Designing Large-Scale LANs

Kevin Dooley

Publisher: O'Reilly, 2002, 385 pages

ISBN: 0-596-00150-9

Keywords: Networks

Last modified: May 8, 2021, 11:20 p.m.

This book is a vendor-neutral guide to designing enterprise computer networks. It describes the guiding principles involved in putting together a stable, reliable, and manageable large-scale network. These principles are independent of any particular hardware vendor. A network designer who understands these principles can use a "best of breed" approach to selecting hardware. This in turn results in optimal network performance and lower costs. It also prevents an organization from being inextricable tied to a particular vendor when competing products become available.

Designing Large-Scale LANs contains:

  • A discussion of network reliability and the factors that lead to a robust infrastructure, including the identification of single points of failure through statistical analysis
  • A detailed discussion of the strengths and weaknesses of the most successful network topologies
  • Useful information about implementing standard network protocols (such as IP and IPX) and their dynamic routing protocoils (RIP, EIGRP, OSPF, BGP, and NLSP)
  • Several sections describing useful features such as DNS, DHCP, NAT, and VLAN implementations
  • An analysis of the impact of design considerations on network manageability
  • An assessment of related design considerations, inclduing IP Multicast, IPv6, and LAN security
  • An appendix for calculating failure rates in complex networks, as well as a glossary of the concepts used throughout the book

Designing Large-Scale LANs offers the network designer a hands-on guide to building a reliable, efficient, and logical network.

  1. Networking Objectives
    • Business Requirements
    • OSI Protocol Stack Model
    • Routing Versus Bridging
    • Top-Down Design Philosophy
  2. Elements of Reliability
    • Defining Reliability
    • Redundancy
    • Failure Modes
  3. Design Types
    • Basic Topologies
    • Reliability Mechanisms
    • VLANs
    • Toward Larger Topologies
    • Hierarchical Design
    • Implementing Reliability
    • Large-Scale LAN Topologies
  4. Local Area Network Topologies
    • Selecting Appropriate LAN Technology
    • Ethernet and Fast Ethernet
    • Token Ring
    • Gigabit and 10 Gigabit Ethernet
    • ATM
    • FDDI
    • Wireless
    • Firewalls and Gateways
    • Structured Cabling
  5. IP
    • IP-Addressing Basics
    • IP-Address Classes
    • ARP and ICMP
    • Network Address Translation
    • Multiple Subnet Broadcast
    • General IP Design Strategies
    • DNS and DHCP
  6. IP Dynamic Routing
    • Static Routing
    • Types of Dynamic Routing Protocols
    • RIP
    • IGRP and EIGRP
    • OSPF
    • BGP
  7. IPX
    • Dynamic Routing
    • General IPX Design Strategies
  8. Elements of Efficiency
    • Using Eqiupment Features Effectively
    • Hop Counts
    • MTU Throughout the Network
    • Bottlenecks and Congestion
    • Filtering
    • Quality of Service and Traffic Sharing
  9. Network Management
    • Network-Management Components
    • Designinmg a Manageable Network
    • SNMP
    • Managemement Problems
  10. Special Topics
    • IP Multicast Networks
    • IPv6
    • Security
  • Appendix: Combining Probabilities

Reviews

Designing Large-Scale LANs

Reviewed by Roland Buresund

OK ***** (5 out of 10)

Last modified: May 21, 2007, 3 a.m.

It doesn't give very much advice, but is an excellent overview of what has to be addressed.

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