Designing And Developing Network Requirements For A University Campus

Building Diagram

The report is prepared for development of a modern network for a multi building campus after analysis of the requirement of the services for the University campus. A diagram of the network frame work is created and scope and limitation of the project is analysed for development of the solution of the solution design. The security feature and policy that is essential for maintaining the security of communication between the user is documented in the report by analysing the service and policies of the organization.

The following diagram is created for the demonstration of the building plan and it can be used for the analysis of the network deployment for the university and identification of the location of the installation of the wireless access point.

The main scope of the project for the development of the network are listed below:

• Selection of the appropriate technology for the configuration of the network and provide different service to the users
• To secure the communication between the user and the servers such that the communication cannot be intercepted.
• To use multiple link for interconnecting the network devices for increasing the redundancy and availability of the network
• Deployment of VPN service for allowing the users to remotely access the network and services
• To subnet the network according to the departments for allowing two different LAN technologies to work together in the network.
• Selection of the hierarchical design model for adding modularity in the network design allowing each of the layer in the network for performing specific action.

The main requirement for the development of the network framework for the campus is given below:

• Connecting the different building of the university campus with each other using the local area network and provide different service to the students and staffs of the university.
• To secure the transmission of data and information of the network by encrypting the communication channel and eliminate the risk of different types of network attacks.
• Allowing the network administrator to have full visibility of the network and control the flow of data packets in the network.
• Maintaining integrity of the network such that only the authorized personnel would have access of the network device and servers
• Installation of wireless access point and securing it with proper encryption algorithm for restricting the unauthorised used to access the wireless network
• To create backup plan for storing the data in remote location and increasing the redundancy of data for handling emergency situation.
• To divide the network into different subnet for reducing congestion in the network and enable better management of the network
• To secure the routers and switches with encryption for restricting the user to modify the configuration and increasing the security of the network and block the unused ports of the network device
• To create an Ip address plan and configure the network device interface with the first assignable of IP address

The design is created after analysis of the area that is needed to be covered with the wired and wireless network for connecting the user from the different branches and departments of the university. A firewall is needed to be installed at the entry and exit point of the network for management of the network traffic and securing the network from the external agents to reach the university server and secure the information residing in the servers. The wireless access point is needed to be connected in different subnet such that the users connected with the wireless network should not be able to access the wired network and the security of the wired network is not hampered.

For the development of the network the hierarchical design model is selected that helps in breaking the network into different modular groups and allow each of the layer to perform different specific function following the requirement of the university. It also helps in simplifying the structure and the design for easy management of the network devices. The modularity of the network helps in replication of the elements used for design and thus improves the scalability of the network. Redundant links are used for connecting the network devices that helps in increasing the availability of the network since if one of the link fails the data packets can reach the destination using the other link available. The following are the three layers of the hierarchical design such as:

Scopes and Limitations

Core – In this layer the main network device are configured and connected with the distribution layer for the management of the large local area network environment.

Distribution – In this layer the access layer is aggregated for allowing connectivity with the different services configured in the core devices of the network.

Access layer – It is used for connecting the hosts or the end point users with the network and enabling them access to the network directly.

Since five building are needed to be connected a dedicated distribution layer is needed for providing network based services and sharing connectivity with the devices connected with the access layer. The quality of service for the application should be configured for management of the performance of the network.

The protocols used for the configuration of the network device are given below:

DHCP – It is used for automatically assigning the Ip address to the hosts connected in the network and it is needed to be configured according to the vlan for each of the subnet.

PPP – It is used for establishment of direct connection with the admin Pc and access the network device without ant delay due to congestion in the data traffic of the network.

Frame Relay – This is used for packet switching and transmitting the voice and the data packets using the same communication channel. It helps in reducing the communication cost for the organisation.

NAT – It is used for mapping the port address with an Ip address for increasing the security of the network. It also decrease the needs of the IP address and the configuration of the NAT the router Is needed to be configured with HSRP protocol.

PAT – It is an extension of the NAT protocol used for mapping multiple devices connected in the network into a single IP address.

HDLC – It is a set of protocol used for combining the data packets in the form of a frame and sent over the network to verify the data packets.

Major Network: 192.168.20.0/23

Available IP addresses in major network: 510

Number of IP addresses needed: 39

Available IP addresses in allocated subnets: 48

About 13% of available major network address space is used

About 81% of subnetted network address space is used

Subnet Name	Allocated Size	Address	Mask	Assignable Range	Dec Mask	Broadcast
Subnet 1	6	192.168.20.56	/29	192.168.20.57 – 192.168.20.62	255.255.255.248	192.168.20.63
Subnet 2	6	192.168.20.0	/29	192.168.20.1 – 192.168.20.6	255.255.255.248	192.168.20.7
Subnet 3	6	192.168.20.8	/29	192.168.20.9 – 192.168.20.14	255.255.255.248	192.168.20.15
Subnet 4	6	192.168.20.16	/29	192.168.20.17 – 192.168.20.22	255.255.255.248	192.168.20.23
Subnet 5	6	192.168.20.24	/29	192.168.20.25 – 192.168.20.30	255.255.255.248	192.168.20.31
Subnet 6	6	192.168.20.32	/29	192.168.20.33 – 192.168.20.38	255.255.255.248	192.168.20.39
Subnet 7	6	192.168.20.40	/29	192.168.20.41 – 192.168.20.46	255.255.255.248	192.168.20.47
Subnet 8	6	192.168.20.48	/29	192.168.20.49 – 192.168.20.54	255.255.255.248	192.168.20.55

