VoIP Solutions for Small Businesses

This assignment delves into the utilization of Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) technology within Small and Medium-sized Enterprises (SMEs). It examines the advantages and disadvantages of implementing VoIP solutions for SMEs, analyzing factors influencing adoption decisions. The assignment further explores strategic considerations for successful VoIP implementation, including network infrastructure requirements, security measures, and potential risks. Resources provided offer insights into best practices and industry trends related to VoIP in the SME sector.

Running head: COMPUTER NETWORKING
Computer Networking: Network Report
Name of the Student
Name of the University
Author’s Note

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Executive Summary
The report is prepared for Singapore gaming Academy for the proposal of a WAN solution for its
school campus. The WAN solution is proposed and it meets all the requirement of the
organization and mitigate the current problem faced by the organization. The router interface of
the network are configured with an IP addressing scheme and a remote connection is created
between different universities for the development of the network solution. The different
department of the university are connected using different vlan and the security of the network is
taken into consideration for the development of the network solution.

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Table of Contents
1. Introduction..................................................................................................................................5
1.1 Campus Background..............................................................................................................5
1.2 Current Issue Encounter........................................................................................................5
1.3 Objective................................................................................................................................6
2. Proposed Network Solution.........................................................................................................7
2.1 Implementation of LAN and WLAN for the Academy which replace the current wired
100Mbps Ethernet network.........................................................................................................7
2.2. Implementation of access points for wireless access for the students, staff and guests.......7
2.3. To link up all the department together on to a backbone network to support higher volume
of data..........................................................................................................................................8
2.4. IP Address Allocation...........................................................................................................8
2.5. Hardware..............................................................................................................................9
2.6. Switching............................................................................................................................10
2.6.1 Spanning Tree...............................................................................................................10
2.6.2 Ether channel................................................................................................................11
2.6.3 VLAN...........................................................................................................................11
2.7 Routing................................................................................................................................11
2.7.1 EIGRP...........................................................................................................................11
2.7.2 HSRP............................................................................................................................12

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2.8 VOIP....................................................................................................................................12
2.9 Wi-Fi....................................................................................................................................13
2.10 Network Security...............................................................................................................13
2.10.1 Password Protection....................................................................................................13
2.10.2 Access List (ACL)......................................................................................................13
2.10.3 Switch Port Security...................................................................................................14
2.10.4 Firewall.......................................................................................................................14
2.10.5 Intrusion Detection System (IDS) and Intrusion Prevention System (IPS)................14
2.11. Biometric..........................................................................................................................15
2.11.1 Advantages of Biometric system................................................................................16
2.11.2 Disadvantages of biometric system............................................................................17
2.12. Further network expansion at the Academy.....................................................................18
2.13. Implementation of WAN..................................................................................................18
2.14. Implementation of IPv6 addressing..................................................................................19
3.0. Network Diagrams for the school network.............................................................................20
3.1. Network Diagram for Implementation of WAN to automate the data transfer between the
school and possible two overseas campuses in Asia Pacific.....................................................20
3.2. Network Diagram for Implement access points for wireless access for the students, staff
and guests..................................................................................................................................20
3.3. Network Diagram for backbone network...........................................................................21

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3.4. Add firewalls in all the network diagrams..........................................................................22
4. Conclusion.................................................................................................................................22
5. Bibliography..............................................................................................................................23

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1. Introduction
The report is prepared for Singapore Gaming Academy providing a brief description of
the campus and the current problem faced in the campus. A network solution is proposed for the
university with proper IP addressing scheme for all the interface of the device used for the
configuration of the network solution. A list of the hardware and the protocol used for the
implementation of the network is given for estimation of the cost of the network solution. The
security of the network is also implemented with the application of the password protection and
configuration of the firewall. A biometric device is added with the network solution for
increasing the security of the network and maintaining the attendance schedule of the students.
The network is also configured with VOIP protocol for communicating with the different
branches.
1.1 Campus Background
Singapore Gaming Academy has 200 nodes in the campus and they are needed to be
connected for improvement of the connectivity and communication in the network. The nodes
are located in different department and they are required to be connected in different vlan for
increasing the security of the network and communicate with the other department securely.
With the implementation of the vlan in the network the network would become flexible and it
can adopt the future expansion of the network easily. Moreover a VPN connection is configured
for the allowing the remote user to access the network elements.
1.2 Current Issue Encounter
The main problem identified in the current network of Singapore Gaming Academy is the
slow network speed and limitation of the bandwidth for supporting the network to send and

