* Connections to and from the branch are vital, but oft overlooked
When I get into discussions with IT executives about their branch-office infrastructures, we talk a lot about servers, switches, routers, all-in-one devices, collaborative applications – and even organizational structure for proper decision-making.
But rarely do they ask about the WAN itself. Without a robust WAN, you’re just asking for trouble in the branch. With more applications centralized in the data center, a reliable WAN is crucial to delivering those applications consistently and predictably.
Those not involved in the WAN erroneously believe the WAN will work. Just add more circuits, change a router table, troubleshoot a slow-down…the network guys and gals handle the WAN in isolation from the branch-office strategy.
Not a good idea.
The network managers must be involved with strategic decisions involving the branch. They need to understand performance expectations and business requirements in order to build a network capable of delivering anticipated results to the branch-office employees. Furthermore, they need to implement the appropriate monitoring and management tools to achieve the goals.
What are the signs that your WAN is not robust, or the strategy is lax? Any or all of the following are possibilities:
* Insufficient bandwidth to all or some locations, resulting in performance problems or decreased employee productivity.
* Multiple WANs exist, resulting in unleveraged bandwidth and making it difficult to troubleshoot.
* No QoS or optimization, causing performance problems and making it difficult to troubleshoot.
* Lack of monitoring, management tools, causing performance problems and making it difficult to troubleshoot, and potentially affecting employee productivity.
* No benchmarking performed, making it impossible to document success or failure.
* No regular review of carrier contracts, resulting in fiscal irresponsibility.
* No corporate standards for remote-office gear, increasing the required IT staff training and time it takes to resolve problems
If your organization is showing these signs, it’s time to take a step back and evaluate how you’re approaching your WAN. Integrate WAN planning into branch office strategy, and make sure it’s strong enough to handle the growing number of applications and data remote employees require to maintain productivity.
