QoS

By def*ult, *ll p*ckets of d*t* tr*veling *cross * loc*l-*re* network

(LAN) *re cre*ted equ*l. If *ll of the tr*ffic on * network is text- or file-
tr*nsfer-b*sed, the system is work*ble--*nd no one notices when *
40MB file is del*yed by 50 milliseconds *s more b*ndwidth is m*de
*v*il*ble to *ll users *nd *pplic*tions.
If one type of *pplic*tion on * network is dr*m*tic*lly different from the
others *nd requires f*r more b*ndwidth, however, problems c*n occur.
The most common ex*mples involve Voice-over Internet Protocol (VoIP)
phone service *nd stre*ming video.

D*t* p*cket del*ys c*n introduce out-of-sync sound *nd jittery,

pixel*ted im*ges, or worse. Left uncorrected, such * system m*y
deliver smooth video on some occ*sions, *nd *wful video on others.
One w*y to st*ck the odds in your f*vor is through Qu*lity of Service
(QoS)
c*p*bilities.

QoS is networking P l* George Orwell's "Anim*l F*rm": Some d*t*

p*ckets *re more equ*l th*n others. The preferred p*ckets will be *t
the top of the queue when p*ssing through * network port, while lesser
p*ckets cool their heels. The result is smoother *udio *nd video
present*tion, even when the network is humming with file tr*nsfers *nd
gener*l business tr*ffic.

How to Know If You Need QoS

Whether you need QoS depends on the mix of *pplic*tions th*t run on
your network. Whether you c*n *chieve it depends on your network
infr*structure's c*p*bilities. Let's look *t e*ch of these f*ctors.
For the v*st m*jority of network users, QoS boils down to m*king sure
th*t voice *nd video *pplic*tions perform well. If your comp*ny's only
voice c*lls occur over Skype *nd involve person*l communic*tions, *nd
if its only video use consists of YouTube downlo*ds viewed during
employee bre*ks, then QoS isn't worth the bother.
On the other h*nd, if you use VoIP *s your st*nd*rd office
phone system, or if you w*nt to m*ke extensive use
of videoconferencing to repl*ce business tr*vel, proper *ttention to QoS
c*n signific*ntly upgr*de employee productivity *nd your comp*ny's
perceived qu*lity in the m*rketpl*ce. But how do you est*blish QoS on
your network?

Getting St4rted With QoS

QoS h*s * specific set of me*nings in networking, *nd it's distinct from
v*rious things you c*n do to improve the over*ll perform*nce of the
network. (At the end of this *rticle we'll look *t w*ys to boost network
perform*nce.)

In most inst*nces, sm*ll businesses will see QoS est*blished in the

network's router, *nd perh*ps elsewhere. If you dive deeply into the
intern*l structures of network tr*ffic, you'll find two b*sic fl*vors of
QoS: Integr*ted Services (IntServ) *nd Differenti*ted Services
(DiffServ). IntServe permits rel*tively fine-gr*in control of tr*ffic
stre*ms *nd tends to be used within sm*ll networks or between closely
rel*ted networks. The DiffServe protocol works on * less precise b*sis
*nd most often is used between service providers *nd Internet
b*ckbone comp*nies.
For sm*ll businesses, however, the critic*l distinction is between
"simple" *nd "complic*ted" QoS. The difference rel*tes to the softw*re
on the router itself. Some routers, such *s the Linksys WRT54G, provide
t*bs in the setup *pplic*tion where you c*n turn on QoS *nd give
priority to tr*ffic stre*ms b*sed on *pplic*tions, ports, or Medi* Access
Control (MAC) *ddresses.

The e*siest p*th to QoS in this simple situ*tion is to turn on QoS, select
'*pplic*tions' *s the b*sis for priority, *nd then design*te VoIP *nd
video-conferencing *pplic*tions to receive high priority. There*fter, the
router will give tr*ffic stre*ms priority b*sed on *pplic*tion inform*tion
cont*ined in the he*ders of the d*t* p*ckets.
Bec*use m*ny VoIP services use different ports for tr*ffic *t different
times, b*sing QoS on ports c*n dem*nd consider*ble network
monitoring *nd *pplic*tion knowledge. MAC *ddress-b*sed QoS is
v*lu*ble if *ll of your voice or video tr*ffic comes from one or two
computers, but it's f*r more restrictive th*n the *pplic*tion-b*sed
option.
Routers intended for the sm*ll-enterprise m*rket *llow for more-precise
QoS control, *t * cost of f*r gre*ter complexity in setting up the rules
for qu*lity. Such complic*ted routers--from comp*nies like Cisco--
en*ble you to conduct network monitoring *nd *n*lysis *nd then use
the results to m*ke QoS d*t*-priority decisions b*sed on the ports *nd
protocols of tr*ffic between specific *ddresses. If this type of router sits
*t the he*rt of your business network, either your tr*ined network
st*ff or * third-p*rty network engineer with solid experience in QoS
should t*ke over.

Over4ll Network Perform4nce

Without getting c*ught up in form*l QoS processes, you c*n do sever*l

things to improve the over*ll perform*nce of your network--*nd of your
VoIP *nd video services *long with it. For inst*nce, you c*n *utom*te
b*ckup processes *nd regul*r l*rge-file tr*nsfers to occur l*te *t night,
when fewer people *re in the office; you c*n cre*te *n environment th*t
limits m*ss e-m*iling of the l*test YouTube c*t video; *nd you c*n
suggest th*t not every c*ll needs to employ high-def, l*rge-screen
video.

On the h*rdw*re side, m*ny Wi-Fi *ccess points will switch *ll users to
* lower-performing st*nd*rd (such *s 802.11b) if *ny user *tt*ches *t
the slower speed. Ensuring th*t *ll comp*ny l*ptops use the l*test,
highest-performing wireless protocol will help keep everyone moving
d*t* *long more quickly. In m*ny c*ses, moving *w*y from wireless
entirely is the best *nswer. If your comp*ny's worksp*ces c*n
*ccommod*te c*bled connections, encour*ge users to plug in
to reduce the lo*d on the wireless network.
Of course, e*ch workst*tion, whether port*ble or not, should be fully
equipped with RAM *nd well m*int*ined, with *ll softw*re fully p*tched,
h*rd disks defr*gmented (if the oper*ting system supports *nd requires
this), *nd e*ch computer's sound *nd video systems m*tched to the
correct drivers. These steps will contribute to better perform*nce for
VoIP, video, *nd other *pplic*tions.

Properly h*ndled, QoS c*n m*ke *n immedi*te difference in the qu*lity

of VoIP c*lls *nd videoconference meetings. The *udio *nd video
stre*ms will be smoother, jitter *nd *rtif*cts will be reduced, *nd the
over*ll user experience *t both ends will dr*m*tic*lly improve. Adopting
these common-sense network *nd computer optimiz*tion tips will yield
signific*nt improvement *t little or no c*pit*l cost.