation services in

development for standardized database systems; they had internally referred to it as distributed

systems architecture or DSA. In 1977, the British Standards Institute had proposed to the ISO

(International Organization of Standards) that suggested an international standard needed to be

developed for distributed systems. At that point is when the American National Standards

Institute (ANSI) was put to task to develop proposals to satisfy this need. Bachman and Canepa

joined in the development meetings held by the ISO. They provided their model and without

contest, after a bit of fine tuning, it was put into practice in June of 1979 (Stallings, 1998)

The current standard OSI (Open System Interconnection) model cannot be described as a

single process, but a layer of interconnected processing layers that determines how a

communication should and will be sent. The OSI model is the most commonly used model by

most all major computer and network vendors. It is comprised of seven layers being the physical

layer, the data-link layer, the network layer, the transport layer, the session layer, the

presentation layer, and the application layer.

The physical layer deals with the raw bits of data getting from point A to point B no matter

what condition they are in over the mechanical and electrical portion of the network medium,

the cable.


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The data-link layer handles putting together, or assembling, the data into single units or

blocks to allow for flow and error control. It is typically divided into two parts depending on

the need and use, Logical Link Control (LLC) and Medium Access Control (MAC).

The network layer establishes, maintains and terminates logical and/or physical connections

and is responsible for translating logical addresses into physical addresses. It also provides

network routing and flow control functions across the interface.

The transport layer makes sure that the data is successfully sent and received between the

two systems. If a transmission errors out, it has the responsibility to request the data be

resent.

The session layer decides when to end communication between systems. It also provides the

mechanisms that control data exchange and coordinates the interaction. The session layer is

also responsible for setting up and ending communication channels between two

communicating components.

The presentation layer performs all the code conversions and data reformatting so that the

data is in the correct form to be received by the receiving application.

The application layer provides the user interface between the software running in the

computer and the network. It also provides functions to the users software, including file

transfer access and management (FTAM) and electronic mail.


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Figure 1 below demonstrates the process of sending a simple message through the layers.

Figure 1: Networked computers communicating through the OSI model (Novell, 2013)

The TCP/IP Model


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Originally developed by the United States Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency

(DARPA or ARPA) in 1973, the TCP (transmission control program) model began its lifecycle

not as a means to process distributed information over the internet, but as a fully encompassing

protocol. However, it was discovered by Jon Postel in 1977 memo showing that this model was

performing too much and would eventuallybecome a nonfunctional entity. Postels memo stated

that TCP needed a few modification to perform swift and smooth functionality for the purposes

of transmitting information across the internet. He believed that the, at that time, current design

of internet protocols was violating the principles of layer by performing the host level end to end

protocol functions and by serving as an internet packaging and routing protocol. Postel suggested

dividing the functions of the TCP into a layered model following the example of the OSI model,

where TCP handles layer three activities and IP handles layer four activities of the OSI model for

use in communications across the internet. Which brings us to the current TCP/IP (Transmission

Control Protocol/Internet Protocol), version 4 developed in 1980 (Kozierok, 2005).

The TCP/IP model is interconnected with the OSI model in that a communication being

sent or received via the internet will have to process through these protocols at both ends of the

communication. As data moves through the layers, header information is added or removed for

compatibility purposes between systems over the network. The four layers of the TCP/IP model

are the network interface layer, the internet layer, the transport layer, and the application layer. The network interface layer is the lowest layer and is responsible for putting frames on

the wire and pulling frames off the wire. It is equivalent to the data-link layer of the OSI

model.

The internet layer provides three services a connectionless delivery service, a

mechanism to break data into individual packets or frames on the transmitting side and

put them back together on the receiving side, and the routing functions necessary to

interoperate with other networks. It is equivalent to the network layer of the OSI model.

The transport layer provides communication sessions between connected computers and

is responsible for error detection and correction. It is equivalent to the transport layer of

the OSI model.


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The application layer serves as a window for users and application processes to access

network services. It is equivalent to the application, presentation, and session layers of

the OSI model.

Figure 2 below shows the layers for both the TCP/IP model and the OSI model and how

they relate to each other.

