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The List of the Steps to Design & Implement a New Network for a Small Company
All networks, regardless of their size, have similar foundational requirements. Embark on a
network design project identifying current and future business requirements to ensure you
plan the right technology as your business grows. One of the most critical choices is deciding
if your business should consolidate voice services over the data network to minimize the
cost of the network. When you highlight these types of issues and discuss requirements
clearly at the start of the project, you benefit both financial and technical planning.

Design

Step 1

Uncover your small business's requirements for performance, capacity and network ports.
Meet with co-workers from each area of your company to understand their application and
potential expansion requirements. Local area networks support a single location, like an
office or building, using switches that provide ports to connect servers, storage hardware,
computers, phones and printers to the network. The LAN itself consists of cabling, switches
and routers that provide connectivity to the Internet as well as additional locations, if
required, and routing between LAN segments.

Step 2

Plan and design the cable layout. Cabling plays an important part of network design as it
provides the physical communication path for your manufacturing company. Consult with a
cable design professional experienced in manufacturing areas to minimize the potential for
equipment interference. Consulting with a cable company provides peace of mind that
you've planned the correct type of cable and included fire code specifications.

Step 3

Create a spreadsheet to gather key details needed for the design. Information collected
must include the number of users per location, their roles, LAN port speeds and node types,
such as printers and any hardware that will be connected to the network. Other network
requirements include programmable logic controllers for robotics or other automated
systems requiring network connectivity. Configure the spreadsheet by listing physical
locations across the top columns and creating row categories for users. List the total
number of users per site and classification type, such as office, engineering and
manufacturing. Another classification section should address the computer room,
identifying each server and the applications hosted, as well as operating systems and
network card speeds. Also document the computer room’s environmental services for air
conditioning, electrical capacity and controls to monitor humidity and temperature levels.

Step 4

Analyze network performance in its current state. Use protocol analyzers and network
management software and perform the analysis at various times of a business day, such as
at the start of shifts, after lunch and during periods that typically result in increased traffic,

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such as running month-end financial processes or moving complex engineering data over
the network. This activity provides information associated with LAN and WAN performance,
protocols used and areas in the existing topology that create performance bottlenecks along
with application characteristics. The protocol analyzer may be able to identify protocols
running by default on some nodes that create overhead and can be turned off.

Step 5

Collect your existing physical and logical network diagrams to support the current state
design. Identify routers, switches, LAN uplink bandwidth, network equipment cabinets,
power and cooling information, and current standards for the fiber and the copper cable
plant. For the logical design, obtain current information for the IP address design for the
LAN including virtual LAN information and connectivity requirements, if more than one
building is present. Document protocols used in the network, including routing protocols
used for connectivity between buildings.

Step 6

Determine the number of LAN switch ports required currently and projected over the next
24 months for each location. Even though this is a small manufacturing company, the
building may include one or more telecommunication closets called intermediate
distribution frames. The telecommunication closets provide copper network cables to each
employee’s desk if the distance from the computer room exceeds cable limits. The closet
also serves as the installation location for LAN access layer switches that provide the
connection ports for wireless access points, computers, printers and other network
hardware your company may use. The access layer switches will connect to the computer
room switches using multi-mode fiber optics.

Step 7

Select access layer switches based on your projected growth requirements for network
ports and future expectations for wireless network service, voice and video integration and
quality of service. This approach ensures that network hardware meets the needs of the
company and supports the addition of new features without hindering performance. Plan
enough strands of fiber between the access layer and the computer room switches for
growth as well as ensuring that the fiber uplinks and switch ports will support bandwidth
requirements.

Step 8

Select switches and routers, introducing standards for each layer of the network. For the
access layer, consider standardizing on a chassis based switch for areas of the building
where you need to support future expansion and added ports or features. Use smaller
switches in other areas. When you create a standard for network hardware, you reduce
variations and ease support as staff members are familiar with the equipment. Network
switches and routers must support immediate port requirements and have the ability to
expand when new features are introduced. Determine if the manufacturing portion of the

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network will require switches that tolerate environments that produce higher temperatures
or conditions that will require a hardened industrial-based switch.

Step 9

Select computer room switches. Evaluate dual switches designed to support fiber
connections from each access layer telecommunication closet. Plan the port density and
speeds to support the servers in a combined distribution and core layer. A dual switch
configuration in the computer room provides redundancy and scalability when you use
chassis-based switches. As an alternate approach, consider a single enterprise-class switch
to reduce cost and support future progression to a dual switch design. Present both options
to the management team, identifying the benefits, risks and costs of each option.

