Network Infrastructure Proposal for Color Ability Corporation

This report presents a comprehensive network infrastructure plan for Color Ability Corporation (CAC), a marketing and advertising company relocating to a four-story building in Brisbane CBD. With 80 employees and four departments (HR/Accounting, Advertising, Marketing, and Design/Photography), CAC requires an effective yet affordable network solution. The report details the problem statement, goals, objectives, methodology, and budget summary, followed by technical solutions and evaluations across eight key activities, including recommendations for computer systems, printers, ISP selection, IP addressing, and network device selection. Future plans and conclusions emphasize scalability, security, and ease of management. The proposal aims to meet CAC's business requirements within its budget, ensuring business continuity and performance through a well-designed and implemented network infrastructure.

NETWORK TECHNOLOGY AND MANAGEMENT
Student Name
Student ID
Course
Instructor
Date

NETWORK TECHNOLOGY AND MANAGEMENT
Executive Summary
This report will focus on Color Ability Corporation (CAC) which is a marketing and advertising company.
Currently the company is located on level 10 and 11 of X Tower in Brisbane CBD and has 80 employees.
CAC has purchased a four-story building within Brisbane CBD and would like to implement a network
infrastructure in place before moving to their new offices in 3 months. Each floor will host a department
and currently CAC has four departments including HR and accounting, advertising, marketing, and design
and photography. CAC would like to implement an effective but affordable network that can be
accommodated by its limited budget. It is important to plan and design the network properly and
implement the network with the most reliable and highly secured devices to ensure business continuity
and performance. The choice of network design and devices are crucial for the overall performance and
effectiveness of the network. Therefore, it is recommended that Color Ability Corporation adopts this
proposal because it meets their requirements, business functions, and is within its budget.
i

NETWORK TECHNOLOGY AND MANAGEMENT
Table of Contents
Executive Summary......................................................................................................................................i
Table of Figures and Tables........................................................................................................................iii
Introduction.................................................................................................................................................1
Problem Statement.................................................................................................................................1
Goals and Objectives...............................................................................................................................1
Methodology and Timetable...................................................................................................................1
Budget Summary.....................................................................................................................................2
Technical Solutions and Evaluation.............................................................................................................3
Activity 1..................................................................................................................................................3
Activity 2..................................................................................................................................................6
Activity 3..................................................................................................................................................6
Activity 4..................................................................................................................................................9
Activity 5................................................................................................................................................10
Activity 6................................................................................................................................................11
Activity 7................................................................................................................................................12
Activity 8................................................................................................................................................13
Future plans...........................................................................................................................................14
Conclusion and Recommendations...........................................................................................................14
Reference List............................................................................................................................................15
Appendix 1: Subnetting Calculations.........................................................................................................17
ii

NETWORK TECHNOLOGY AND MANAGEMENT
Table of Figures and Tables
Figure 1: Xerox Phaser 7400 DXF.................................................................................................................6
Figure 2: Network Design for Each Floor.....................................................................................................7
Figure 3: Cisco Small Business Switch..........................................................................................................8
Table 1: Project Schedule............................................................................................................................2
Table 2: Budget Summary...........................................................................................................................2
Table 3: Specifications for General use Computers.....................................................................................3
Table 4: Specification for Graphics Production Computer...........................................................................4
Table 5: System Specifications for Film Production Computer....................................................................5
Table 6: System specifications for Email and FTP server.............................................................................5
Table 7: Internet Service Providers............................................................................................................10
Table 8: Internal Services Provided by CAC...............................................................................................11
Table 9: Requirement Justification............................................................................................................12
Table 10: Subnetting Table........................................................................................................................12
Table 11: IP Addressing Table....................................................................................................................13
iii