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receive multimedia files over the network. The current framework of the organization uses the
token ring infrastructure and it is not suitable for handling congestion in the network and
increase the network downtime. There is risk regarding single point failure because all of the
network traffic passes through the main router and thus if the main router stops working the
whole network would collapse.
The network is connected using a single channel and the devices connected in the
network can get access of the other device in the network and thus the network becomes
vulnerable. There is no network administrator for monitoring the activity of the network and
maintain the access rules in the network.
1.3 Objective
The main objectives followed for the development of the WAN solution for the
Singapore Gaming Academy are listed as follows:
 To create a list of hardware required to be installed in the campus for the
mitigation of the problem faced by the users.
 To increase the security of the network and deploy biometric device to track the
records of the students and the other users using the system.
 To provide wireless access to the users using mobile devices and secure it from
unauthorized access.
 To implement VOIP support in the network for communicating with the different
departments and other universities.

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2. Proposed Network Solution
2.1 Implementation of LAN and WLAN for the Academy which replace the current wired
100Mbps Ethernet network
2.2. Implementation of access points for wireless access for the students, staff and
guests
The wireless access point is installed for the students, staffs and the guests for increasing
the flexibility of the network and help them to connect their handheld devices like mobile, pda to
connect with the university network solution. The staffs can use their laptops and share files with
the other users connected in the network using the wireless access points. The coverage area of
the wireless access point should be analysed for the installation of the device. Proper encryption
is used for securing the wireless access point and increase the security of the network.

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2.3. To link up all the department together on to a backbone network to support
higher volume of data
All the department are connected using a gateway router and different vlan are created for
the voice and data such that there is no congestion in the voip transmission. Each wing have
different router and IP routing is configured in the router such that each of the branches and
departments are connected with each other.
2.4. IP Address Allocation
The IP address is allocated to the interface of the hardware device installed in the
network.
Network Location Function IP Address
Range
LAN Lab 1 @ East Wing Data 172.16.1.0/24
LAN Office @ East Wing Voice 192.168.1.0/24
LAN Office @East Wing Wi-Fi 192.168.2.0/24
LAN LAB @ East Wing Wi FI 172.16.1.0/24
LAN Classroom Data 192.168.2.0/24
WAN MPLS connection,
partnering University
Gateway
Router 1
1.0.0.0/24

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connection
2.5. Hardware
For the development of the network solution an estimation of the hardware required is
made for each of the location and given below:
Location Network
Equipment
Quantity Function & Remark
SERVER ROOM (DMZ
ZONE) @EAST WING
Cisco Catalyst 2800
24 Port Layer 3
switch.
2 LAN connection for 20 staffs
PC, access switch
SERVER ROOM (DMZ
ZONE) @EAST WING
Acer Altos R720
Rackmount Servers
2 WEB Server and File Server
SERVER ROOM (DMZ
ZONE) @EAST WING
Cisco Catalyst 2800
Router
1 Gateway router
SERVER ROOM (DMZ
ZONE) @EAST WING
Lacie 2 TB
10/100/1000 Back-
up Device
1 Backing up of network
information
SERVER ROOM (DMZ APC Back UPS RS 20 Providing backup in

