Network Management

Network Infrastructure Basic Networking 101 Types of Computer Networks Basic Definitions of a Network  Properties of a Good Network Resources Understanding the basics of school district networks: Network Essentials for Superintendents `  6 Bandwidth Best Practices for Schools To Consider This Year  Writing the Classroom Rules:  An End-to-End Network for Delivering Broadband in Primary and Secondary School Environment Introduction to Computer Networks  Network Topology 1. Mesh Topology 2. Star Topology 3. Bus Topology 4. Ring Topology 5. Tree Topology Network Topology Slide Show Link: https://www.slideshare.net/keilandrascruggs/network-design-topology User Management Adding and removing users Hardware Management  Controlling Settings via Group Policy Types of Networks Peer-to-Peer Networks Client-Server Networks Disadvantages and Limitations Usage

Network Infrastructure

 

 

Basic Networking 101

 

Basic elements of a computer network include hardware, software, and protocols. The interrelationship of these basic elements constitutes the infrastructure of the network. A network infrastructure is the topology in which the nodes of a local area network (LAN) or a wide area network (WAN) are connected to each other. (IBM Corporation,2010)

 

Types of Computer Networks

Below are a list of some of the computer networks:

1. Personal Area Network (PAN) is a computer network used by computer devices to typically one person. The distance is usually only a few metres.

2. Local Area Network (LAN) is the most used computer network, and is typically a computer network covering a small area, such as a home, or business. These typically come in wired form (Ethernet) or wireless.
3. Campus Area Network (CAN) is just a larger collection of Local Area Networks that are joined together. These usually just cover a limited geographical area and are often used in academic settings such as Universities or Tafes.
4. Wide Area Network (WAN) is a computer network that covers a broad area, such as regional or national boundaries.

5. Virtual Private Network (VPN) is a computer network in which some of the links are carried by open connection to some other larger network (eg. the internet).

6. Internetwork is the connection of two or more distinct computer networks or networking segments. These typically use the Internet Protocol, and examples of the interconnected networks are the Internet, Extranet and Intranet

          (Wavelength Communications, 2018)

 

Basic Definitions of a Network

1. DHCP—Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol - It assigns IP addresses to client devices, such as desktop computers, laptops, and phones, when they are plugged into Ethernet or connect to Wireless networks. 

2. Ethernet - A type of networking protocol—it defines the types of cables and connections that are used to wire computers, switches, and routers together. Most often Ethernet cabling is Category 5 or 6, made up of twisted pair wiring similar to phone cables.

3. Hub - A network device that repeats the traffic it receives to all connected devices.

4. Switch - A network device that sends traffic it receives to a specific connected device, such as a single desktop computer or laptop.

5. Router - A network device that can bridge between different networks, determine what traffic can pass between them, and perform other functions on a network, such as assigning IP addresses.

6. Firewall - A function typically performed by routers, this filters traffic between networks and can protect them from interference or attacks.

         (Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.)

 

 Properties of a Good Network

1. Interpersonal Communication: We can communicate with each other efficiently and easily. Example: emails, chat rooms, video conferencing etc, all of these are possible because of computer networks.

2. Resources can be shared: We can share physical resources by making them available on a network such as printers, scanners etc.

3. Sharing files, data: Authorized users are allowed to share the files on the network.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The diagram below provides a high-level overview of a basic district network:

 

Now take a closer look at a network within an individual school building—this is the Local Area Network or LAN.

 

 

Resources

• Understanding the basics of school district networks: Network Essentials for Superintendents ` 

• The first step in leading a successful network upgrade is to understand the basic structure of a school district’s network. With a good grasp of the fundamentals of a district’s network setup, superintendents will be able to better communicate with their tech team and network vendors.

• 6 Bandwidth Best Practices for Schools To Consider This Year 

• Six key considerations, based on the Federal Communications Commission’s broadband access recommendations, to bear in mind as you evaluate your school’s needs.

• Writing the Classroom Rules:  An End-to-End Network for Delivering Broadband in Primary and Secondary School Environment

• This design guide discusses some of the most promising opportunities and offers suggestions to help educational institutions maximize application functionality using an integrated wired and wireless infrastructure. 

• Introduction to Computer Networks 

• This online tutorial provides an Introduction to Computer Networks, ISO/OSI Reference Model, and TCP/IP Reference Model. The tutorial also provides quizzes. 

 

 

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Network Topology

 

Network Topology refers to the layout of a network and how different nodes in a network are connected to each other and how they communicate. Topologies are either physical (the physical layout of devices on a network) or logical (the way that the signals act on the network media, or the way that the data passes through the network from one device to the next). This Webopedia Study Guide describes five of the most common network topologies.

 

1. Mesh Topology

Mesh Topology: In a mesh network, devices are connected with many redundant interconnections between network nodes. In a true mesh topology every node has a connection to every other node in the network. There are two types of mesh topologies:

Full mesh topology: occurs when every node has a circuit connecting it to every other node in a network. Full mesh is very expensive to implement but yields the greatest amount of redundancy, so in the event that one of those nodes fails, network traffic can be directed to any of the other nodes. Full mesh is usually reserved for backbone networks.

Partial mesh topology: is less expensive to implement and yields less redundancy than full mesh topology. With partial mesh, some nodes are organized in a full mesh scheme but others are only connected to one or two in the network. Partial mesh topology is commonly found in peripheral networks connected to a full meshed backbone.

