Chapter 4: Planning Your Network


Okay, so you're convinced that you need to network your computers. What now? Do you stop by Computers-R-Us on the way to work, install the network before morning coffee, and expect the network to be fully operational by noon?

I don't think so.

Networking your computers is just like any other worthwhile endeavor: To do it right requires a bit of planning. This chapter helps you think through your network before you start spending money. It shows you how to come up with a networking plan that's every bit as good as the plan that a network consultant would charge $1,000 for.

This book is already saving you money!

Making a Network Plan

Before you begin any networking project, whether it's a new network installation or an upgrade of an existing network, first make a detailed plan. If you make technical decisions too quickly, before studying all the issues that affect the project, you'll regret it. You'll discover too late that a key application doesn't run over the network, that the network has unacceptably slow performance, or that key components of the network don't work together.

Here are some general thoughts to keep in mind while you create your network plan:

  • Don't rush the plan. The most costly networking mistakes are the ones you make before you install the network. Think things through and consider alternatives.

  • Write down the network plan. The plan doesn't have to be a fancy, 500- page document. If you want to make it look good, pick up a ½ -inch three- ring binder-big enough to hold your network plan with room to spare.

  • Ask someone else to read your network plan before you buy anything. Preferably, ask someone who knows more about computers than you do.

  • Keep the plan up-to-date. If you add to the network, dig up the plan, dust it off, and update it.

Tip 

"The best-laid schemes of mice and men gang oft agley, and leave us not but grief and pain for promised joy." Robert Burns lived a couple hundred years before computer networks, but his famous words ring true. A network plan isn't chiseled in stone. If you discover that something doesn't work the way you thought it would, that's okay. You can always adjust your plan for unforeseen circumstances.




Networking For Dummies
Networking For Dummies
ISBN: 0470534052
EAN: 2147483647
Year: 2004
Pages: 254
Authors: Doug Lowe

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