NETWORK TECHNOLOGY AND MANAGEMENT
Introduction
Computer networks is a fundamental part of any business because allows sharing of resources and
communications amongst the employees and customers. Networking is interconnectivity of various
computer devices such as desktops, laptops, servers, routers, switches, access points amongst others for
the purpose of communication and resource sharing (Zhuravlev, 2016). This is an integral sector and
requires careful planning, design, and implementation so as to ensure that all the business requirements
and functions have been addressed. A well designed network infrastructure increases business
performance and productivity while a poorly design one may cost the business resources in managing
and upgrading it every other time (Salim & Abdalla, 2018). A network should meet the following
properties: it should be secured, scalable, easy to manage, reliable, efficient, and effective in order to
support all the business processes. This report seeks to review the existing network infrastructure and
propose a new solution for CAC’s new office that will meet their business requirements and is within
their budget. It includes proposing computers for every department, ISP provider, IP addressing and sub
netting, and the various networking devices and printers that will meet their daily needs.
Problem Statement
Color Ability and Corporation have purchased a four-story building within Brisbane CBD. The company
has no IT department and wants the new building to be networked so as to meet its business objectives
within the limited budget and resources available.
Goals and Objectives
The objectives of this project include; to design and implement the network infrastructure that will meet
the needs of every department at CAC. Secondly, to acquire reliable but affordable network devices that
will handle the company operations and communication. Thirdly, to recommend computer systems for
general use, graphic production, film production, and email and FTP server and finally to recommend
reliable local internet service provider.
Methodology and Timetable
To achieve the objectives, project will be broken down to various milestones and activities to be
achieved within three months. First is project planning, this includes gathering all the requirements that
is needed to successfully achieve the project objectives. Secondly, is the network design phase where
the network is designed and simulated using the various network simulation tools like Netsim and
1

NETWORK TECHNOLOGY AND MANAGEMENT
packet tracer to ensure that the proposed design will work. Thirdly, is the network implementation
where the logical design is implemented and the actual networking activity is done on the four-story
building. Finally, is network testing to ensure that every device is functional and communicates over the
network. Acceptance testing is done to ensure that the network users are satisfied with the overall
network design, functionality, and speed. Documentation will be done throughout the project. Below is
the table showing the project schedule within three months.
Project Task Duration (days) Start date End date
Project planning 10 September 1, 2018 September 10, 2018
Network Design 15 September 11, 2018 September 26, 2018
Network Implementation 60 September 27, 2018 November 26, 2018
Network Testing 10 November 27, 2018 December 6, 2018
Documentation 90 September 1, 2018 December 6, 2018
Table 1: Project Schedule
Budget Summary
Item No Item Quantity Price ($) Total Cost ($)
1 General Use Computers 60 420 25200
2 Graphic production Computers 10 638 6380
3 Film Production Computers 10 680 6800
4 Servers 5 550 2750
5 Routers 2 190 380
6 Switches 5 175 875
7 Wireless Access Points 5 170 850
8 Printers 5 850 4250
9 ISP Subscription 24 89 2136
10 Cat 6 Ethernet Cable (100 meters
each) 8 120 960
TOTAL EXPENSES 50581
Table 2: Budget Summary
2

NETWORK TECHNOLOGY AND MANAGEMENT
Technical Solutions and Evaluation
Activity 1
Department/Team: General Use
Location
Component Recommendation
Processor (Manufacturer, model, speed) Intel Core i5-4460s 2.4Ghz
Memory (Type, capacity) 8 GB static RAM
Hard Drive (Type, Capacity) 1 TB SATA
CD-ROM/DVD (Read, Read/Write, Speed) Optical Drive DVD R/RW
USB Ports (Number, Location) 7 USB ports 3 on the front face and 4 at the back
Video Card (Manufacturer, Model, Video RAM) Intel® HD Graphics, Graphics memory: 1792MB
Sound Card (Manufacturer, Model) Asus Xonar GHX PCIe GX 2.5
Modem (Internal/External, Speed, Standard) Internal modem 9600 bps QAM
Operating System (Manufacture, version,
Compatibility) Windows 10 Professional 64-bit
Monitor (size, Resolution, Refresh rate)
Size: 19 ws, Resolution: 1440 x 900, Refresh rate:
120Hz
Printer (Manufacturer, Model, Type) Xerox Phaser 7400 DXF
Speakers (manufacture, Model, Type) HP DC7600 internal speakers
Internet Connection (USB, Ethernet, Wireless) Ethernet connection
Table 3: Specifications for General use Computers
(Source: So & Byun, 2014)
Department/Team: Graphics Production
Location
Component Recommendation
Processor (Manufacturer, model, speed) 8th Generation Intel Core i7-8600 2.8GHz
Memory (Type, capacity) 16 GB SRAM
Hard Drive (Type, Capacity) 2TB SATA hard drive
CD-ROM/DVD (Read, Read/Write, Speed) Optical drive DVD R/RW
USB Ports (Number, Location) 7 USB Port front-3, Back-4
Video Card (Manufacturer, Model, Video RAM) Intel HD 6000 2GB VRAM
3

