About our network
You might not think much about how our network works. We have such a wide and varied range of network devices here – printers, desktops, servers and switches, to name a few – and they all play an integral role.It all starts with the servers. We have Novell, Windows and Linux servers here, both physical and virtual, and they all perform different functions. We have Linux servers for i3 and the College website; Novell servers for all the network drives and printing; and Windows servers for all the services that hold the network together. Our servers are distributed across the school, to provide the quickest speeds possible.
From the servers data is carried across Cat-5 or Cat-6 cables into switches, where the data is sent via fibre optic cables across the school. When it gets there, it is switched back from fibre to Cat-5 or Cat-6, and then into your desktop.
It’s a complicated procedure; for example, to print a document involves data being sent from your desktop » switch in room » fibre back to E Block » one of the Novell servers » back to the fibre » Cat-5 / Cat-6 to the printer. So even though the printer is in the same room as you, it has to go all the way to E Block and back again for it to work.
By Michael Greenhill | 28. Oct 2010 | Network, Technology, WHSC | Comments Off