Analyzing Network Positives & Negatives
-Redundant runs of fiber optic and CAT5 UTP cables ensure a continuous connection, even if one line goes down. This also makes possible expansion and growth.
-The “Hubs Go Home!” attitude leaves a pure switched LAN, resulting in dedicated bandwidth and superior performance.
-Access Control Lists increase security against hackers and other unwanted traffic from the internet. ACLs will protect the network from unauthorized access.
Network is scalable
- Can easily achieve 300% growth without any major design changes.
-Each classroom has 4 100Mbps data drops, 2 of which are used:
1 for the teachers workstation
1 for 24 workstations via a 24 port switch
-Student workstations per classroom could be tripled by attaching the 2 free data drops to 2 more 24 port switches making each class capable of hosting 72 students, a 300% increase.
-Also, although all rooms are currently wired, not all rooms currently have computers in them. All that would be required for these rooms to be accessible to another 25 computers is one switch per room.
Network is Efficient
-Fast Ethernet 100Mbps
Supports multiple routed protocols
-Internet Protocol (IP)
-Novell IPX
Enabled IGRP Routing
-More metrics than RIP
-Rapid convergence
-IGRP stability
-Holddown timers
-Split horizons
-Poison reverse updates
Network Negatives:
-Although the “Hubs Go Home!” attitude left us with a switched, more superior network, it also left the Washington School District with less money in its pocket.
-Single points of failure between the router and switches.
-We didn’t sleep because we were the ones actually designing the network. In the future, we should all have interns to do this kind of stuff.
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