Figure 2: TCP/IP model and OSI model side by side (DreamCloud, 2013)

Figure 3 shows each of the TCP/IP model layers in reference to the layout of the OSI

model. You can also see the protocols associated with each layer in reference to the transmission

of information over the internet.


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Figure 3: The TCP/IP Suite

Advantages, Disadvantages, and Recommendations

The main advantages of using TCP/IP across a distributed network is due to its ability to

provide compatibility with the internet. It allows for communication across interconnected

networks with different operating systems and hardware architectures. TCP/IP also provides for

routing support. Further advantages are that it is an industry standard and is not owned by one

single company or provider. TCP/IP has a scalable client/server architecture and it enables inter-

networking between organizations. However, some of the disadvantages of TCP/IP are that it can

be intricate to set up and manage, and difficult to administer, it can be slower than its newer


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counterparts in smaller LANs, and depending on the networking devices available, it can be a bit

costly in some network designs.

TCP/IP has been the backbone for internet transmission of data for decades and has been

manipulated in many cases for improvement from its beginnings at versions one, two and three.

Version four has been successfully assisting organizations, companies and individuals transmit

information over the internet for years, and with the newest format of version six opens up all

new possibilities for transmission control and information processing. I believe that the company

could greatly benefit from setting up a network platform structured around the concepts of the

OSI model and TCP/IP as a basis.


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Network Traffic Analysis and Recommendations

Blume defines network congestion as a condition when a communications link, path ornetwork, experiences a load that exceeds its capacity. Two most common congestion control

methods in distributed networks is the use of buffering and the discarding of data/packets. In the

more localized environment of a LAN, network segmentation is the preferred method by using

routers, switches and bridges to create more direct pathways for data to flow. This eliminates the

cause of the congestion from the get go. By doing so, larger more complex networks can be

divided up into smaller networks (Blume, 2010).

In order to better understand congestion in general we must first look at how these

devices that aide in prevention actually function. A router is an inter-network device that

connects networks together and determines how and when packets or messages are received. It is

also responsible for determining if those packets are meant for its LAN and if so, sends the

packets to the appropriate device. If those packets are not meant for its LAN, they are discarded,

keeping unnecessary traffic off of the LAN. A switch is a device that performs the multiple

functions of filtering, flooding, and transmitting of frames. Switches are not used to create inter-

connected networks, but are instead used to make the processing and functioning of the networks

better, faster, more efficient. Switches do not and cannot forward IP packets to other networks,

they can only switch frames between its ports. By default, each port of a switch is its own

individual collision domain. A bridge basically operates much like a switch, however, design

limitations make a switch much more effective for larger networks (Blume, 2010). Figure 4

below provides and visual explanation of the network routing and switching design.


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Figure 4: A visual example of network routing and switching (Adtran, 2013)

The use of routers and switches to aide in the elimination of network congestion has its

advantages and disadvantages. For example the advantages would include the ability to break up

larger networks and section the information out to direct feeds upon where the information needs

to go. Also, packets of information that are not intended to be processed on that network are

dropped so to eliminate unnecessary traffic on the network. That being said, these advantages

also create disadvantages. Logically speaking, I see dropped packets on faulty systems in my

current line of work all the time. It creates frustration for my customers. Usually has to do with

the quality of service and the quality of hardware feeding the information to the customers

network. However, in the case of routers and switches, the packets received by the equipment is

just received, sent, and passed along to where the packets tell it that it needs to go. If the coding

of the packet being directed does not have the correct information to determine an appropriate

location to be sent to, it is dropped and lost. This does not make for a very effective or efficient

means of processing information. Another disadvantage of using multiple routers and switches to


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divide larger networks into smaller networks is the cost in doing so. Routers and switches,

especially multiport, multiprocessing devices capable of moving information a record speeds is

very costly, depending on the amount of information a company needs to process. For my

business, trying to price out an effective and efficient model for any small business struggling in

the current economy would definitely be a hard sell. Therefore, it may be in my best interest to

determine exactly what types of information I will processing for myself and for clients, and

determine the potential causes of congestion on the networks I intend to create.