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ZONE) @EAST WING emergency condition
Computer Lab @ East
Wing
Netgear WG302
Managed Wireless
Access Point
2 Wi-Fi connection for staffs
and students
CLASSROOM @ EAST
AND WEST WING
Cisco 2960 24 ports
switch
2 LAN connection for 20 staffs
PC, access switch
Computer Lab @ East
Wing
Samsung Laser
Printers
1 For enabling printing service
SERVER ROOM (DMZ
ZONE) @EAST WING ASA 505 Firewall
1 Firewall for internet
connection
OFFICE Cisco 7960 IP phone 20 Call Manager for VOIP
2.6. Switching
Different switching protocols are used for the development of the network and Vlans are
created for data and the voice for avoiding congestion in the network.
2.6.1 Spanning Tree
The configuration of the switches with the spanning tree protocol helps in maintaining
the redundant path in the network and it also avoids the loops for the paths that are

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interconnected with each other. A root bridge is selected for each of the vlan in the network for
communication in the network.
2.6.2 Ether channel
It is used for creation of a high speed Ethernet link by combining more than one channel
for fault tolerance and decrease the congestion in the network. The ether channel can be used on
the layer 3 switch and a virtual link can be created for the increasing the availability of the
bandwidth and reducing the bottleneck situation in the network. With the implementation of the
ether channel the redundancy in the network can be improved and thus decreases the network
downtime.
2.6.3 VLAN
Different VLAN are created for the voice and data such that there is no lag in the voice
channel and sufficient amount of bandwidth is allocated for each of the channel. A small lag in
the voice channel can degrade the quality of communication and thus QoS implemented for
maintaining quality in the network. The port of the switch are allowed access to the voice and the
data vlan for dhcp pool is created for allocating Ip address to the nodes connected on the port.
2.7 Routing
Three routers are used for designing the network and routing is necessary for
communicating with the different interface of the router and redundancy is created between the
routers for connecting with the other university.
2.7.1 EIGRP
Router eigrp is used for the communicating with the other interfaces of the router and it
consumes less resources in the network and it can also adopt the new changes in the network

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easily. Instead of changing the entire routing table of the routers only the changes are updated
and thus it reduces the load of the network. Diffused Update Algorithm is used for calculation of
the shortest distance and sending and receiving the data packets.
2.7.2 HSRP
It is used for combined multiple routers and serve as a single router virtually in the
network. A virtual Ip address is used for the router that allows the device connected in the
network to connect with the gateway of the virtual router created using the HSRP protocol. It is
mainly used for fault tolerance and it also support disruptive failover for the Ip traffic in the
network. If a link fails the other link can be utilized for communicating with the network.
2.8 VOIP
The routers and the switches are configured with full duplex transmission for supporting
VOIP and support encoding the voice and data transmission. The number of device used in the
network is calculated for the calculation of the bandwidth to be allocated for the voice channel.
The VOIP is implemented in the network for handling phone operation and providing additional
flexibility in the network such as installation of a voice gateway and configuring policy map. It is
used mainly in the multimedia sessions and it can be used for internet telephony and
provisioning the communication service in the organizational network. The VOIP is quite similar
with the traditional digital telephony but the only difference is that the voice signals are encoded
and transmitted as an IP packet in the VOIP network. Cisco 7960 phone is used for the
exchanging the voice and the router is configured with telephony service protocol for assigning
phone number to the phone connected in the vlans of the network solution.
The button of the telephone are configured from the router and the call manager is used
for registering the extension number used for the internal communication in the network. The

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switches are configured with trunk protocol for allowing the dhcp server to allocate Ip address to
the device connected in the network.
2.9 Wi-Fi
Wireless access point is installed at different location of the network such that the
flexibility of the network is improved and it allows the users to connect their hand held device in
the organizational network. Each of the floors in the campus have an access point that it operates
in different frequencies such as 2.4 and 5.0 GHz for maintaining standards and data transfer rate
in the organizational network. The access point are secured with encryption algorithm for
restricting unauthorized users to access the network. Different SSID are used for the access point
such that it can be identified easily and coverage area of the wifi signal are analyzed before
implementation of the wireless access point in the network.
2.10 Network Security
2.10.1 Password Protection
Password protection is important for maintaining the security of the network and restrict
the unauthorized users to access the resources. Different encryption algorithm are available and
they are applied in the wireless access points for protecting the devices. The routers and the
switches are also secured with password protection and by default CISCO is used as a password
and login. For entering the privilege levels the username and password is required to be provided
and thus the network is secured from unauthorized changes.
2.10.2 Access List (ACL)
An access control list is prepared and configured in the gateway router for restricting the
unauthorized users to access the servers and the main resources of the network. Access Control