NETWORK TECHNOLOGY AND MANAGEMENT
Sound Card (Manufacturer, Model) Asus Xonar GHX PCIe GX 2.5
Modem (Internal/External, Speed, Standard) Internal modem 14.4k bps QAM
Operating System (Manufacture, version,
Compatibility) Windows 10 64 bit operating system
Monitor (size, Resolution, Refresh rate)
31.5-inch Dell ultrasharp UP3216Q , 3840 x 2160
60Hz
Printer (Manufacturer, Model, Type) Xerox Phaser 7400 DXF
Speakers (manufacture, Model, Type) HP DC7600 internal speakers
Internet Connection (USB, Ethernet, Wireless) Ethernet connection
Table 4: Specification for Graphics Production Computer
(Wolf, 2010, p. 9)
Department/Team: Film Production
Location
Component Recommendation
Processor (Manufacturer, model, speed) 8th Generation Intel Core i7-8600 2.8GHz
Memory (Type, capacity) 16 GB SRAM
Hard Drive (Type, Capacity) 3TB SATA hard drive
CD-ROM/DVD (Read, Read/Write, Speed) Optical drive DVD R/RW
USB Ports (Number, Location) 7 USB Port front-3, Back-4
Video Card (Manufacturer, Model, Video RAM) Intel HD 6000 2GB VRAM
Sound Card (Manufacturer, Model) Asus Xonar GHX PCIe GX 2.5
Modem (Internal/External, Speed, Standard) Internal modem 14.4k bps QAM
Operating System (Manufacture, version,
Compatibility) Windows 10 64 bit operating system
Monitor (size, Resolution, Refresh rate)
40-inch Philips Brilliance BDM4065UC , 3840 x
2160 60Hz
Printer (Manufacturer, Model, Type) Xerox Phaser 7400 DXF
Speakers (manufacture, Model, Type) HP DC7600 internal speakers
Internet Connection (USB, Ethernet, Wireless) Ethernet connection
4

NETWORK TECHNOLOGY AND MANAGEMENT
Table 5: System Specifications for Film Production Computer
(Wang & Wang, 2014, p.174)
Department/Team: Email and FTP
Location
Component Recommendation
Processor (Manufacturer, model, speed) Dual Xeon 5000
Memory (Type, capacity) 4 GB SRAM
Hard Drive (Type, Capacity) 1TB SAS hard drive
CD-ROM/DVD (Read, Read/Write, Speed) Optical Drive DVD R/RW
USB Ports (Number, Location) 7 USB ports 3 on the front face and 4 at the back
Video Card (Manufacturer, Model, Video RAM) Intel® HD Graphics, Graphics memory: 1792MB
Sound Card (Manufacturer, Model) Asus Xonar GHX PCIe GX 2.5
Modem (Internal/External, Speed, Standard) Internal modem 14.4k bps QAM
Operating System (Manufacture, version,
Compatibility) Windows server 2012R2
Monitor (size, Resolution, Refresh rate)
Size: 19 ws, Resolution: 1440 x 900, Refresh rate:
120Hz
Printer (Manufacturer, Model, Type) Xerox Phaser 7400 DXF
Speakers (manufacture, Model, Type) HP DC7600 internal speakers
Internet Connection (USB, Ethernet, Wireless) Ethernet connection
Table 6: System specifications for Email and FTP server
(Source: Movassaghi, Abolhasan & Lipman, 2011, p. 1312)
Color Ability Corporation (CAC) is a small company but is growing steadily. As such, there is need to
layout IT infrastructure that will support the growing needs of the business. Because of the limited
budget that CAC has, some of the devices will be share by the users. Each floor will have one printer that
is shared by those working in the respective floors. Additionally, every floor will have one 26-port switch
for wired connections and one access point for wireless connections. In case the company grows and
there is need for additional devices, the network infrastructure will not be affected (Weng, Yang and Lai,
2014, p. 674).
5