Bandwidth and Consumption

Network traffic and bandwidth consumption plays a huge role in the ease of operation for

businesses and consumers alike. I have experience in addressing customer complaints of slow

internet browsing. The best solution can be the least complicated fix, however, in dealing with

large networks, the simplest fix is not always the best solution. To determine the best solution I

will need to examine several key aspects of network traffic and address the major uses of the

distributed network one level at a time. It will be important to determine the requirements of my

distributed network based on the tasks that will be performed routinely. Video conferencing,

voice streaming, data transmission, and web hosting will be the four bandwidth consumers the

business will have to monitor for congestion. With this being a distributed network, the problem

of data being bottlenecked will be a greater possibility due to the amount of users trying to

access the information at the same time.

In order to communicate over the network via video conferencing, I will need adequate

bandwidth, traffic support in a dedicated class, call admission control for bandwidth

management, a multipoint conferencing unit or bridge, and management and monitoring of the

WAN vendor. I know that video conferencing sessions can consume extremely large amounts of

bandwidth, in some cases as much as 6 Mbps per call. In order to find the adequate amount of

bandwidth for video conferencing, determine the bandwidth of each call by comparing resolution

and frame rates over the settings that work best for the company. Next, determine the maximum


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number of concurrent calls being conducted simultaneously. Multiply the bandwidth by the

number of calls to get the required bandwidth for each network access link, then multiply that

number by the amount of links that are intended and that number is the required amount of

bandwidth needed for video conferencing.

Network Congestion and Control Algorithms

Blume defines network congestion as a condition when a communications link, path or

network experiences a load that exceeds its capacity. Two most common congestion control

methods in distributed networks is the use of buffering and the discarding of data/packets. In the

more localized environment of a LAN, network segmentation is the preferred method by using

routers, switches, and bridges to create more direct pathways for data to flow. This eliminates the

cause of the congestion from the get go. By doing so, larger more complex networks can be

divided up into smaller networks (Blume, 2010).

In order to better understand congestion in general we must first look at how these

devices that aide in prevention actually function. A router is an inter-network device that

connects networks together and determines how and when packets or messages are received. It is

also responsible for determining if those packets are meant for its LAN and if so, sends the

packets to the appropriate device. If those packets are not meant for its LAN, they are discarded,

keeping unnecessary traffic off of the LAN. A switch is a device that performs the multiple

functions of filtering, flooding, and transmitting of frames. Switches are not used to create inter-

connected networks, but are instead used to make the processing and functioning of the networks

better, faster, more efficient. Switches do not and cannot forward IP packets to other networks,

they can only switch frames between its ports. By default, each port of a switch is its own

individual collision domain. A bridge basically operates much like a switch, however, design

limitations make a switch much more effective for larger networks (Blume, 2010).

The use of routers and switches to aide in the elimination of network congestion has its

advantages and disadvantages. For example the advantages would include the ability to break up

larger networks and section the information out to direct feeds upon where the information needs


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to go. Also, packets of information that are not intended to be processed on that network are

dropped so to eliminate unnecessary traffic on the network. That being said, these advantages

also create disadvantages. Logically speaking, I see dropped packets on faulty systems in my

current line of work all the time. It creates frustration for my customers. Usually has to do with

the quality of service and the quality of hardware feeding the information to the customers

network. However, in the case of routers and switches, the packets received by the equipment is

just received, sent, and passed along to where the packets tells it it needs to go. If the coding of

the packet being directed does not have the correct information to determine an appropriate

location to be sent to, it is dropped and lost. This does not make for a very effective or efficient

means of processing information. Another disadvantage of using multiple routers and switches to

divide larger networks into smaller networks is the cost in doing so. Routers and switches,

especially multiport, multiprocessing devices capable of moving information a record speeds is

very costly, depending on the amount of information a company needs to process. For my

business, trying to price out an effective and efficient model for any small business struggling in

the current economy would definitely be a hard sell. Therefore, I need to determine other

effective avenues to keep congestion to a minimum to non-existent.

