Setting up a WAN -- over my head?

[christina>you]

Hey everyone,

I have been offered a full-time job over the summer at my workplace. They told me I could work full-time if I thought I could set up a WAN from our main office to the 6 satelite offices via T1 lines.

I am very comfortable doing this on a LAN; that is, connecting numerous networks/routers not using internet.

I am in semester 2 of the cisco networking academy and will be taking all 8.

Is setting up a WAN a whole lot different than setting up numerous LANs? I have ~1.5 years experience as the network administrator at my work, though I'm not sure if I'm prepared for a project of this scale. Could someone honestly let me know if I would be getting in over my head?

Thanks. ;)

[Duki]

Hey everyone,

I have been offered a full-time job over the summer at my workplace. They told me I could work full-time if I thought I could set up a WAN from our main office to the 6 satelite offices via T1 lines.

I am very comfortable doing this on a LAN; that is, connecting numerous networks/routers not using internet.

I am in semester 2 of the cisco networking academy and will be taking all 8.

Is setting up a WAN a whole lot different than setting up numerous LANs? I have ~1.5 years experience as the network administrator at my work, though I'm not sure if I'm prepared for a project of this scale. Could someone honestly let me know if I would be getting in over my head?

Thanks. ;)

bah, that was me... she had logged on to her account on my computer :p

[jbennet]

shouldnt be that hard. i linked me and my friends home networks together across the net once using VPN in order to play an xbox lan game against eachother.

[tialoc]

Depends on how you go about it. (i'm no expert by the way). Do they want to use a leased line or more of a VPN solution. I don't know what kind of traffic will be going through this WAN (data type, number of users...). Leased line seems easy, pay the phone co. and have a CSU/DSU router at each end... I haven't played with VPN a lot but I would imagine you would need some serious hardware at each end depending on how may users...

Have you talked to your instructor in class?

[Duki]

I have spoken with both of the networking teachers... one seems a little hesitant to tell me it's not going to be overwhelming, while the other is telling me to go for it and try my best. The later prof is very proactive about putting your mind to something and getting it done it seems like.

The setup they are wanting to go with is something similar to the following:

Every branch (6) will tie into the Main Office via T1 PTP lines using cisco routers at each end.

I have a lot of lab experience in setting up multiple subnets and routers to communicate, though I'm not sure how the CSU/DSU modems will play a part. I will have approximately a month to complete the entire project.

Is going through an ISP more confusing and complex than simply connecting multiple vlans?

[jimlaver]

I'm not an expert on this matter, but i used to work on Project Management for a mexican networking company a couple of years ago.

Maybe this is not what you wanna do and it's an old technology, but have you thought of Frame Relay?

I remember engineers doing this all the time with old 721, 751 and 3620 cisco routers. Even enabling FXS and E&M voice channels.

Oh, wait... I remember now... they used their own network to do that... it's called Uninet.

Well, good luck.

[Duki]

yeah, what I'm really wondering is how difficult is it to configure the IOS on the cisco routers to make the offices talk?

[joshSCH]

oh, are you planning on taking the ccna certification exam? I'm in Cisco I, but I really hate it. Everything in their curriculum is so biased.. they are simply using education to reach out to more potential buyers... Do you think it's worth it to become ccna certified? Or do employers look at other certifications (Net+) similarly?

[Duki]

well, cisco controlls 95%+ of the internet backbones which is why I would strongly suggest Cisco certifications. Any serious company will go with cisco equipment.

Net+ is only the simple foundations of networking. I haven't taken my Net+ yet, though I plan on it this summer... the only studying I've done is cisco netacad semesters 1 and 2, and my instructor said it shouldn't be a problem to pass. What that tells me is Net+ is only 1/6 the knowledge of a CCNP.

Personally, I prefer CompTIA exams because it's a once passed always passed... but I guess the vendor specific certs are the ones that really make a difference in pay.. which is why it makes since that it's manditory to take update tests.

[iam]

Go for it!

We had to set up a similar scenario in a lab a couple of months back using Cisco 2611 Routers, and it was no problem at all.

Use Cisco's Configmaker GUI if you're not sure, will let you test your scenario before you ever upload it on to the router.

Worst case scenario, you buy all the kit, try to do it but get stuck. Then you have a month to do the necessary research on Google and on here. Do it! :)