2. Star Topology

Star Topology: In a star network devices are connected to a central computer, called a hub. Nodes communicate across the network by passing data through the hub.

 

Main Advantage: In a star network, one malfunctioning node doesn't affect the rest of the network.
Main Disadvantage: If the central computer fails, the entire network becomes unusable.

 

 

3. Bus Topology

Bus Topology: In networking a bus is the central cable -- the main wire -- that connects all devices on a local-area network (LAN). It is also called the backbone. This is often used to describe the main network connections composing the Internet.  Bus networks are relatively inexpensive and easy to install for small networks. Ethernetsystems use a bus topology.

Main Advantage:  It's easy to connect a computer or device and typically it requires less cable than a star topology.
Main Disadvantage: The entire network shuts down if there is a break in the main wire and it can be difficult to identify the problem if the network shuts down.

4. Ring Topology

Ring Topology: A local-area network (LAN) whose topology is a ring. That is, all of the nodes are connected in a closed loop. Messages travel around the ring, with each node reading those messages addressed to it. 
Main Advantage: One main advantage to a ring network is that it can span larger distances than other types of networks, such as bus networks, because each node regenerates messages as they pass through it.

 

 

5. Tree Topology

Tree Topology: This is a "hybrid" topology that combines characteristics of linear bus and star topologies. In a tree network, groups of star-configured networks are connected to a linear bus backbone cable.

Main Advantage: A Tree topology is a good choice for large computer networks as the tree topology "divides" the whole network into parts that are more easily manageable.
Main Disadvantage: The entire network depends on a central hub and a failure of the central hub can cripple the whole network.

 

 

Network Topology Slide Show Link: https://www.slideshare.net/keilandrascruggs/network-design-topology

 

 

User Management

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Adding and removing users

 

Creating a New User in Active Directory

 

• https://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/library/dd632748.aspx
• Typically an organization would utilize Active Directory to store user accounts. This allows all students/faculty to login using a single username/password on any computer connected to the domain. This is also where all necessary security permissions would be granted to each user account. These permissions would allow access to various network resources, and are usually controlled via Security Group membership. 
• Adding Users is a relatively simple process and crucial in managing a network infrastructure of any size. 

Hardware Management

Adding and removing hardware

 

Join a Computer to a Domain

 

• https://docs.microsoft.com/en-us/windows-server/identity/ad-fs/deployment/join-a-computer-to-a-domain
• All computers must also be joined to the Domain to allow users to login, and for the computer to received any special settings which have been deployed across the domain hierarchy. These settings allow for a unified experience, and by using Group Policy you can avoid having to manually configure certain settings on each and every machine.
• Both new users and computers would be managed through the "Active Directory Users and Computers" snap-in. This gets automatically installed on all domain controllers, and is where you would create new users, and manage the objects which are associated with all domain joined computers.
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 Controlling Settings via Group Policy

 

Network Administration: Creating Group Policy Objects

 

• https://www.dummies.com/programming/networking/network-administration-creating-group-policy-objects/
• As mentioned previously, Group Policy is a powerful tool for controlling all aspects of the domain. This can include settings applied at either the PC level or the User level. A Computer Based Group Policy Object (GPO) is applied at the PC level, and affects anyone who logs into the machine. A User Based GPO is applied to a user account (or group of accounts) and only affects the user. Each person who logs in could have a completely different experience depending on which policies are applied to their account.
• The "Group Policy" snap-in is a tool similar to AD Users and Computers; however, it is instead used to manage all user and computer based policies you've deployed on the network. All policies are applied at the OU level, and/or are associated with a specific security group. This determines who or what each policy is applied to.
• When you open or create a policy you'll be presented with the following interface. Here you can manipulate a multitude of settings to change how/what the users see, or modify their level of access to various PC features/functions.
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Types of Networks

 

 

Peer-to-Peer Networks

 

Peer-to-peer networks involve two or more computers pooling individual resources such as disk drives, DVD players and printers. These shared resources are available to every computer in the network. Each computer acts as both the client and the server, communicating directly with the other computers. On a peer-to-peer network, for example, a printer on one computer can be used by any other computer on the network. These networks are inexpensive to set up. All you need is a way to connect them, like an Ethernet cable or a Wi-Fi router.

 

Client-Server Networks

 

A client-server network involves multiple clients, or workstations, connecting to at least one central server. Most data and applications are installed on the server. When clients need access to these resources, they access them from the server. Servers often have private user directories as well as multiple public directories.Client-server networks tend to have faster access speeds because of the large number of clients they are designed to support. The clients are allowed to function as workstations without sharing any resources. It is easier to upgrade software applications and files because they are held on one single computer. System-wide services can be provided through the server software. Security is enhanced on a client server network because the security is handled by the server.

 

Disadvantages and Limitations

 

Peer-to-peer networks are typically less secure than a client-server network because security is handled by the individual computers, not on the network as a whole. The resources of the computers in the network can become overburdened as they have to support not only the workstation user, but also the requests from network users. It is also difficult to provide system-wide services because the desktop operating system typically used in this type of network is incapable of hosting the service. Client-server networks have a higher initial setup cost. It is possible to set up a server on a desktop computer, but it is recommended that businesses invest in enterprise-class hardware and software. They also require a greater level of expertise to configure and manage the server hardware and software.

 

Usage

 

Due to the security issues and the lack of extensibility, peer-to-peer networks are usually found in homes or small businesses with few security concerns. Client-server networks should be used in environments where growth is expected, security is important and faster access times are required.