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list can be configured using a range of IP address and the dhcp pool can be blocked. The
biometric device installed in the network can be accessed by the network administrator and all
the other users are blocked from accessing it. The web server is also protected from public access
and all the unknown users are blocked from accessing the web servers. And the http traffic are
blocked from the unknown IP address.
2.10.3 Switch Port Security
Enabling the switch port security helps in controlling the network traffic and it can be
configured in the switch by entering the global configuration mode. The mac address of the
device connected to the port can be bind and used for tracking the user. There are three different
modes for the switch port security such as protect, restrict and shutdown. In the protect mode the
request from the IP address that are not allowed are dropped and in the restrict mode the frames
from the not allowed Ip address are dropped with addition of a log entry for creation of a security
violation evidence in the network. In the shutdown mode a violation alert is created and the port
is disabled.
2.10.4 Firewall
A firewall is installed in the network for increasing the security of the network and a dmz
zone is created for restriction of physical access of the firewall. A firewall policy is created for
protection of the network elements and the organizational information from unauthorized access.
It is also used for monitoring the ingoing and outgoing traffic in the network and ASA 505
firewall is used for the configuration of the network solution. It acts as a barrier between the
trusted sources and the untrusted sources for providing positive control and dropping the
suspicious data packets.

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2.10.5 Intrusion Detection System (IDS) and Intrusion Prevention System (IPS)
For the management of the security risk both detection of the intrusion and its prevention
is necessary and both uses the similar technology for preventing the security issues arising in the
network. The IDS and IPS can be used instead of firewall because it a complex task to
maintaining thousands of access control rules. In case of the IPS deny rules are set and when a
packet is sent in the network the rule list is checked for dropping the packet and if no reason is
found the packet is passed.
The intrusion detection system is a tools used for monitoring the network traffic and the
data flow in the network. Different point can be selected for monitoring the data traffic and a
protocol analyzer can be used for analyzing the flow of data in the network and controlling the
data traffic in the network. Network scanning tools can also be used for analyzing the
unauthorized agents accessing the network resources and evidence can be collected for illegal
activity in the network.
After detection of the suspicious activity it should be prevented and inbound and
outbound rules must set for securing the entry and the exit point in the network.
2.11. Biometric
Biometric device can be installed in different points in the network for securing the
network from illegal access and maintaining the records of the users accessing the system. The
installation of the biometric device in the dmz zone reduces the risk of physical access of the
servers and the other devices in the network. The device uses the physical characteristics for the
identification of the individual who are permitted the access of the resources installed in the
network. There are different types of biometric device and it uses automated methodology for the
identification of the identity of the personnel by analyzing the physiological characteristics of an

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individual. Scanning of the fingerprint, iris, voice recognition and face and signature can be used
for the prevention of the fraud identity and identification of the valid student. The biometric
device can also be used for maintaining the record of the attendance of the students and
providing access of the labs to the students.
Type of
Biometric
Cost Accuracy Ease to use Complexity Required
device
Fingerprint Low Medium High Low Fingerprint
scanner
Signature
verification
Low low High Low Touch
interface with
stylus
Iris Scan Medium High Low High Infrared
Camera
Voice
recognition
Low Low High Medium Microphone
device
Face
recognition
High High High High Infrared
camera
2.11.1 Advantages of Biometric system
With the implementation of the biometric device in the organizational network the
authenticity of the individual can be confirmed by scanning the characteristics. The advantages
are listed below:

