IT331 Week 10
Gifts of Fortune Enterprises currently has a network comprising of five desktop computers, a single laptop, dot matrix printer and one laser printer that is connected to Kyle’s assistant’s computer. It is notable that only two computers are directly connected to the internet for the entire company. The only switch available has eight ports that can only support eight devices. The company depends on the two computers for network research and one computer for printing purposes. The warehouse employees are not able to communicate to main office employees through the internet since their machines are not the internet and for printing to be done, it takes a long time to complete.
Considerations
New network requirements have been initiated in order to expand the network and improve network security. The improvements should be completed at a low cost. Therefore, a lean network is recommended for this business and its expansion and replacement of the old network. It is important to add 5 more laptops in the main office and 3 desktops in the warehouse. This can be done by taking three desktops from the main office and adding 12 laptops/desktop computers instead. This way, only 18 laptops/desktop computers will be purchased in order to cut the cost. 13 new laptops should be purchased for sales representatives and new employees are making it a total of 18 laptops/desktop computers. HP laptops are capable of providing 8 GB ram, 1.8 GHz processor, 1 Terabyte for storage, Windows 8.1 and a DVD drive.
The total estimate for purchasing these 18 laptops/desktops is $4840.50. In addition, the database server, antivirus server, email server and intrusion detection and prevention server can be purchased alongside firewalls that would be used in the warehouse and the main office. Three switches and two routers can also be added to the network in order to enhance network security. Net-gear can be purchased at about $85 with one additional laser printer at the warehouse to serve the 18 employees and allow for more. Virtual Private Network (VPN) connectivity should be made available for Kyle, his assistant, two sales rep and warehouse manager. These five should be in a position to connect to the VPN network that is directly configured to office database.
One of the servers should be configured for the antivirus in order to protect all the network devices from being corrupted either internally or externally. The total amount that can be used to buy 18 laptops, 5 servers, 3 switches, 2 routers and Ethernet cables alongside VPN services can cost approximately $15,000. Internet cloud is essential for information security, accessibility and physical disasters that may occur such as fire outbreak, earthquakes, and storm. With current network systems and developed technology, it is prudent to note that if the above devices and system is adopted, information security will be a guarantee. The general organization productivity will improve, and half the employees will be able to access the internet and ensure data is stored in VPN server and internal servers for accessibility (Gordijn, 2001). There are advantages and disadvantages of a system upgrade.
Advantages of the upgrade include accessibility of laptops and desktops to the internet and other shared resources such as the printers, improved information security through the use of Firewalls and VPN servers and also improves internal communication between employees. Faster internet speeds will be appreciated due to new protocols being used in the network.
Disadvantages include; security issues on outdated software in old machines, use of old desktop machines with new laptops will bring compatibility issues, and use of security prone desktop machines can cause challenges.
Problem Solution
In order to completely improve the network system for Gift of Fortune Enterprises, both wired and wireless network should be adopted, and they should be ready to get rid of old machines and purchase a new one for the replacement and improvement purposes. Local Area Network is their optimal solution, especially for their expanded business. Assuming that the company will retain the same building for their operation (Network, 2003), Ethernet cabling is the way to go for the new setup. If it were possible that a complete overhauled of old systems are done away with, and new infrastructure is put in place, it would be recommended to set up all office employees online and half warehouse employees alongside all sales employees in order to improve productivity.
In the meantime, the company uses a peer-to-peer network connection, but new network requirement will adopt client/server network infrastructure where all computers are connected to the server rather than each other as before. Previously, data and information were being stored on individual computers, but for the new network, data would be stored on two different servers, VPN server and data servers for easy accessibility and security purposes (Gordijn, 2001). The company has also adopted CRM database application in order to track their customers and orders. This means that CRM system should be mobile and easily accessible.
Devices such as; routers, Ethernet switches, Ethernet cables, servers, firewall and VPN are necessary when designing the new network. Intrusion detection servers are necessary to prevent intruders from accessing the network at any time (Dunkels et al., 2004). Since e-commerce is completely done online, backup systems are also necessary for this new design. Online backup systems are always important in any network.
Proposal
It is important to consider the fact that there are large differences between a LAN and a WAN on their physical layouts. In this case, a LAN is fairly straightforward since it can use both Wi-Fi and Ethernet cables that are often significant especially on higher information transmission speed (Network, 2003). LAN is suitable for small business and helps because of their transfer rates, hardware, connection types, costs and flexibility. In this case, the main office and the warehouse are in a single building hence makes it possible to use Ethernet in connection and VPN for a special group within the company in order to secure company information. Critical information can only be accessed by know individuals.
Cloud-based services are necessary for Kyle’s company since they deal with a large customer and employee base. In order to respond to customers in good time and trace orders, faster and accessible network infrastructure is a must. Software as a Service (SAAS) could be a better option rather than oracle or SAP on a short term basis due to finance constraints. For the time being, the company can adopt SAAS and utilize the same until all the company is stable so that they can adopt oracle or SAP as an enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) (Dunkels et al., 2004). With additional entities such as school fundraiser division and e-commerce website, and additional 14 more employees, the network expansion is necessary but bringing in a new idea of a complete overhaul of the old system is a prudent idea.
Therefore, I can recommend a complete overhaul of the old system and only retain working devices such as the two laptops, printers and maybe desktop machines as a backup. Every employee should have his/her machine in order to access the internet and be able to access his/her emails. This will ensure that the new upgrade is beneficial to all the company employees and also promote e-commerce. A LAN can take over 200 employees, and in this case, there is only less than 50 employees meaning it are within a required number. Different employees can be connected using the switches so for expansion purposes, the more the number of employees, the increased number of switches.
Solution Summary
Based on the first proposal of fewer machines with employees sharing was to reduce the cost of implementation. However, if the company is capable of purchasing desktop machines for all their employees or even laptops, it could be prudent. This proposal is good for creating user rights for two employees in one machine, or even three employees are not effective more so when the company is embracing e-commerce. Ethernet switches and cabling is the best option for the sake of speed (Marau, 2006). LANs can still be expanded with the introduction of new switches that have more ports, unlike the current one that only has 8 ports. Some switches can even support up to 32 ports even more. Some routers come with the firewall but are good to have specific firewalls such as ZyXEL ZyWALL for VPN server and other servers used for storing important files including employee emails and information.
Work Cited
Dunkels, A., Feeney, L. M., Grönvall, B., & Voigt, T. (2004). An integrated approach to developing sensor network solutions. In Proceedings of the Second International Workshop on Sensor and Actor Network Protocols and Applications. Retrieved from: < http://www.dunkels.com/adam/sanpa2004.pdf>
Gordijn, J., Akkermans, H., & Van Vliet, J. (2001). Designing and evaluating e-business models. IEEE intelligent Systems, 16(4), 11-17. Retrieved from: < http://citeseerx.ist.psu.edu/viewdoc/download?doi=10.1.1.202.8264&rep=rep1&type=pdf>
Marau, R., Almeida, L., & Pedreiras, P. (2006). Enhancing real-time communication over costs ethernet switches. In WFCS (Vol. 6, pp. 295-302). Retrieved from: < http://citeseerx.ist.psu.edu/viewdoc/download?doi=10.1.1.384.188&rep=rep1&type=pdf>
Network, M. Y. O. (2003). OSPF network design solutions. Retrieved from: < http://docstore.mik.ua/cisco/pdf/OSPF Network Design Solutions.pdf>
