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Contents
Task1 ........................................................................................................................ Page 4
Task 2 ....................................................................................................................... Page 9
Task 3 ....................................................................................................................... Page 12
Task 4 ...................................................................................................................... Page 13
Task 5 ....................................................................................................................... Page 14

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Introduction
This report covers an assignment on the development of a computer network for an
engineering services firm. The aim of this report is to provide the details of a range of options
for setting up computer network and give recommendations that which option is the best.
Details are explained by the steps of tasks.

Task 1
a) Cabled Network Media Options
Network media can be divided into two types which are bounded media (physical
cable) and unbounded media (Wireless). Cabled network media as bounded media are
coaxial cable, twisted-pair cable and fiber-optic cable.
Coaxial is an electrical cable used for transmitting radio frequency signals and can
operate at 10 Mbps. Coax cable can protect the signals from external electromagnetic
interference. There are two types of coaxial cables which are thin coax and thick coax.
Twisted-pair cable has two basic types that are unshielded twisted pair (UTP) and
shielded twisted pair (STP).Of these two, UTP is the most common used in LAN
environments. It contains eight copper wires covered by insulating sheath and are twisted
around each other in a pair of two or more. Its maximum cable length is 100 meters.
The most common types of UTP cabling categories (in order from slower to faster) are Cat 5,
Cat 5e and Cat 6.
Cat5e- provides 1 Gigabit Ethernet with a secure, cost effective and flexible cabling system.
It is a solution for running LAN protocols and high speed applications.
Cat 5e is backwards compatible to Cat 5 but it is better at reducing crosstalk which helps
speed up the network and it has a rating to carry the load of a 1000Base-T network (1
Gigabit network).
Currently, Cat6 is the fastest standard of UTP and can run much longer lengths. It is also
perfectly suited to large networked environments because of its improved transfer speed.
Fiber-optic cable carries information using light and designed for long distance network. It
provides the greatest protection from noise and intrusion.





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b) Connectors

There are many network connectors' options available to choose depending on cable type,
network type and device. For cabled network, coaxial cable, UTP and fiber-optic cable
connectors are available.

Coaxial cable connector
Bayonet Neil Concelman (BNC) connectors, a common type of RF connectors, are radio
frequency male type connectors that are mounted at each end of a coaxial cable. They were
most used on 10BASE2 thin Ethernet networks, both on cable interconnections and network
cards.

UTP connector
The most common used UTP jacks connectors are called RJ-11 and RJ-45.
RJ-11, known as phone connector, is used for plugging a telephone into the wall.
RJ-45 is an eight-wire connector designed for high speed data that joins with cat5e standard
cable. It is commonly use to connect PC on LAN network, especially Ethernets.
Fiber Optic connector
Fiber optical connectors are created by using an adhesive to secure the fiber into the
body of the connector. FC style connectors are superior to any bayonet style
connectors since they ensure a tight and secure connection by screwing together.

c) Wireless hardware
Wireless router
Computers and devices connect to the wireless router using microwaves (no physical wave).
Most wireless routers have several Ethernet ports and contain network switch to make
connection through Ethernet cable. A router can be considered more "intelligent" than the
hub.
Wireless network adapter
It contain a built-in radio transmitter and receiver. PCI, PCMCIA (card bus) and USB wireless
network adapter's types are available.
Wireless access point
Access points are most commonly used in public Internet and also on internal business
networks to extend their Wi-Fi signal. Access point work as a central transmitter and receiver
of wireless radio signals which include Wi-Fi.

Wireless Extender
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Wireless extenders capture the router signals and rebroadcast it. It is commonly use at the
weak wireless signal areas to enhance network signal quality.

d) Cost of cabling, hardware and installation
Network equipment costs
Equipment Types Cost
1000FT 23AWG Cat6 500MHz UTP Copper Cable Approximate cost $ 106.29
Platinum 100010C EZ-RJ 45 Cat6 Connectors Pack of 50 Approximate cost $ 35.60
CISCO 3825 Cisco 3800 Router ISR x 1 Approximate cost $ 3,990.00
Linksys EA6500 Wireless Router Approximate cost $ 160.00
Managed Switch x 5 Approximate cost $ 872.50
Web Server x 1 Approximate cost $ 2,423.24
Mail Server x 1 Approximate cost $ 1450.00
Installation of computer x 34 Approximate cost $ 306.00

e) Data transfer rates
Wireless Networking Standards
Standard Frequency Max Speed Range Interference
Susceptibility
802.11a 5 GHz 54 Mbps 5 GHz Moderate
802.11b 2.4 GHz 11 Mbps 2.4GHz High
802.11g 2.4 GHz 54 Mbps 2.4GHz Low
802.11n 2.4/5 GHz 600 Mbps 5 GHz High