End-to-end congestion control requires the sender and receiver to provide some sort of

feedback information telling the sender that there is congestion and to slow down. In order tohave an efficient throughput of traffic, we cannot simply rely on the Transport Control Protocol

(TCP). The information gathered at just the end nodes of the system is not sufficient enough to

be effective in larger networks. Therefore, a need for a control mechanism like AQM, Active

Queue Management. These enlist the help of a single Explicit Congestion Notification (ECN) bit

placed in the packet header. This bit provides instant feedback to internet gateways about

potential congestion to the end users, or end nodes. Some additional processes for congestion

control are known as congestion control algorithms (CCAs). These algorithms include traffic-

aware routing, admission control, load shedding, and random early detection algorithms (RED).

Traffic-aware routing allows networks with peak times of use gain extra bandwidth from areas

with lower usage during non-peak times. If the packets being sent will cause the network to


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become congested, the use of admission control with block these packets from causing the

congestion, and if there is still too much traffic on a network and the congestion has yet to be

eliminated, load shedding can be used to dump packets and drop them from the network before

the limit of buffer space has been depleted. Similar to load shedding is random early detection,

similar in the sense that packets are dropped from a network transmission that will cause

congestion. Their difference, however, is that RED picks packets at random and sends a signal

back to the fastest senders for them to see the dropped packets (Tanenbaum, 2011).

Network Design and Architecture

In determining the appropriate setup, layout and overall design of the needed network

architecture for N2IT4U, recommendations for communications and network traffic must be

established. I will need to draw up a model of the network, provide a description, and give

substantial reasoning behind my decision. I will also need to define the necessary hardware and

software for this new design. Now because this is my business, I will need to make sure all

elements of this design are well within my budget. I will also need to determine an appropriate

time frame for implementation. With my goal being set for the next two to five years, I will have

a little bit of time to research the best and most cost effective hardware such as servers,

gateways, router, switches, and the newest development in network cabling, and the use of

mobile equipment. I also know that I will need to negotiate cost effective solutions for multiple

providers and create a little redundancy for the purposes of backup and network safeguarding.

My network should be fully functional 365 days per year regardless of service outages or carrier

issues.

The Infrastructure


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In order to design a network architecture that will be adequate for N2IT4U, it must be

able to transfer the appropriate amount of data with the least amount of congestion in the most

cost effective approach. I spoke earlier about the use of routers and switches, but did not touch

on mobility at that time. Mobile access to processes and information would be a valuable

advantage for N2IT4U.com. The ability to be mobile would allow our customers, clients and

employees gain the information that they need to function efficiently and effectively. With the

use of tablet devices rather than bulky stationary pcs, the ability to be mobile is a definite reality.

Our infrastructure will need to also allow for the applications on those tablets to store and

retrieve information quickly and efficiently at any given time. We use a similar process where I

currently work and with the use of iOS devices we are able to test, gather information, process

requests and function almost as effectively as we did when we were still using laptop computers

-- Toughbooks. I say almost because the iOS devices are limited and cannot be expanded in any

way to allow for the use of the same external devices we had available to use with rugged

computing devices. Another current downfall of these particular mobile devices is that they

require a service carrier such as AT&T, Verizon, Sprint, etc. to carry the data over cellular

towers to process the data. Mobile hot spots are not always readily available in more rural areas

and can create functionality issues with this particular type of equipment. However, the

correction of cellular imperfections is for a later time and discussion. For the purposes of thisproposal, we will assume cellular data is near perfect and can be accessed anywhere.

The figure below demonstrates a visual interpretation of a distributed network with

mobile elements. Each one of the little disconnected pods could represent a mobile hot spot or

a cellular tower. The larger blocks here represent the local LANs that branch out to other centers

or areas. This is a very good interpretation of the layout I would like to see my company grow to.

The larger blocks being the main hubs in Kansas, Texas, Washington, California, New York and

anywhere else we decide to branch out to. The smaller connected blocks are the

communication locations such as offices and server locations that house the information and

communications relays. The non-connected smaller blocks represent the mobile network of

data transfer capability I would like to see put in place for our mobile clients and customers. That


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all being said, this hardware version of the infrastructure needs the ability to process information

cleanly and effectively. Therefore, adequate security and software features must be put into place

to keep our information and hardware safe and secure.