NETWORK TECHNOLOGY AND MANAGEMENT
Activity 2
CAC requires a printer that is able to handle the heavy printing that is done daily. Being a marketing and
advertising company, CAC needs a printer that give quality prints. As such, the business requires a high
speed, multipurpose printer that will meet the requires of every department. Xerox Phaser 7400 DXF is
the best printer that can handle the requirements of the business. One printer will be bought for every
floor (Cheng et al., 2016, 146). This printer has the capability to print A3, A4, A5, and A6 paper types.
Additionally, it can hold up to 3000 sheet of paper, print speed is 40ppm for black and white and 36ppm
for colored, and has a maximum duty cycle of 150000 pages per month. Xerox Phaser 7400 DXF is a
sophisticated and high performance duplex printer capable of printing super tabloid sizes. Furthermore,
built-in properties like selection of trays automatically saves the company resources such as money and
time by avoiding the need to reprint the documents. This makes Xerox phaser 7400 DXF a solid option
for CAC.
Figure 1: Xerox Phaser 7400 DXF
(source: Xerox.com, 2018)
Additional features include 800MHz processing speed, 4GB RAM, 20GB hard disk, and weight of 209KGs.
Activity 3
Each floor will have a 26-port switch, router/firewall, wireless access point, a workstation, and a server.
Figure 2 below shows the proposed layout of each floor.
6

NETWORK TECHNOLOGY AND MANAGEMENT
Figure 2: Network Design for Each Floor
The choice of the devices used is essential for the management and future expansion. As such, the
devices used are justified below:
Router
The router chosen for the network is NETGEAR NightHawk X10 AD7200. This router supports both wired
and wireless connections which will best suit the CAC because of the limited budget. It supports fast
media streaming and this will come in handy because customers are demanding for more interactive
media for advertisement such as video presentations. It has the ability to deliver 802.11 ac/ad internet
to facilitate instant downloads and 4K streaming media ultra-smoothly (Mbale and Mufeti, 2011). It is
made up of quad-stream architecture and has a processing speed of 1.7GHz running quad core
processor making it to support speeds of up to 7.2 GBPs.
Switch
The switch recommended is Cisco SG250 26-port switch. Depending on the choice this model can
dedicate either 195w or 100w to the power over Ethernet.
7

NETWORK TECHNOLOGY AND MANAGEMENT
Figure 3: Cisco Small Business Switch
(Source: Ma, Helvik & Wittner, 2011)
This switch facilitates easy management of the network and has advanced features for easy
configuration. It has high performance and reliability to prevent downtimes that may cost the business a
substantial cost. It has the ability to boost slow network, high transfer rates, and facilitates quick
communication. Additionally, it provides basic security required to manage and keep a level of security
for the company, safe guards business data, and keep off unauthorized users from accessing the
network (Ma, Helvik & Wittner, 2011). It is energy efficient and provides additional Gigabit ports to
expand the network. SG250-26 thus, is the best choice for CAC because of its quality of service features.
Wireless Access Point
CAC will need wireless networks to connect laptops, tablets, and mobile phones while at the office. Cisco
WAP 150 is the best choice because it is affordable and provides highly secured wireless connectivity.
This increases productivity within the business and has the ability to run next gen applications without
any lags. It provides 802.11ac wireless connection of up to 1.2 GBPs, PoE Gigabit port, and concurrent
dual-band radio. Additionally, its portal is user friendly and allow the easy customization of rights and
roles (Yiannopoulos and Boucouvalas, 2012).
Server
CAC will require several servers to handle the daily business operations. Some of the servers that will be
needed include, print server, mail server, application server, and backup server. The choice of server
determines the overall productivity of the business, that is, server with a high rate of downtime is likely
to cost the business huge amount of resources, money and time, but server with zero downtime
increases the productivity of the company because of the smooth running of operations without
interruption (Bai et al., 2010, p. 1683). Dell PowerEdge T30 will serve well as the server because of its
outstanding features Intel Xeon E3-1225 v5 processor, 64GB RAM, 6 SATA Hard disks, intel HD Graphics
p530, 10 USB ports, VGA, HDMI, Display Port, Gigabit Ethernet, PS2, and serial. This features suits the
server requirements needed by CAC.
8