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The future of connectivity: Innovative approaches to network designing

Picture a hospital where every corner hums with efficiency and care. Here, nurses swiftly access patient records with a few clicks, and doctors collaborate seamlessly across departments. This isn’t just a vision; it results from great network design. Good network design uses advanced statistical models and custom-built infrastructure helping organizations boost productivity, make information more accessible quickly, and support making decisions based on data. Thus, in hospitals, effective network design isn’t just about smooth data flow — it’s about improving patient care. By facilitating seamless communication and access to up-to-date records across departments, this optimized network setup ensures that medical teams can collaborate efficiently and respond swiftly to patient needs, raising the standard of care.

What is network designing?

Network designing is the process of planning and creating a network infrastructure adjusted to an organization’s needs. It covers:

Choosing the appropriate hardware and software;
Determining network layout;
Establishing communication protocols;
Implementing security measures.

Flawless network design delivers a winning combination: seamless communication, effortless scalability, optimized performance, and rock-solid security.

Importance of network design

Today, there’s an ongoing demand for customer service availability 24/7. This leads to the need to be equipped with automated security measures to respond to unexpected threats swiftly. Also, networks should adjust to changing traffic to keep all apps running smoothly. Simply connecting standalone components without thoughtful planning and design is no longer effective. Before we jump into designing a network, let’s go over the benefits of having a network design.

Enhanced performance and efficiency

Ongoing monitoring and performance metric analysis allows identifying bottlenecks and maintaining high-performance levels. Efficient resource usage, incorporating bandwidth, storage, and computing power, minimizes costs while maximizing performance. Techniques like load balancing, caching, and compression optimize resource allocation, ensuring smooth and cost-effective network operation.

Speed increase

When network designers choose suitable routing protocols and optimize network topology, they decrease packet loss, enhance response times, and elevate overall network performance. This leads to swifter and more dependable data transmission throughout the network.

Scalability and future-proofing

A well-planned network design seamlessly adapts to a growing user base and diverse software requirements, ensuring consistently high levels of productivity and efficiency as your business evolves.

Security and data protection

Proper network design enhances security and data protection. If it’s well-developed, it covers robust measures such as firewalls, intrusion detection/prevention systems, encryption, access controls, etc. These measures safeguard the network from cyber threats and unauthorized access, minimizing potential disruptions and data breaches.

Cost savings

Network design is cost-effective because it reduces future costs by anticipating growth and changes, optimizes resource use to avoid unnecessary hardware purchases, and reduces downtime and maintenance expenses through reliability and redundancy.

Dmitry Nazarevich CTO

Date: July 23, 2024

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Ready to experience the benefits of a well-structured network design? Connect with Innowise and discover a streamlined environment designed entirely for your advantage.

Network design and implementation

While the details of your network design may differ depending on its scale and complexity, this easy-to-follow framework can guide you in developing and implementing the network design that will work.

1. Identify goals

Requirement analysis: Outline the specific services and applications that will be used within the network, the number of users, and the requirements for bandwidth, reliability, and latency.
Bandwidth needs: Assess the required bandwidth to ensure smooth data transmission and acceptable performance.
Budget and resources: Evaluate the project costs and allocate the necessary budget for purchasing equipment and configuring the network.

Example: For a bank’s network, it’s critical to keep services available all the time. It should be considered when planning a network project at every stage. Contingency plans are required in case something goes wrong. This includes having spare equipment on standby, multiple Internet connection pathways, and implementing dynamic routing and link aggregation protocols. Bandwidth requirements need thorough assessment. Based on all the data, a high-level design is developed, and appropriate equipment is selected. And, of course, the project cost should be estimated.

2. Assess current network

When designing a new network for any organization, take stock of the current network setup. This involves creating an inventory of all the hardware devices, software applications, and network connections currently in use. Knowing your current network helps pinpoint upgrades for the new design.

3. Design network topology

Outline the physical and logical components of the network, considering factors like cabling, switch ports, WiFi access points, IP addressing, VLANs, and data flows.
Plan for backup routes and recovery mechanisms to ensure continuous communication in case of failures.

Develop a monitoring and management system to detect and resolve issues, as well as to scale the network as needed.

Example: When designing a bank’s network, it’s essential to consider the physical hardware (routers, switches, WiFi, etc.), how everything is logically connected, how routing and switching protocols should work, and security measures. Finally, providing a secure way for employees to access the network remotely is needed.

4. Choose hardware and software

Decide on which specific hardware and software components will meet the goal you defined for your network design, ensuring flexibility and considering potential supply-chain issues.

5. Plan implementation

Develop a detailed plan for deploying, configuring, and testing the network, including milestones, change management, transition plans, and ongoing monitoring and maintenance strategies.Example: Bank network deployment

Form a team
Develop high-level and low-level design
Select and purchase hardware
Install and configure it in branches and data centers
Test connectivity and security
Implement change management and a smooth transition plan
Ensure long-term security through continuous monitoring and maintenance

The initial network deployment process may appear complex. However, if you outsource it to companies like Innowise, you can access a wealth of expertise and resources that will make this process smooth and beneficial for both your business and your clients.
Other benefits from assigning network design services to external experts:

Tips for effective network designing

Here are the top five network design best practices summarized:

Take care of network security design at early stages.

Treating security as equally important as other functionalities from the start leads to a more secure and performant network, avoiding the inefficiencies of the project late-stage.

2. Choose the right design approach.

There are two main approaches to network design: top-down and bottom-up. For new projects, a top-down approach is best. This means starting with a high-level understanding of your overall needs (e.g., required bandwidth or security requirements) and then creating a detailed network design before setting up the network. However, if you’re expanding an existing network, a bottom-up approach is faster and more efficient. You focus on the specific addition or upgrade without needing a complete redesign of the entire network.

3. Standardize everything.

Examples of staff to standardize:

Hardware models: Standardize specific models for routers, switches, and other hardware to streamline support and replacements.
IP address schemes: Implement a consistent IP addressing plan to avoid conflicts and simplify network management.
Cable colors: To quickly identify and manage cables, use different colors for different types of connections.

If it can be standardized, standardize it. This approach simplifies troubleshooting, maintenance, and asset management, providing consistency across the network.

4. Plan for growth.

Choose a flexible and modular structure that adapts to your expanding needs. While you can’t predict future requirements with certainty, you can design with the possibility of needing to expand the network in mind.

5. Create and maintain network documentation.

Keep documentation up-to-date to minimize errors. Precise network blueprints (read maps!) for every project prevent troubleshooting chaos.

While you can certainly use these tips to create a network design yourself, why not consider a smoother process? Let's discuss how we can assist with your network design needs.

Wrapping up

The process of designing a robust network demands a collaborative effort from skilled network designers and technicians. They analyze the network requirements and choose the most suitable solutions tailored to the business’s needs. Outsourcing network design not only guarantees your technical requirements are met but also provides you with a strategic advantage by harnessing external expertise, accessing up-to-date solutions, and optimizing resource allocation.

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