LAN/WAN
Networking solutions from I/O Antics can be designed brand new or built onto existing infrastructure. Some of the benefits of our networks are improved performance, reduced costs, and added security. I/O Antics stays on top of the latest routing and switching technologies to make sure customers are taking full advantage of these technologies.
WAN Optimization
While Multi-Protocol Label Switching (MPLS) has been the most effective way for companies to interconnect branch locations for the past two decades, there has been a recent trend towards another, much cheaper, solution. This solution is regular broadband internet. With that said, there are a few things that need to be considered first to determine if this is an ideal solution for the business.
MPLS usually has a higher guaranteed uptime than broadband internet, as specified by the service provider’s service-level agreement (SLA). Since broadband internet is so much cheaper, though, multiple internet connections can be used, with the additional connections serving as backup connections in case the primary connection goes down. This significantly decreases the chance of the WAN being unavailable.
The next thing to consider is MPLS is a private connection, while the internet is not. To get around this, Virtual Private Network (VPN) connections can be established between each branch location. VPNs create a virtual tunnel between two endpoints and encrypt the data traveling across it. This is considered a highly secure connection.
Lastly, MPLS honors quality of service (QoS) tags, while the internet does not. QoS is what prioritizes certain traffic when the network’s bandwidth begins to fill up, which is important for time-sensitive traffic, such as streaming voice or video. An emerging technology known as software-defined networking (SDN) helps overcome this issue. When multiple internet connections are used, SDN can be used to monitor each connection between branches and make real-time routing decisions based on its analysis. Although not recommended in a scenario where time-sensitive traffic is vital, such as in a call center, this is an effective solution in many situations.
Redundancy
Redundancy can be configured at the network edge and within the LAN.
To ensure the network is always available, multiple firewalls or routers can be used to connect to the internet/WAN. These can be set up to use a First Hop Redundancy Protocol (FHRP), such as Gateway Load Balancing Protocol (GLBP) or Cisco’s Hot Standby Router Protocol (HSRP). Firewalls can be set up in a High Availability (HA) pair, so if one goes down, the other will take over.
Unlike most home network setups where switches are not meant to be interconnected with each other to provide redundant links, many business-class switches support loop-preventative mechanisms, such as Spanning Tree Protocol (STP), so they can be connected in a topology that provides redundancy without creating loops in your LAN.
Site-to-Site VPNs
If your company has branch offices that need to connect to your main site or to each other, then a site-to-site VPN can be established between each location. This will create a virtual “tunnel” between each site to send encrypted traffic over. Even if the sites are connected across a public network, like the internet, the network traffic being sent within the tunnel will be private.
Client-Based Remote Access VPNs
If you have an on-premises server, sometimes you want your employees to have access to your internal network from outside of the office. This can be achieved over the internet by setting up Client VPNs for each employee. The employee can log into the internal network and access it over a private, encrypted connection across the internet.
Virtualization
To reduce the cost and space of physical server equipment when multiple servers are needed, virtualization solutions, such as VMWare, can be used. This allows a single physical server to run multiple operating systems at one time inside what are called virtual machines, or VMs.
Windows Server Environments
Windows Server can be set up to provide many types of services for a company.
One of the most common services is an Active Directory (AD) domain, where company computers can be connected to and administered through that domain. Both computers and users can have policies applied to them to limit what they can or cannot do.
Another common use of Windows Server is to set it up as a file server, where users with access rights can access a network file share.
Wireless
Wi-Fi has become very common within companies and allows for much more flexibility than wired connections. Wi-Fi makes it easier for employees to use their devices from home (BYOD) and allows for guests to easily connect to the company’s network. I/O Antics provides wireless access point (WAP) placement and configuration to allow for connectivity to the company’s network from almost anywhere on the company’s premises. Placement of the access points are planned out to provide the desired coverage needed by the customer.