Figure 5: Visual Example of a distributed network infrastructure with mobile nodes

In breaking down the costs and for the needed hardware, I took to the internet to browse

leading companies dealing with mass business networking equipment. Depending on the

capacity of switching and controlling to be done by the hardware specifically, the cost of

equipment ranges between around $500 to $25,000 each. I would like to have a little control over

MAC address handling and some hands on control and functionality. Some systems have this

control built in to be automatically controlled by the device, but those pieces of equipment are

well into the higher price ranges nearing $50 to $60,000. Maybe later on down the road, but for

right now, my eye is on the middle of the road with some functionality in cloud devices as well.

Cloud services are a lot more affordable, but have risky potentials that I may not be willing to

put all of my trust into at this point.


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Software

There are new companies out there like SalesForce.com, Workday, and NetSuite just to

name a few (Bort, 2013). These companies are becoming the wave of the future with their

software-as-a-service (SaaS) mantra. Salesforce.com charges $125 per month and billed annually

for its business and professional services and was the only company I found that publicly

advertised its pricing online. In starting out, the software requirements for this elaborate system

of distributed locations I plan to venture into might be better suited for portions of use in the

form of SaaS, especially for such a diverse range of customers and employees. We need as much

functionality as possible with the most mobile and accessible means of communication. The use

of cloud computing can lead us in the right direction without burning a gaping hole in my

pocketbook.

In searching for the best means to deliver my clients and employees the ability to work

with our information, I would also like to look towards mobility and cloud computing. These can

pose a great advantage for the expansion of the company to grow and be successful long into the

future.

Cloud Computing

Cloud computing is defined as a general term for anything that involves delivering hosted

services over the internet (TechTarget, 2010). As a whole, cloud computing IS distributed

computing in that all the consumer needs to access the information is a connection to the internet

and the device they so choose to access it with. Cloud computing can either be public or privatewhere public cloud provided services are sold to anyone on the internet and private services are

sold over a proprietary network or a data center that supplies hosted services to a very limited

number of people. These public clouds can also be purchased by businesses to create their own


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virtual private clouds. Either way, the intended goal of these cloud services is to provide

customers with easy access to resources they may otherwise not be able to obtain through

networking alone (TechTarget, 2010).

Forms of services provided via cloud computing are Infrastructure-as-a-Service (IssS),

Platform-as-a-Service (PaaS), and Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) as mentioned previously. IaaS,

often referred to as Utility Computing because of its on demand usage capability, is a means for

businesses to start, stop, access and configure virtual servers and storage on a use as you go

basis. PaaS is the tools necessary for businesses to provide software and product development

tools to their customers by hosing these products over their cloud infrastructure, however,

currently the software developed on this type of system is proprietary and cannot be moved from

the providers platform. So if its built here, it must stay here, th is is very good information to be

aware of. This could be very important if I choose to either host a cloud with PaaS, or subscribe

to PaaS via another providers system. SaaS is the most mobile of these defined services. The

provider supplies both the hardware and the software because these services range anywhere

from Web-based email to inventory control and database processing. The service provider hosts

the application and the data leaving the customer to the freedom of mobility as long as the device

they are using is capable of accessing the hardware and software the provider is offering

(TechTarget, 2010).


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Future Needs Analysis and Recommendations

The future of networking and computing is ever changing, and it is very rapid. The most

current of information shows that the advances in mobility and cloud computing are definitely

the future of pristine business flow and practice. In order for N2IT4U to be successful now and

many years into the future, it would be a wise move for me to make proper use of this cloud

technology, in IaaS and SaaS. What would be even more reasonable is to have a strong foothold

on hosting these technologies so that the costs outweigh the means. So for the business practices

of N2IT4U.com, I would strongly recommend looking into the use of servers capable of hosting

such services and the data I intend to provide to my customers on an on demand basis. I will also

need routers and other hardware and devices for my employees to process and maintain the

information I want to gather and process. That being said, with the I believe N2IT4U.com has

the potential to set foot in the right direction as being a leader in communications and

development, now and for years to come.


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References

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