The number of devices in the enterprise will continue to increase , along with the amount of data transmitted over the network . themselves faced with network bottlenecks , buffering and speed issues – all of which can negatively affect the ability to function optimally . With more devices and users to contend with , the risk of downtime only intensifi es as networks struggle to cope with the added congestion . As a result , SMB network managers are being forced to look for ways to manage traffi c in a more effi cient and affordable way .
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talking point
Ready for anything
Tris Simmons of Netgear discusses the ongoing need for network resilience .
Much is written about the requirement for network uptime . Gone are the days when a network going down for a few days is nothing but an inconvenience . In fact , according to an Aberdeen Group report , downtime now costs over £ 138,000 an hour on average . It ’ s an eye watering figure and can have massive repercussions . For enterprise customers , going offline for several hours means a big dent in their profit margins , but for SMBs it can become a critical loss of business that can lead to their ultimate demise .
We live in an age where connectivity matters . The now fi rmly established ‘ always on ’ generation is unused to downtime . This is not just true of an organisation ’ s customers ; this trend continues with workers within the offi ce itself . Businesses experiencing the bring-your-owndevice ( BYOD ) trend have found
The number of devices in the enterprise will continue to increase , along with the amount of data transmitted over the network . themselves faced with network bottlenecks , buffering and speed issues – all of which can negatively affect the ability to function optimally . With more devices and users to contend with , the risk of downtime only intensifi es as networks struggle to cope with the added congestion . As a result , SMB network managers are being forced to look for ways to manage traffi c in a more effi cient and affordable way .
The need to rethink how resources on the network are planned to free up capacity , scalability , and security means deploying a simpler , more flexible infrastructure that is more resilient . Companies often focus on the user-facing elements of their infrastructure , with most SMBs now understanding , at least in part , how to make certain elements ‘ resilient ’ ( whether it be servers , applications or data ). However , they often neglect to look at the underpinning infrastructure that provides access to all of these . Network resilience provides continued uptime for the infrastructure itself . A resilient network needs to have inbuilt redundancy with multiple core functions , switch connections , routes and physical connections so that if the network suffers a component failure it can still continue to operate . Without the core network , the services and applications on top would go down .
Whilst common place in the enterprise realm , resilient networking has historically been out of reach for most SMB customers due to its perceived cost and complexity . 10 Gigabit Ethernet copper switching provided the much needed breakthrough . 10 Gigabit Ethernet copper not only provides greater performance and power , but its cost effective nature means that resilient SMB networks can be built by interconnecting switches in a ‘ plug-and-play ’ configuration over 10 Gigabit Ethernet . Solutions are now available that enable all businesses , however small , the potential of enterprise class solutions within their switching infrastructure .
10 Gigabit Ethernet copper switches can now offer a high port density of up to 28 ports , making them a flexible solution that is perfect for a resilient network . They can sit anywhere , whether they are deployed at the core of a smaller network or as the aggregation layer of a larger network . Their increasing use is being buoyed by attractive pricing that can lead to them being well under £ 100 per port .
There are a host of benefits of using 10 Gigabit Ethernet copper , but one that any growing organisation can relate to is the need to realise high speed network performance growth , whilst leveraging existing infrastructure copper cabling investments .
The number of devices in the enterprise will continue to increase , along with the amount of data transmitted over the network . As a result , wired and wireless will end up competing for network bandwidth , especially once wave 2 802.11ac access points arrive that will be capable of speeds greater than gigabit switches , while additional video traffic stemming from both mobile and connected computer devices will create blockages occurring in parts of the network not previously seen with gigabit connectivity .
With this in mind , the need for 10 Gigabit Ethernet connectivity has never been clearer . Those organisations that fail to put in place the technology and connectivity needed to support tomorrow ’ s connected workforce and the demands of the ‘ always-on ’ consumer generation , will find themselves losing out to those that do .
By utilising the benefits that 10 Gigabit Ethernet has to offer , organisations of all sizes can add a layer of resilience to their network , whilst ensuring it has the elasticity to deal with the demands of the modern network and ensure the minimum of downtime .
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