Network Management, Monitoring, and Optimization

1. Click to edit Master subtitle style Chapter 20: Management, Monitoring, and Optimization

2. Chapter 20 Objectives • The Following CompTIA Network+ Exam Objectives Are Covered in This Chapter: • 2.3 Given a scenario, use appropriate resources to support configuration management • • Archives/backups • • Baselines • • On-boarding and off-boarding of mobile devices • • NAC • • Documentation • o Network diagrams (logical/physical) • o Asset management • o IP address utilization • o Vendor documentation • o Internal operating procedures/policies/standards 2

3. Chapter 20 Objectives (cont) 1.10 Identify the basics elements of unified communication technologies • VoIP • Video • Real time services o Presence o Multicast vs unicast • QoS o DSCP o COS • Devices o UC servers o UC devices o UC gateways 3

4. Chapter 20 Objectives (cont) 1.11 Compare and contrast technologies that support cloud and virtualization • Virtualization o Virtual switches o Virtual routers o Virtual firewall o Virtual vs physical NICs o Software defined networking • Storage area network o iSCSI o Jumbo frame o Fiber channel o Network attached storage • Cloud concepts o Public IaaS, SaaS, PaaS o Private IaaS, SaaS, PaaS o Hybrid IaaS, SaaS, PaaS o Community IaaS, SaaS, PaaS 4

5. Chapter 20 Objectives (cont) 1.7 Differentiate between network infrastructure implementations • SCADA/ICS o ICS server o DCS/closed network o Remote terminal unit o Programmable logic controller • Medianets o VTC - ISDN - IP/SIP 5

6. Chapter 20 Objectives (cont) 2.4 Explain the importance of implementing network segmentation • SCADA systems/Industrial control systems • Legacy systems • Separate private/public networks • Honeypot/honeynet • Testing lab • Load balancing • Performance optimization • Security • Compliance 6

7. Chapter 20 Objectives (cont) 5.5 Given a scenario, implement the appropriate policies or procedures • Security policies o Consent to monitoring • Network policies • Acceptable use policy • Standard business documents o SLA o MOU o MLA o SOW 7

8. Chapter 20 Objectives (cont) 5.6 Summarize safety practices • Electrical safety o Grounding • ESD o Static • Installation safety o Lifting equipment o Rack installation o Placement o Tool safety • MSDS • Emergency procedures o Building layout o Fire escape plan o Safety/emergency exits o Fail open/fail close o Emergency alert system • Fire suppression systems • HVAC 8

9. Chapter 20 Objectives (cont) 5.8 Explain the basics of change management procedures • Document reason for a change • Change request o Configuration procedures o Rollback process o Potential impact o Notification • Approval process • Maintenance window o Authorized downtime • Notification of change • Documentation o Network configurations o Additions to network o Physical location changes 9

10. Chapter 20 Objectives (cont) 5.7 Given a scenario, install and configure equipment in the appropriate location using best practices • Intermediate distribution frame • Main distribution frame • Cable management o Patch panels • Power management o Power converters o Circuits o UPS o Inverters o Power redundancy • Device placement • Air flow • Cable trays • Rack systems o Server rail racks o Two-post racks o Four-post racks o Free-standing racks • Labeling o Port labeling o System labeling o Circuit labeling o Naming conventions o Patch panel labeling • Rack monitoring • Rack Security 10

11. Management, Monitoring, and Optimization Ending up with a great network requires some really solid planning before you buy even one device for it. Planning includes thoroughly analyzing your design for potential flaws and optimizing configurations everywhere you can to maximize the network’s future throughput and performance. Planning will enable you to efficiently troubleshoot any issues arising after everything is in place, up, and running. 11

12. Using SNMP Gathers data by polling the devices on the network from a management station at fixed or random intervals, requiring them to disclose certain information. Consequently, SNMP can help simplify the process of gathering information of your entire internetwork Can be used to either get information from the device about its state (SNMP GetRequest) or to make a change in the device’s configuration (SetRequest). 12

13. Managing Network Documentation • Create documentation keep it safe in at least three forms: • An electronic copy that you can easily modify after configuration changes • A hard copy in a binder of some sort, stored in an easily accessible location • A copy on an external drive to keep in a really safe place (even offsite) in case something happens to the other two or the building is destroyed 13

14. Schematics and Diagrams • Schematics and diagrams can be simple sketches created while brainstorming or troubleshooting on the fly; or they can be highly detailed, refined illustrations created with some of the flashy software packages available today. • Fall into these three groups: • Wiring diagrams/schematics • Physical network diagrams • Logical network diagrams • Schematics and Diagrams • Asset Management • IP address Utilization • Vendor Documentation 14

15. Schematics and Diagrams RJ45 Connector • For example, in an RJ45 connector, pin 1 is on the left and pin 8 is on the right, so clearly, within your UTP cable, make sure the right wires get to the right pins. • Wiring Schematics • Made up of cabled and other physical media:coax, fiber, and twisted pair. 15

16. Schematics and Diagrams • Wiring Schematics • Cabling not created correctly will lead to disastrous results. 16 Crossover Cable Ends

