Transcript Week 1 Network Administration and Management

What is Network Administration ??
Network administration can be defined as:
“branch of engineering that concerns the
operational management of human-computer
systems” [Burgess Ch 1]
A network administrator has different roles
[Stallings page 3]
•Controlling corporate strategic assets
•Controlling complexity
•Improving service
•Balancing various needs
•Reducing downtime
•Controlling costs
Why do we need Network
administration at first ??
The core management areas
“F C A P S”
• Fault Management
• Configuration & Name Management
• Account Management
• Performance Management
• Security Management
Fault management
The facilities that enable the
detection,
 isolation, and
 correction

of abnormal operation of the OSI
environment.
Configuration and Name
Management
The services and facilities that
•
•
•
control
identify
collect and provide data
to clients and managed objects,
so assisting in continuous operation
of interconnection services.
OSI - Account Management
The facilities that enable
charges to be established for the use of
managed objects and
costs to be identified for the use of
those managed objects.
OSI - Performance
Management
The Facilities needed to evaluate


Behaviour of managed objects
Effectiveness of communication activities
OSI - Security Management
Address those aspects of OSI security
essential to:


operate OSI network management
correctly and
to protect managed objects
Definitions??
How does Network Administration
work in Practice?
Let’s look at how Network
Management is Organised…
Structure of Systems and
Network Management
Organisation
Network
Hardware
Applications
Division of Labour
Corporate Networked
Environments
Have team(s) of specialists in various areas
Well defined tasks

job descriptions
In small networks usually one person

multi-skilled and multi-tasked
In reality – often somewhere in between….
Network Administrators
Tasks
Tasks of a
Network Administrator
Security Management
Performance Management
Planning for Growth
Fault Management and Recovery
Account/User Management
Networked Application Support
Security Management
Firewalls
Usernames
Password control
Resource Access Control
Performance Management
Availability
Response Time
Accuracy
Planning for Growth
A Network (or any organisation) is not
static
Growth means increased load on a
network. This must be planned for….
Systems eventually need replacement.
This must be planned for – in advance…
Fault Management and
Recovery
Monitoring

Reporting status
Testing




Fixes and Patches
Updates
Repairs
Change Management
Account / User Management
Communication Facilities

Connection - Rental - Charges
Hardware Usage

Lease - Rent - Hire
Consumables Usage

Power, Paper, Media (Diskettes, CDs…)
Software Usage



Licensing,
Tolls,
Application usage
Account / User Management
Accounts are Managed for:



Intrusion detection / prevention
Charging for Services
Legal protection of the Organisation
Networked Application
Support
Client / Server systems support
Internet support
Server support

Applications and Hardware
Helpdesk



Trouble report / Bug fixes
Printing
eMail
How to be a Sys/Net Admin
(yet another Job Description…)
Learn
Learn
Learn
Learn
Learn
Learn
Learn
Learn
Operating System basics eg Unix
shell utilities and script programming
how to Install and Configure OS
DNS and Bind
TCP/IP networking
NFS and NIS (or equivalent…)
about system tuning and accounting
Compile and Link (eg C and make)
SAGE SysAdmin
Job Descriptions
http://www.sage-au.org.au/
http://sageweb.sage.org/jobs/thefield/j
obs-descriptions.html
Goals of System/Network
Administration
Put together a network of computers
Get them running
Keep them running (despite Users….)
Provide a Service to Users
Requires skills of



Mechanic
Sociologist
Researcher
Challenges of
System/Network Administration
Systems or Network Administration is more
than just installing computers or networks.
It is about planning and designing an
efficient community of computers that
allow users to get their jobs done.
Challenges of Administration
Design Logical, Efficient networks
Easily deploy & update many machines
Decide what services are needed

know the business tasks & customers
Plan and implement adequate security
Provide comfortable User environment
Be able to fix errors and problems
Keep track of & be able to use knowledge
Style of
Network Administration
PRACTICE
Convention or The Best Solution
PRACTICE = “How things are done here”
Have you ever wondered…
Why are things done in certain ways?
Which way is best? Usually it’s because:
Someone did it once, and everyone copied
without really thinking about it
People have thought much about it and
this really is the best way…
An arbitrary choice was made, and it is
now a matter of convention
Comparison of System/Network
Management Styles
Fire-Fighting

Managing by responding to situations when they
happen (Reactive)
Preventative management

Monitor network and make repairs and changes
before problems appear (Proactive)
These are two opposite extremes.
Most real managers combine both.
Fire-Fighting
Investigate the Fault or Problem



Isolate the problem and identify/define it
Use tests and tools to diagnose the
problem
Solve the problem and document the
solution
Prioritize multiple problems
Preventative Management
The Good Circle management cycle
Preventative Management
Techniques
Capacity Planning
Simulation and Testing


load generators
Benchmarks
Performance Monitors and System Tuning



Network analysis and modelling
Load balancing
Hardware upgrades
Management method and Cost
Information about Network
Administration
The Knowledge….
What is it? Where is it?
How do we get it?
Sources of Information for
System/Network Administrators
Manuals and Online Documentation
World Wide Web
RFCs, FYIs, IENs
News groups, Discussion lists, WebLogs
Meetings and Seminars

SAGE/Usenix, Novell Brainshare, Microsoft
TechNet/TechEd
How-To books
(END) No Tutorials in
Week 1.