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Establishment of the accountability – The accountability can be established and the
action of the users can be tracked for reducing the risk of misuse of the organizational resources
and increase the efficiency of the network.
Addition of convenience – the individuals not need to carry external identity proof or
remember their password for logging or getting access of the system and adds convenience in the
organizational network.
Difficult to forge – The fake information can be identified when it is compared with the
original information inputted in the device and it is difficult for the hacker to forge
Improvement in return of investment – The accuracy of the system can be improved and
the accountability can also be improved when it is compared with the traditional attendance
system.
Accuracy in the identification – It identifies the unique physiological character of an
individual and makes the identification process accurate.
Reduction of the administrative cost – biometric device are easy to setup and it can be
installed in the organizational network for maintaining the records of the users and it requires no
training and thus reduces the cost of administration.
2.11.2 Disadvantages of biometric system
There are some disadvantage of the installation of the biometric authentication system in
the current network of the university and they are listed as follows:

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 The biometric device cannot be managed remotely i.e. the alteration of the information
added in the device is not possible and it act as a barrier for remote recovery and
regaining the control of the biometric system once its security is compromised.
 The biometric information stored on the computer can be stolen for exploitation and
planting of the evidence.
 Risk of identity theft because the biometric information are stored in a computer and it
can be used for creating fake copy of fingerprint.
2.12. Further network expansion at the Academy
The network is designed maintaining the future growth of the organization and the IP
addressing plan is created for the accommodation of new computers in the network. Extra IP
address are reserved for future expansion of the organizational network. Proper cabling plan is
used for handling the traffic in the network and routing is used for sending and receiving the data
packets in the network using different channels. The creation of the vlan helps in segmentation of
the network and reduces the congestion in the network. Immediately 20 computers can be added
to any of the departments and the web server can be configured to serve as a corporate website.
2.13. Implementation of WAN
The network can be configured with vpn setup for allowing the remote users to connect
with the network. The server using in the network is required to be configured for vpn and a
localized backbone is used for sending and receiving the TCP/IP packets. Leased lines are used
for connecting with the other networks for reducing the cost of the network. Multi-protocol label
switching is used for connecting with the different branches of the university and it also
facilitates the creation of the VPN connection. It is mainly used for increasing the efficiency of
the telecommunication and the working principle of the protocol is to find the shortest path and

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direct the data depending on the shortest path labels. The virtual links are identified and ATM,
DSL or frame relay can be used for transmitting the data packets in the network.
For the multimedia courses offered by Singapore Gaming Academy large amount of data
transmission is required and thus the MPLS is used for maintaining the quality level of the
network and provide better service.
2.14. Implementation of IPv6 addressing
IPv6 address scheme needs to be used for configuring dual stack network and
communicate with the networks configured with Ipv6 address. The router is required to be
configured with a dhcp pool to allocate the Ipv6 address to the device connected in the network
and communicate with the device configured with IPv6 addressing scheme. Configuration of the
devices with IPv6 address helps in reducing the risk of packet loss and helps in increasing the
efficiency of the network solution.

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3.0. Network Diagrams for the school network
3.1. Network Diagram for Implementation of WAN to automate the data transfer
between the school and possible two overseas campuses in Asia Pacific
3.2. Network Diagram for Implement access points for wireless access for the
students, staff and guests

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3.3. Network Diagram for backbone network

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3.4. Add firewalls in all the network diagrams
4. Conclusion
It can be concluded from the above report that the current infrastructure of Singapore
Gaming Academy is not secure and it should be developed for increasing the reliability and
reducing the network downtime. A future proof network solution is suggested for the
organization and the existing problems are identified for the mitigation of the problems and
develop a network design. The created network solution meets all the needs of the organization
and wireless access point are installed in the network for increasing the flexibility of the network.
The VOIP protocol is used for implementation of telephony service in the network and different
network channels are used for data and voice for improvement of the quality of service and
reducing congestion in the network.

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