Data transfer rate is measured in bits per second. The more bandwidth it has, the higher the
data transfer rate we get. For wireless LAN technology, 802.11 is used for the series of
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specifications developed by the IEEE. The most commonly used are 802.11a, 802.11 b,
802.11 g and 802.11n.
In selecting data transfer rate for wireless access in the meeting and conference rooms,
802.11n technology is the best choice. It can transmit multiple streams of data at once. Due
to this technology doubles the range of wireless devices, a wireless router that uses 802.11n
may have twice the radius of coverage than an 802.11g router.

Recommendations to purchase

A variety of network components are required for a successful build of networking our
engineering services firm. For cabling to network, we should purchase UTP Category 6
Ethernet cable to connect workstations of each client staff. UTP is a good choice in three
types of cable. The reasons of UTP is the most flexible cable type and least expensive than
other cables. In Addition, it is simple, easy to use and most common for standard network
cable installation. UTP Cat 6 performs better than Cat 5 with higher transmission rate and
lower transmission error.
To connect UTP cables, RJ45 connector is the most suitable. So, this is also recommended.
Switches are also needed to allow timely access to resources of departments. We will use
TP-LINK TL-SG3216 16-port Pure-Gigabit L2 Managed Switch. It can increase network
demands on multitasking network operating systems. We require managed switches for
connecting workstations in our extended star topology. Each workstations of a department
will connect directly to a switch.
We will use CISCO 3825 Cisco 3800 Router ISR to interconnect separate networks. So,
users can share the internet connection. This router will work the best way to send
messages through other routers. It acts as a dispatcher by choosing the best path for
information to travel so it's received quickly.


Network Topology Diagram
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Task 2



U
p
U
p
Engineering Department
Conference Room
Meeting Room
Oil & Gas Department
Petrochemical Department
Staffing Department
Web Server
Email Server
Firewall Wireless Router
U
p
U
p
Waiting Room
c
c
Internet
Wireless Router
R
e
c
e
p
t
i
o
n
24 port Switch
24 port Switch
24 port Switch
24 port Switch
24 port Switch
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Advantages and disadvantages of hub
A hub gives clients to eaves-drop on conversations with a network protocol analyzer.
Though hub can't control traffic of data since it do not have addressing capability. Another
weakness is hubs have limited ports so that it is not appropriate for large network.
Advantages and disadvantages of switch
Switch can reduce excess traffic on a network since it only transmits packets on the
destination port. Multi ports of switch are available in lower cost. Sometimes, when the
switch is in promiscuous mode, they are defenseless to security attacks such as IP spoofing
or capturing Ethernet frames. During the broadcast limit switches are not as good as the
router.
Advantages and disadvantages of wireless router
Router can use to direct traffic across a WAN to its final destination. It is able to filter the
broadcasts during leading them between two interfaces. Also, a router can be connected to
many media.
The disadvantages of a router are costs more than any other device that can play the same
role as the Hub, Bridge, and Switch. The more data it must filter, the slower router's function
gets.
Advantages and disadvantages of Web Server
Running with Web server provides an option for people to complete their updates and deploy
applications with their unique. Web server is normally used, hosting all kinds of several
types, because it turns out to be more effective for the users. There is another name, called
managed web hosting service. One of the disadvantages is that its performance is tied to the
price. The more expensive web server, the better performance it will provides. Web server
has to deal with other company to do the right job, maintaining security, providing good
service.
Advantages and disadvantages of Email Server
Email servers can access to email faster because it is in local network. In addition, it enables
easy access to diagnostic logging. With a mail server, it is simple to send broadcast
message to every employee from senior managers. Some distinct advantages of mail server
that each staff can have their own business related inbox and authorized staff can only send
or receive email. Also, spam can be filtered before cluttering up their inbox. The
disadvantages that it is require an expertise to manage email servers.




Details of protocol used
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Some of protocols used for the website and multimedia presentations are HTTP (Hypertext
Transfer Protocol), and FTP (File Transfer Protocol) for web server, IP for router and switch
which are used IPv6.

HTTP
The purpose of the HTTP protocol is to allow transfer of files (mainly in HTML format)
between a browser (client) and a web server located with the help of a character string
known as a URL.

