CASE STUDIES:

WIRELESS AND NETWORK ASSESSMENTS

A major US railroad had issues with coverage in service centers, integration issues with the networks, and slowness of applications.  All of these issues were impacting the productivity of the end-users dramatically.  solutions4networks provided detailed documentation of the existing configurations, remediation, and project management of the suggested network changes.  In addition, solutions4networks reviewed bill of materials for new network equipment provided by network manufacturer/reseller.  Savings realized by determining true needs of client resulted in over $200K of savings (20+% of procurement).

INTERNET INFRASTRUCTURE

At a Fortune 100 Manufacturer, solutions4networks worked with the Internet and inter-company DMZs. The existing designs were assessed and recommendations were made when necessary, based on technical requirements and business needs. solutions4networks assisted in the implementation of the designs. Analysis of the firewall security rulebases (PIX ACLS and/or Conduits) for security exposures and logic errors was done and conversion of the security access lists into a form that was much more maintainable and suitable for audit review was provided, along with the associated documentation and knowledge transfer. Specifically, some of the rulebases were several hundred lines with little documentation; for these, we prepared logical descriptions and summarizations so that the Fortune 100 Manufacturer would know, logically, what their rulebase was doing. Where necessary, solutions4networks converted the old-style PIX Conduit statements into new-style Access-Lists. Tools developed by solutions4networks are utilized to simplify the ongoing maintenance of both the PIX firewall and Cisco IOS router-based security access lists.

NETWORK SECURITY

solutions4networks designed secure infrastructures for various inter-organization connections at a Fortune 500 Chemical Company. This included the use of firewalls where necessary, and redundancy when the business requirements so dictated. Analysis of the PIX security rulebases was done (Conduits, in this case) for security exposures and logic errors. Conduits were converted to a high-level logical format suitable for implementation in a Checkpoint platform.

NETWORK ASSESSEMENT

At a $800M national education provider, solutions4networks reviewed the entire corporate and remote ( over 48 locations) DMZ and associated LAN infrastructure (including address schemes) for adherence to industry standards and also to determine its’ going-forward architecture and maintainability, based on the business initiatives. Alternative recommendations for architecture changes to both the DMZ/firewall and the LAN that supports the DMZ were provided, based on three different scenarios that included centralization of some functions as well as decentralization of other applications. We then developed a detailed design in support of the architecture alternatives.

CAMPUS NETWORK STRATEGIC PLAN

For a large University, solutions4networks developed a Network Architecture Strategic Plan. It is an overlay data network infrastructure strategy that combined the University’s existing infrastructure and planned technology growth. In addition, a cost model was built for developing the enterprise network infrastructure along with a staff analysis for supporting the new architecture. Project performance included detail network and wiring infrastructure designs using the latest industry standards and best practices. solutions4networks worked collaboratively with the university to understand the university’s existing network infrastructure while developing “To Be” standards and practices. This strategic network architecture will assist the University to quickly adapt to changes in their campus network and leverage the design’s flexible architecture to integrate technology as driven by the University’s needs. solutions4networks developed intra-building campus fiber plant design that provides redundancy and leverages existing fiber-cabling infrastructure and developed for each building inter-building wiring standards both horizontal and vertical. We developed alternative inter-building connectivity solutions that provide favorable economic alternatives while maintaining acceptable levels of network availability and developed a data centers network infrastructure design and strategy that enables the support of existing services and adoption of future technologies. We developed for each University building on campus and remote, a local area network design and strategy that supports all network utility connections to include direct wire and where designated wireless access. solutions4networks developed a remote access design and strategy that supports existing application requirements and enables the remote connectivity of future technologies and access media. We developed a strategy and design for the University’s wide area network connectivity that provides adequate bandwidth to satellite locations and extension of academia services and develop a connectivity strategy for accessing Internet services within the University network that provides adequate bandwidth to users while maintaining acceptable levels of availability. We had to understand and provide an infrastructure strategy for current University applications and their peripherals; account for in the overall enterprise network strategy the adoption of technologies that include IP Telephony and support current and future Web environments. We provided for the proposal objectives a cost analysis based on industry standards and best practices. This cost model included the transition from the existing environment to the proposal’s future environment. We provided for the proposal technology infrastructure design a staffing analysis that supports the proposal’s future environment and accounts for the adoption of technology solutions4networks provided a recommendation strategy for implementing the “To Be” network infrastructure design.

VPN DESIGN AND PROJECT MANAGEMENT

Designed a network to support 2,500 users with global internet and remote access connectivity for Fortune 100 Manufacturer. Activities included architecture design of VPN solution, RFP development and project management of vendor selection, pilot, and roll-out of VPN solutions. The consolidated costs and centralized management of the VPN have resulted in the ability to address on-going needs and new release offerings of the service much faster and a reduction in the resources required in on-going management. The client network was in place in less than 9 months.

WIRELESS OPTICAL REPLACEMENT OF MICROWAVE NETWORK

Fortune 100 Chemical Company required help in identifying technology alternatives to replace existing campus microwave networks due to increased support costs, additional bandwidth needs, and disaster recovery issues. solutions4networks identified the current campus configuration and future application requirements for back-up and adjunct utilization. The technical requirements were defined and the potential technology alternatives were identified.

solutions4networks developed RFP specification and managed the implementation of the infrastructure to support the bandwidth needs via an efficient and secure wireless network. The ROI was less than 7 months with an increase of bandwidth by over 300%.

VOIP ARCHITECTURE, DESIGN, AND PROJECT MANAGEMENT

A major utility required engineering design support for a new building and several locations in the Eastern region. The network assessment, VOIP design,updated network design, and software implementation (as well as project management) were done by solutions4networks. The equipment was provided by a large national integrator.  Because solutions4networks provided proficient certified VOIP engineers amd project managers, the project was done on-time and under budget. 

NETWORK SECURITY ASSESSMENT

A mid-size manufacturer doing business internationally required a network audit and network security assessment.  Because of the intellectual property of the company, a critical requirement was a network security audit as well as a review of their network security policies and procedures.  In addition to finding personal information such as tax returns on company PCs, over 98% of the employee passwords and the payroll server were compromised in less than an hour.  The findings provided enough information to substantiate an upgrade to the security policies and procedures and a methology was established to monitor the new policies on a going-forward basis. Intrusion detection and penetration testing will be provided on a quarterly basis.

SCHOOL NETWORK SOLVES STUDENT PC LAB PROBLEMS WITH NETTERROGATOR ICF

A Western PA High School with a PC lab was having issues with many students being unable to save their work at the end of a session.

The bandwidth was more than adequate and there had not been any problems till January. Using tools on the Netterrogator ICF, they were able to trace the problem back to several PCs, identify the exact times the bandwidth was completely over-utilized, and identify the specific applications hogging the bandwidth. Because the Netterrogator was able to add the sites that were gaming sites not currently being caught by the Netterrogator content filter, the URLs were quickly added and the lab no longer had any issues. This appliance has replaced the school’s current Content Filter software that was an annual license fee and added several very useful tools for troubleshooting and auditing. The cost is a one-time purchase that amounts to less than ½ of the annual content filter cost with many additional functions and is CIPA compliant.