• Standard 10-100-1000G
• Managed networks and devices
• VPN
• Secure Networks
• Secure Certificates

Computer networks are the circulatory system of any modern information system. They provide the means to deliver and receive information across the multitude of devices and locations needed to run a large enterprise or a small business. The two primary and critical components of any corporate network are routers and switches. These devices are at the core of the network linking together all the local area network (LAN) and wide area network (WAN) segments. Proper selection of these key devices is vital to ensuring that the network meets the business needs for fast, agile service and can adapt to fast changing business needs. High levels of reliability are also required as customers become more dependent on critical services such as online purchasing and rapid delivery of purchased products. Poor reliability can lead to loss of customer goodwill and potential business; conversely, good reliability helps ensure customer satisfaction and retention. References: The following articles may be of value to the reader of this guide: • Data Center Infrastructure Solutions Reference Network Design (SRND) • Integrating Security, Load Balancing, and SSL Services using Service Modules SRND

They can be located at the following URL: http://www.cisco.com/en/US/netsol/ns340/ns394/ns224/ns304/ networking_solutions_design_guidances_list.html

A well-designed network, with properly placed routers and switches, can help reduce the operational costs and improve the availability, manageability, reliability, and utilization of expensive resources such as telephone links.

Blueprint
This blueprint consisted of two sections. Switches and routers were discussed in one, and load-balancing devices in the other. The sections provided information and options to help network design engineers select devices that meet the requirements of an enterprise architecture. This blueprint defined the architecture design in terms of security and placement of devices in the overall enterprise infrastructure, and the device design in terms of the process of selecting the physical device. The design process defined in this blueprint includes selection of the right class of devices that will meet the required levels of service. In addition, it is important to select the appropriate options to ensure that devices are capable of being supported by the organization’s network staff and managed by any network management solution that may already be in place. The aim of this guidance is to produce a set of device specifications that will fit right into the organization’s network architecture to enable the design and implementation of a complete network.

Planning Guide
This guide provided information on the network switches, routers, and load balancers used in the CDC and (where applicable) SBO scenarios. For the network switch and router devices, this guide explained how the Cisco Catalyst 2950 and 6500 switches and the 7200 and 1751 routers were used to meet the needs of the scenarios for the fictional Contoso organization. For load balancing, the CSM was selected as a means for deploying reliable high performance load balancing services to the Catalyst 6500 series platform. A variety of implementation options are available when deploying the CSM; the design recommendations presented in this guide can assist you in making decisions about which mode to use when deploying the CSM and where to place it in your data center infrastructure.

Build Guide
The aim of this guide is to provide the necessary information to build the network devices exactly as built in the test labs. The first sections in this guide focus on providing the information required to install and configure the Cisco Systems 6506 switch. This network device combines Layer 2 switch functionality and Layer 3 IP router functionality within the same device. The configuration is performed using the Windows HyperTerminal application to open a command console thorough a serial connection. Once the connection is established, a text-based configuration file can be executed to complete the installation. The exact configuration files used in the CDC are available as part of the Deployment Kit. The test section in this guide detailed the various tests that were performed to validate the build guide and functionality of network devices as well as their interaction with the other services in test labs. Details of the test results were also presented and discussed.

Operations Guide
This guide helps readers understand the extent of operations guidance that is available for the network devices in WSSRA. This guidance has been tested in a WSSRA environment and the project team deferred to this guidance as the authoritative source of operations content.

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