Step 10

Develop an IP address design that meets growth requirements and selects a routing
protocol for the network to support fast convergence with ease of management. If you're
designing to support multiple buildings, select a network transport service and bandwidth
based on your performance requirements and growth projections, including planned new
applications. When making WAN transport selections to connect buildings, consider the
flexibility of the service that will support bandwidth changes to meet future requirements.

Implementation

Step 1

Plan a phased approach to implementation. Introduce the computer room core switches
first, providing connectivity to the servers. Depending on the size of the company and
business process needs, it might be possible to immediately follow this activity on the same
day by implementing the new access layer switches. Schedule wide area connectivity
following the introduction of the core switches in the computer room, selecting a time that
does not conflict with the access layer installation. Coordinate wide area connectivity with
the telecommunication vendor providing this portion of the network service.

Step 2

Inform all employees of the scope of implementation for each phase, along with dates and
times. Implementation of new equipment generally means systems and data will not be
available at the time of the change. This gives employees the opportunity to plan their work
around the resulting downtime.

Step 3
Pre-configure network equipment and test it prior to implementation.

Step 4
Schedule the personnel and support needed from among IT department staff members and
any vendor staff that must support the implementation.

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2. Designing a Safe and Secure Small Business Network
An appropriate small business network design is important for business owners. A small
network is usually more susceptible to viruses and spyware than larger networks, due to
software that leaves security vulnerable. Up-to-date software built to tackle pesky viruses is
just as important as having a top quality routing system and hardware.

Network Requirements

Knowing how to design a computer network is not always easy. Everything from the
position of the router in a signal chain to the number of computers in the network will affect
the best flow of information within an organization. Setting up a network for the office
requires the following:

 A secure Internet connection from the Internet service provider (ISP)

 A router with a high-speed Internet connection
 A modem
 Firewall capabilities
 Switch (allows computers to link to one another over an internal network)
 Phone line/cable/fiber optic linking (wired or wireless)
 Ethernet hubs
 Management and security software

Network Designs and Configurations

For small networks, the basic logic follows that the ISP sends wireless information to the
modem, which connects to the router, which then connects the small business desktops and
laptops either wired or wirelessly. Five main configuration types link the computers
together:

 Bus
 Token Ring
 Star
 Tree
 Mesh

Choose from the following design types to determine the type of network that best fits the
company’s needs:

1. Local Area Network (LAN) — This design type connects local devices, or devices that are
in close proximity like in an office building. The most typical type of connection using LAN is
an Ethernet connection.

2. Wide Area Network (WAN) — This design type connects devices (nodes) that are farther
apart — perhaps even by miles. This is common with city and government network
applications.

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3. Metropolitan Area Network (MAN) — This design type is built for schools and city-wide
networking.

4. Personal Area Network (PAN) — Home offices utilize this type of network to connect
multiple nodes, such as computers, mobile phones, notepads, printers and fax machines.

5. Campus Area Network (CAN) — This design type connects LANS within a specific
geographic area — usually schools.

The frequency of Wi-Fi connections in business settings has been on the rise. Hospitals,
campuses, corporate offices and even retail outlets rely on computer networking to provide
useful information for their employees and customers every day.

(Note: It’s always a good idea to plan ahead for network growth that accounts for two to
three years of growth so your data storage needs are met).

How to Prevent Computer Security Vulnerabilities

Sharing files and software is vital to your clients' businesses. Protecting their data is an
integral part of daily operations. No matter what the design, an unencrypted network
connection and outdated software leaves the network vulnerable to malware, phishing,
proxies, spyware, adware, botnets and spam — all of which can cripple or disable the entire
business.

 Use complex passwords to encrypt the network traffic through wireless encryption
protocols (WEPs).
 Set authorization access and restrictions to certain employees through programming.
 Turn on VPN to enable remote computer access.
 Set up a “guest” network for other wireless users.
 Ensure the network, security and virus protection software are up to date.
 Limit access to the router.

Network Tools for Security and Ease of Use

Software security tools help users find architectural weaknesses and stay up to date with
reliable data tracking and measuring. For example, at SolarWinds MSP (formerly LOGICnow),
web protection with managed antivirus, mail protection, patch management and backup are
combined to offer clients complete protection from every network security angle, delivering
comprehensive web security, web filtering and bandwidth monitoring. The remote
management software is a single-solution business tool that can track and monitor
everything on a network from a single pane of glass.