HTTPS
HTTPS is a secure method of access or send information via a web page. All data is
sent via HTTPS is encrypted before it is sent, this prevents anyone from understanding that
when information is blocked.
TCP/IP
TCP (Transmission Control Protocol) protocol takes care of communication with
applications software like browser where IP takes care of the communication between
computers. TCP is responsible for ensuring the data go down into IP packets before they are
sent and for gathering the packets when they arrive.
The IP, the Internet Protocol, is responsible for exchanging information between
routers. Thus, routers can select the proper path for network traffic. In the TCP/IP protocol,
IP address is the unique identifier for a computer. Two standards IP address are IP Version
4 (IPv4) and IP Version 6 (IPv6).
FTP
If staffs have uploaded a file to a web server, they' ve transmitted files and
data through FTP (Fil e Transfer Protocol). It is the most common way to
transfer, upload and download fil es from web servers as wel l as across the
internet. FTP all ows clients to upload company' s website to our web server.



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Recommendation of hardware and number of prizes to purchase
Type Prizes per one
Media Link Wireless-N Broadband Router with 300Mbps US $49.99
TP-LINK TL-SG3216 24-port Pure-Gigabit L2 Managed Switch US $174.50
DELL PowerEdge R310 Web Sever US $2,423.24
VPOP3 Enterprise email server-250 Users US $850.00



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Task 3
a) User authentication and access controls
The process of verifying user identity is known as user authentication. Workers must also be
able to communicate with the corporate network both remotely and safely. Common
methods of authentication are password, collection of personal information, PIN, Biometrics
and smart card.
To the security concern, key logging can be attacked information for unauthorized access.
So, password-checking method is used to authorize user to allow remote access to the
network. Users have to enter password to access to the network files sharing services. We
need to give strong password to be secure our data. Password authentication help
employees select strong passwords and protect them. Fingerprint scanners are becoming
more and more common in the standard configurations for user authentication. Large
companies and many government agencies are using smart cards to authenticate users who
access the computer network of his own.

Recommendations to implement to remove threats to the system
b) For secure authentication and traffic encryption, we will use PC Remote control software
which name "Anyplace Control". It doubles password protection. Users have to use 2
passwords which are Online Account password and Access Password that allows
connecting to a host computer.
We will use Anti Trojan Elite for removing Trojan horses. It is also a system security tool
which can view network information and process. Kaspersky Virus Removal Tool 2013 is
intended to disinfect computers, avoid viruses and spyware via remote network facilities.
We will also use firewall to protect threats to the system. It has two types that are software
firewall and hardware firewall. Our choice is hardware firewall. Firewall can control the
inbound and outbound network traffic analyzing data packets and decide whether they able
to pass or not.





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TASK 4
Cable Test
Cables can be faulty, can have performance issues. We will use network cable tester to
verify whether network cable is working properly. Turn on cable tester and plug one end of
cable into the "IN" input and the other end into "OUT" input on the network cable tester.
Then, press "Test" button. Once the signal spreads from one end to the other, tester reminds
whether the test was successful, by displaying a green light. If not succeed, will show a red
light.
Router Test
Connect workstation directly to network router using an Ethernet cable. Open a Web
browser to see if we can access the Internet. If we are successful, router is working properly.
Switch Test
- Connect cable from PC to the port of "LAN1" on switch
- Press "Reset" button on the back of router to reboot the device
- After finish rebooting, plug switch's power adapter into a wall outlet
- Check green lights above the "LAN 1" ports on switch to test an active connection and
open a web browser on computer to confirm connection
- Test to each of the remaining ports on switch as the same way
Server Test
Test a sever check with each of server's name and IP before we purchase. Since its
name or IP duplicate within a network, it can be bottle-neck. The first thing we should check
is network card. Then, check website whether web server can work conveniently and can
use all user.




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Assumption
Firstly, I investigated how to develop network for engineering service firm by analyzing all
area about companies' information for the LAN network. Then I searched all the possible
options to use for company's network physical design. After setting network configuration, I
did testing for cable, switch , router and server testing.

Weakness
When I consider all the tasks that I have made, I have found some weak points that I have
explained.
1. Recommended network hardware devices are expensive
2. Cable breakdown
3. Few Servers
4. Power problems can occur at sometime


List of References
Bradley Mitchell. (). Introduction to Network Cables. Available:
http://compnetworking.about.com/od/networkcables/a/network-cables-introduction.htm. Last
accessed 12th Dec 2013.
Issaqe. (May 31). Advantage and Disadvantage of Hub and Switch. Available:
http://computingsystem.blogspot.com/2010/05/advantage-and-disadvantage-of-hub-
and.html. Last accessed 16th Dec 2013
Andrew S. Tanenbaum, David J. Wetherall (2007). Compter Networks. 5th ed. London:
Rachel Head. 933.