9.7 Develop an Architecture

9.7 Develop an Architecture

It is at this point that you can begin to develop an architecture for your VPN, based on your requirements and what you already have in place. Your existing LANs will have an infuence on this as will your needs and goals. Your existing connections and the connections dictated by your requirements can be sketched in. The chances are good that your needs will actually define the architecture for you.

Don't skimp on bandwidth when you plan your connections. Glenn Botkin of Galaxy Scientific notes that one of the things he wished he had done differently was to start with higher-speed connections. Initially, the connection at their corporate headquarters in Egg Harbor, N.J., and their offices in Atlanta, GA, Warminster, PA, Crystal City, VA, and Falls Church, VA, were 56 Kbps. They have since been upgraded to 256 Kbps. He notes that going from 56 Kbps to 256 Kbps was difficult, because it required new local telco connections and equipment as well as extensive network reconfiguration. From 256 Kbps up, he notes, is much easier because the connections and equipment remain unchanged.

This reinforces the idea of allowing room for the VPN to expand, both in capabilities and geographically. It is highly probable that once the VPN is in place to meet the goals you have already identified, other opportunities to put it to use will present themselves. Also, as users become comfortable with the VPN they will utilize it more and traffic will increase. All...

< Previous Excerpt Next Excerpt >

Purchase This Book

Virtual Private Networks: Making the Right Connection

TABLE OF CONTENTS

9.7 Develop an Architecture

Contact Preferences

This is embarrasing...

Customize Your GlobalSpec Experience

Select Your Free Newsletters

Industry Newsletters

Select Your Free Product Alerts

This is embarrasing...