17. Schematics and Diagrams All wires have to plug in somewhere It’s really good to know where that is. Whether it’s into a hub, a switch, a router, a workstation, or the wall, you positively need to know the who, what, where, when, and how of the way the wiring is attached. 17

18. Schematics and Diagrams Router Internet Switch 2 Switch 1 • Avoiding Confusion • Come up with systems for naming devices and numbering connections that’s intuitive • Physical Network Diagrams • A physical network diagram contains all the physical devices and connectivity paths on your network and should accurately picture how your network physically fits together in detail. 18 2 Printers Server 1 (Login) Server 3 (Mail) 19 workstations Server 2 (Files)

19. Schematics and Diagrams Internet Clients A more detailed physical network diagram is necessary in many cases. 19

20. Schematics and Diagrams Cisco 2960 XL Switch 8U Rack Mount Monitor PC-8 PC-2 PC-3 PC-4 PC-1 PC-5 PC-7 PC-9 PC-6 Rack Diagram Router 55.800.50.1 VLAN1 Netware 5.1 55.811.50.20 Cisco 2900 XL Switch Cisco 2900 XL Switch VLAN1 RedHat 7.1 55.812.50.20 UPS UPS Detailed physical network diagrams are necessary even down to rack space. 20

21. Schematics and Diagrams Firewall External Router Internal Router Web Server www.example.com 192.168.3.10/24 Mail Server mail.example.com 192.168.3.15/24 R&D subnet 192.168.5.0/24 File Server IP: 192.168.5.10/24 Printer IPs: 192.168.5.20/24- 192.168.5.39 Workstation IPs: 192.168.5.50/24- 192.168.5.99 Admin subnet 192.168.6.0/24 File Server IP: 192.168.6.10/24 Printer IPs: 192.168.6.20/24- 192.168.6.39 Workstation IPs: 192.168.6.50/24- 192.168.6.99 Internet Server subnet 192.168.4.0/24 Server IPs: 192.168.4.10/24 192.168.4.11/24 192.168.4.12/24 192.168.4.13/24 • Schematics and Diagrams • A logical network diagram includes protocols, configurations, addressing schemes, access lists, firewalls, types of applications, etc. that apply logically to your network. 21

22. Baselines • A baseline refers to the standard level of performance of a certain device or to the normal operating capacity for your network. • A specific server’s baseline describes norms for factors like how busy its processors are • How much of the memory it uses • How much data usually goes through the NIC at a given time • Baselines include information about four key components: • Processor • Memory • Hard-disk (or other storage) subsystem • Network adapter or subsystem 22

23. Policies, Procedures, and Regulations • Policies govern how the network is configured and operated and how people are expected to behave on it. • Clean-desk policies • Network access (who, what, and how) • Acceptable-use policy • Disposal of network equipment • Use of recording equipment • How passwords are managed (length and complexity required, and how often they need to be changed) • Types of security hardware in place • How often to do backups and other fault-tolerant measures • What to do with user accounts after an employee leaves the company 23

24. Policies, Procedures, and Regulations • Procedures are the actions to be taken in specific situations. • Disciplinary action to be taken if a policy is broken • What to do during an audit • How issues are reported to management • What to do when someone is locked out of their account • How to properly install or remove software on servers • What to do if files suddenly appear to be “missing” • How to respond when a network computer has a virus • Actions to take if a hacker has broken into the network • Actions to take if there is a physical emergency 24

25. Policies, Procedures, and Regulations • Regulations are rules imposed on your organization by an outside agency, like a certifying board or a government entity • IT regulations center around something known as the CIA triad • Confidentiality • Integrity • Availability • Know the regulations your company is expected to comply with, and make sure your IT policies and procedures are completely in line with any regulations. 25

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28. Reasons to Optimize Your Network’s Performance • Latency Sensitivity • VoIP • Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) describes several technologies delivering voice communications over the Internet or other data networks • Video applications • High-Bandwidth Applications • VoIP • Video applications • Uptime • Uptime is the amount of time the system is up and accessible to your end users 28

29. Optimize Performance • Quality of Service (QoS) • Quality of Service (QoS) refers to the way the resources are controlled • QoS provides different priority of one or more types of traffic over other levels, to different applications, data flows, or users • QoS methods focus problems that can affect data as it traverses network cable. • Delay • Dropped packets • Error • Jitter • Out-of-order delivery 29

30. Optimize Performance • Traffic Shaping • Traffic shaping, or packet shaping, is another form of bandwidth optimization which works by delaying packets meeting a certain criteria to guarantee usable bandwidth for other applications. • Load Balancing • Load balancing refers to a technique used to spread work out to multiple computers, network links, or other devices. • High Availability • High availability is a system-design protocol guaranteeing an amount of operational uptime for a given period of time. 30

31. Optimize Performance • Caching Engines • A cache is a collection of data that duplicates key pieces of original data. • A caching engine is basically a database on a server that stores information people need to access fast. • Fault Tolerance • Fault tolerance means that even if one component fails, you won’t lose access to the resource it provides. • Common Address Redundancy Protocol • provides IP-based redundancy, allowing a group of hosts on the same network segment (referred to as a redundancy group) to share an IP address. 31

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33. Virtual Networking 33

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41. Summary Summary Exam Essentials Section Written Labs Review Questions 41