Small Business Network Setup

Chanc3

Chanc3

Chanc3

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Joined
26 Jul 2010
Posts
207
Hi Guys

I'm after a bit of advice for when the company I work for moves into the new office at the end of the month. Basically, I've inherited the IT role alongside my main job, but alas, I can fix a PC when it goes down, but when it comes to networks and servers etc, I fall short of the mark.

I've done a bit of research and managed to setup a domain on our server and have connected 10 PCs to it, printers etc. I've created active shares, so we can store company documents and quotes etc on it.

It's WS2012 Essentials, with 2x2TB drives in RAID5. You'll have to bear with me being a bit of a newb with this, so apologies in advance if I'm a bit out of phase with everything.

As I see it, I need to do the following:

Virgin Modem > Draytek Router > Patch Panel > Switch > Server & PCs

Would that be about right? We are going down the hosting VoIP solution soon, so was thinking of adding a PoE switch to power the handsets. Would this be the norm?

I'm contemplating getting an additional file server and then a rendering server with 64GB RAM and dual CPU - but I'm not sure what OS I should use for these...

Does anything look out of the norm? Should I be using Virtual Machines? If so, why should I be? I'm confused by the whole concept of them - why do I need a virtual one if my current machine is fine?
 
Few things..

RAID 5 needs 3 disks minimum so just check what RAID/Disks you actually have.

Virgin Modem > Draytek Router > Patch Panel > Switch > Server & PCs.. This is fine but you'll need to put the Virgin hub into 'Mode mode' which is a tick box in setup.

You don't need a POE switch for all VOIP phones so ask whoever you're getting them off.

Windows Server 2012 R2 is a safe bet but there are some prerequisites I believe. Better google that..

Virtual would be my choice but your main box of tin may not be powerful enough to run what you need. Can you list a spec?
 
To clarify why you should be going Virtual.

They are infinitely easier to backup and restore. If things go awry with your bare-metal you can recover to somewhere else with few to no problems.
 
I'd personally never go from router to patch panel to switch, I'd usually just go straight into the switch. I would go for a PoE switch to power the handsets although I'd go for a PoE+ Switch for future proofing (PoE will definitely be taking off further in the next few years.)
 
Hyburnate said:
I'd personally never go from router to patch panel to switch, I'd usually just go straight into the switch. I would go for a PoE switch to power the handsets although I'd go for a PoE+ Switch for future proofing (PoE will definitely be taking off further in the next few years.)
Click to expand...

Agreed. I missed the patch panel / switch order.
 
OK thanks guys. The server has the following spec:

Dell T620 - Windows Server 2012 Essentials
1x E5520 Xeon CPU
16GB DDR3 ECC RAM
3x 300GB SAS HDDS in RAID5 for OS (should have mentioned that)
2x 2TB RAID1 for Files

I think I'll get a PoE switch for the VoIP system as I'd much rather not have to use PSUs for the phones (more cables, less free sockets).

I'll have to see what I can do about creating a VM as I have no experience with it - nor with configuring correct backup protocols. Maybe I need to outsource this to a professional IT support company...
 
Spend as much as you can bear without it harming cashflow too badly on a quality internet connection. If you're with VM at the moment then make sure it's a business tariff with static IP addresses, and have a plan for when you outgrow the upload speed.

Can you get FTTC where you're located?
 
Caged said:
Spend as much as you can bear without it harming cashflow too badly on a quality internet connection. If you're with VM at the moment then make sure it's a business tariff with static IP addresses, and have a plan for when you outgrow the upload speed.

Can you get FTTC where you're located?
Click to expand...

We've got VM Business 152Mb/s at the moment (was installed Tuesday just gone, after a 6 month battle!). Unfortunately they don't offer a static IP address with their 152Mb/s package - so may have to use a DDNS?

Alas they are the only providers that have fibre and the ADSL speeds are terribly slow! I wish we didn't have to use VM, but we have no choice! We've got 3 complaints outstanding with them also. I don't think I've ever had a worse experience dealing with a company.
 
Chanc3 said:
OK thanks guys. The server has the following spec:

Dell T620 - Windows Server 2012 Essentials
1x E5520 Xeon CPU
16GB DDR3 ECC RAM
3x 300GB SAS HDDS in RAID5 for OS (should have mentioned that)
2x 2TB RAID1 for Files

I think I'll get a PoE switch for the VoIP system as I'd much rather not have to use PSUs for the phones (more cables, less free sockets).

I'll have to see what I can do about creating a VM as I have no experience with it - nor with configuring correct backup protocols. Maybe I need to outsource this to a professional IT support company...
Click to expand...

Regarding switches, take a look at these:

https://www.ubnt.com/edgemax/edgeswitch/
https://www.ubnt.com/unifi-switching-routing/unifi-switch/

If you're on a budget these are meant to be great need to get one myself.

If you're running ~10 phones stick them on a VLAN and then put the other stuff on another.
 
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