Within an organization, the dependability of network infrastructures has become less of a want and more of a need. Without a fully developed communication architecture around business growth, efficiencies, and competitive advantage, many companies will find themselves underperforming. Network connectivity used to be considered a luxury for many businesses, but it has recently become a critical piece of an organization. The fundamental understanding of how networks play such a big role in the success of a company has to be assessed from the basic approach of the advancement in Transmission Control Protocol/Internet Protocol (TCP/IP) communication and the functionality of the Open Systems Interconnection (OSI) model.
Understanding how a network communicates is key to understanding how your corporate applications and services work within the business. Your understanding around the concepts of IP communication, devices used to communicate, and the traffic that is continually passed between devices is the first key to gaining the understanding of network infrastructure. The knowledge you develop through this course will help build on your basic understanding of network infrastructures and the components that are critical to the success of any business communication architecture.
For your final project, you will assume the role of a network consultant for an organization looking to expand its communication reach. You have been be tasked with analyzing the current network architecture of the organization and determining any key changes that should occur as the organization prepares for future growth. You will evaluate traffic patterns to determine critical aspects of your business and provide basic insight into what should be done to the network from a capability aspect and from a security viewpoint as the organization prepares for future growth. Ultimately, you will recommend a design for the future network architecture of the organization.
The project is divided into three milestones, which will be submitted at various points throughout the course to scaffold learning and ensure quality final submissions. These milestones will be submitted in Modules Three, Five, and Seven. The final product will be submitted in Module Nine.
Before beginning your project, read the Final Project Scenario document about SNHUEnergy, Inc., an organization that is looking to expand its operations. Then, review all of the logical and physical design diagrams as well as the Wireshark capture showing the traffic patterns of the organization’s current network. These files are provided below:
Organizational Network Diagram – Current
Dallas Office Network Diagram – Current
Memphis Office Network Design – Current
In this assignment, you will demonstrate your mastery of the following course outcomes:
Determine how network applications communicate from end to end by applying the network Open Systems Interconnection (OSI) model
Analyze the network infrastructure of an existing network for determining what the basic traffic patterns are communicating
Recommend an effective architecture design for supporting communication needs throughout an organization
Analyze network traffic patterns for informing a network design that mitigates performance and security issues
Develop recommendations for designing and maintaining a secure network infrastructure in accordance with industry standard best practices
Prompt
Imagine that you are a newly hired network consultant for SNHUEnergy, Inc. The leadership team at the organization has asked you to create a network analysis and architecture evaluation on the current network. Your report will also include design recommendations for the organization’s future network architecture, including basic recommendations to mitigate any potential performance or security issues.
Specifically, the following critical elements must be addressed:
Executive Summary: Provide a high-level overview of the contents of your report for the leadership team. Include your findings around data traffic flows, applications impacted, and the overall network and security recommendations for the future needs of the organization.
Current Network Architecture: In this section, you will analyze the information provided in the SNHUEnergy, Inc. scenario to provide high-level assumptions about the design of the network.
Identify the network applications that are a part of the current network.
Describe how the current network is designed by explaining how the different layers of the Open Systems Interconnection (OSI) model relate to each other within the network.
Develop a visual representation of an end-to-end path flow of the existing network by creating a Visio diagram showing the output of the traffic flows. Use the provided logical network design example as a guide for creating your diagram, and include your diagram with your submission.
Explain the types of physical network devices used in connecting all devices across the organization based on what you know from the scenario.
Identify the critical traffic patterns currently used by the organization, supported by examples. Use the provided Wireshark capture to guide your response.
Describe the traffic patterns that the organization’s critical applications take across the infrastructure from office to office. Remember, the organization’s critical applications were specified in the scenario.
Describe the potential performance issues that may occur within the current network if no changes are made to support the organization’s expansion. Provide examples to support your response.
Describe the potential security issues that may occur within the current network if no changes are made to support the organization’s expansion. Provide examples to support your response.
Future Network Architecture
Determine the future communication needs of the organization based on what you know from the scenario.
Describe in detail a network architecture that would be appropriate for supporting the ultimate growth of the organization and defend how this recommended network would improve communication across the company.
Develop a visual representation of your recommended network architecture by creating a Visio diagram. Use the provided physical network design example as a guide for creating your diagram, and include your diagram with your submission.
Planning and Security
Recommend the best approach to mitigate the potential performance and security issues that you previously identified, and defend your response.
Recommend a network management tool to implement into the future network and explain its potential benefit to the organization.
Recommend types of security devices that you would implement into the existing network, and explain how the devices would mitigate potential security issues.
Explain the changes that need to be made to existing devices on the network in order to successfully integrate the security devices into the future network design.
Describe specific challenges that the organization might face as it attempts to implement the future network, and recommend ways to mitigate those challenges.