Chapter 14 -- Planning the Network

Chapter 14

About This Chapter

Planning is an essential part of any network installation or upgrade. Before you install or even select new hardware, you must think about issues such as hardware compatibility, business requirements, and ergonomics. This chapter examines some of the factors you should consider during the network planning stage and discusses how your decisions can affect your future actions.

Before You Begin

This chapter requires an understanding of a network's hardware components, as discussed in Chapter 2, "Network Hardware," and Chapter 3, "Network Connections," as well as the basics of Transmission Control Protocol/Internet Protocol (TCP/IP) communications, as covered in Chapter 8, "TCP/IP Fundamentals."