IPv6

Subnet Name	Allocated Size	Address	Mask	Assignable Range	Dec Mask	Broadcast
Subnet 1	6	192.168.20.56	/29	2002:c0a8:1439:0:0:0:0:0 –  2002:c0a8:143e:0:0:0:0:0	2002:ffff:fff8:0:0:0:0:0	2002:c0a8:143f:0:0:0:0:0
Subnet 2	6	2002:c0a8:1400:0:0:0:0:0	/29	2002:c0a8:1401:0:0:0:0:0	2002:ffff:fff8:0:0:0:0:0	2002:c0a8:1407:0:0:0:0:0
Subnet 3	6	2002:c0a8:1408:0:0:0:0:0	/29	2002:c0a8:1409:0:0:0:0:0- 2002:c0a8:140e:0:0:0:0:0	2002:ffff:fff8:0:0:0:0:0	2002:c0a8:140f:0:0:0:0:0
Subnet 4	6	2002:c0a8:1410:0:0:0:0:0	/29	2002:c0a8:1411:0:0:0:0:0 – 2002:c0a8:1416:0:0:0:0:0	2002:ffff:fff8:0:0:0:0:0	2002:c0a8:1417:0:0:0:0:0
Subnet 5	6	2002:c0a8:1418:0:0:0:0:0	/29	2002:c0a8:1419:0:0:0:0:0 – 2002:c0a8:141e:0:0:0:0:0	2002:ffff:fff8:0:0:0:0:0	2002:c0a8:141f:0:0:0:0:0
Subnet 6	6	2002:c0a8:1420:0:0:0:0:0	/29	2002:c0a8:1421:0:0:0:0:0 – 2002:c0a8:1426:0:0:0:0:0	2002:ffff:fff8:0:0:0:0:0	2002:c0a8:1427:0:0:0:0:0
Subnet 7	6	2002:c0a8:1428:0:0:0:0:0	/29	2002:c0a8:1429:0:0:0:0:0 – 2002:c0a8:142e:0:0:0:0:0	2002:ffff:fff8:0:0:0:0:0	2002:c0a8:142f:0:0:0:0:0
Subnet 8	6	2002:c0a8:1430:0:0:0:0:0	/29	2002:c0a8:1431:0:0:0:0:0 – 2002:c0a8:1436:0:0:0:0:0	2002:ffff:fff8:0:0:0:0:0	2002:c0a8:1437:0:0:0:0:0

For increasing the security of the network IDS, IPS and firewalls should be installed along with the use of password based authentication for the management of the access of the network device to the users connected in then network. The threats associated with the network should be easily identified and the unauthorised access of the user should be prevented for keeping the data and resources safe from the intruders.

Requirements

A policy should be set for allowing the user to use the wireless service and accessing the university server. The students and the staffs should access the server with their username and password and should not connect any device with the wired network [2]. The use of portable devices should also be restricted because it may contain virus, malware or spyware that can infect the device and compromise the security of the network.

A good security practice should be followed for the network for the management of the data traffic in the network. The flow of traffic should be monitored with the use of network monitoring tool and the servers and the network device configuration should be backed up in remote location or cloud servers such that if the security of the network is compromised no data is lost [1]. The switches should also be configured with multiple VLAN such that connected with redundant connection for increasing the availability and uptime of the network.

For analysing the WAN and the LAN services different types of tests are needed to be performed on the network. The devices that are needed for the configuration of the network is analysed and a prototype of the network is created for the identification of the errors in the final design of the network. The number of users accessing the wireless access point should also be identified for the configuration of the VLAN for the wireless network. The area of coverage of the wireless network should also be identified for the analysis of the number of devices needed to be installed for the management of the connectivity of the users using the WLAN services.

The floor plan of the building and number of users for each of the subnet is needed to be identified for the preparation of the subnet plan and selection of the network topology that is needed for connecting the users with the network. The organizational policy is needed to be developed for enabling the users to connect their wireless device with the organizational network. For each of the department a separate server is needed to be installed for management of the activity of the user and it should be configured with DHCP pool for automatically assigning the Ip address to the device connected in the subnet and reduce the complexity of management of the network device.

The requirement of the network is listed and a solution design is proposed aligning the current framework of the campus. There are different network technologies that are available for the development of the network infrastructure and the protocols, technologies and services required for the development of the network framework is analysed for the development of the network. An IPv4 and IPv6 IP address plan is created that is needed for configuring the network device interface and enable the different department of the campus to communicate with each other.

References

• Huh, J.H., Otgonchimeg, S. and Seo, K. Advanced metering infrastructure design and test bed experiment using intelligent agents: focusing on the PLC network base technology for Smart Grid system. The Journal of Supercomputing, 72(5), pp.1862-1877., 2016.
• Jurado, F. and Rodriguez, P. Sentiment Analysis in monitoring software development processes: An exploratory case study on GitHub’s project issues. Journal of Systems and Software, 104, pp.82-89., 2015.