IT Manager's Handbook: Getting Your New Job Done
This is a how to be an IT manager book, and it covers every area possible and then some.
TABLE OF CONTENTS IT Manager's Handbook: Getting Your New Job Done
Section 10.7: LAN: How Do I Expand One?
10.7 LAN: How Do I Expand One?
The IT industry has always configured things with an eye towards growth, and LANs are no exception.
You may need to expand your LAN because of increased usage. Or you may need to expand it because the conference room that supported a single network node is now being turned into a project war room that needs to support 15 programmers, two servers, and three printers. Or due to your company s phenomenal growth, you're told that you're taking over another floor in the building you occupy. Or perhaps a building in another part of town.
To be sure that you can expand with minimal cost and effort, keep several ideas in mind:
Leave Room for More
On any device, always buy more ports than you expect to use. Give yourself about a 20% margin.
Multiple Wire Runs
The most expensive and difficult part of network installations and changes is the cost and effort involved in running the wire (copper or fiber). The cost is not so much in the materials of the wire, but in the labor of the installation not to mention the disruption to your environment of having ladders all over the place as the electricians try to pull another cable. Whenever you have cable installed, consider having two or three runs installed. The incremental cost is very small (little more than the price of the materials), and it gives you additional wire when you need it (either due to growth, or...
Copyright Bill Holtsnider and Brian D. Jaffe 2001 under license agreement with Books24x7
