The best cabling upgrade may be no upgrade at all

NETWORK WORLD NEWSLETTER: JEFF CARUSO ON HIGH SPEED LANS
08/23/05
Today's focus: The best cabling upgrade may be no upgrade at
all

Dear networking.world@gmail.com,

In this issue:

* 'The mighty force of inertia'
* Links related to High Speed LANs
* Featured reader resource
_______________________________________________________________
This newsletter is sponosred by Arbor Networks
Special Report: Internal Intrusion Prevention: Providing
Network Security Inside the Perimeter

In order to meet the demands of today's enterprise IT
infrastructures, enterprises must deploy the right solution for
mitigating threats that target internal resources. This paper
discusses the requirements for enterprise-wide network security
- to monitor, analyze, and react to threats across the network
in real-time.
http://www.fattail.com/redir/redirect.asp?CID=110796
_______________________________________________________________
SPLIT-ANALYSIS WIRELESS SECURITY

Wireless security tools perform security analysis in sensors
scattered throughout a wireless LAN or in a central server, but
both options have drawbacks. A blended approach to wireless
security lets sensors and servers share the job of analysis.
Find out how split-analysis could boost wireless security on
your network. Click here:
http://www.fattail.com/redir/redirect.asp?CID=110706
_______________________________________________________________

Today's focus: The best cabling upgrade may be no upgrade at
all

By Jeff Caruso

Last time, I mentioned several cabling options for moving
desktops from Gigabit Ethernet to the next level. But one
cabling option that several readers advocated was this: do
nothing. Stick with Category 5E unshielded twisted pair wiring.

Get off the "Category X" treadmill and avoid the question of
fiber-to-the-desktop altogether - at least for now, at least
until the answers to the very questions I raised in my original
newsletter are more settled.

The thing is, you know this is what many businesses are going to
do anyway, unless there is some great pressure on them to
change. As one reader put it, "Ah, the mighty force of inertia!"

Another said:

"The best bet is to squeeze every last ounce of performance out
of Cat 5E and wait to see if wireless LAN performance can catch
up. By then there should be a clear understanding of what you
need to deploy 10G to the desktop. Never be first with wiring or
you'll end up with [single-mode/multimode/Cat 6 homeruns to the
desk and waste a ton of money."

Yet another echoed those sentiments:

"If you have an existing copper or fiber system, don't replace
it just because something new is available. Just like an old
car, an old network is most cost-effective when it is run until
it is dead. Test the system before you replace it. A
well-installed Cat 5 or 5E system may provide the performance
you need without an upgrade to Cat 6 or fiber."

The thinking is that there's more to the picture than just raw
bandwidth, so see what you can do to improve the cable plant you
have. Perhaps even some application architecture changes are in
the works, as this reader suggested:

"Seeing recent major companies take the path (like Hitachi), and
seeing it firsthand in my work, I think the future is going to
'revert' back to the mainframe/remote-terminal model, and fat
PCs at the desktop will go the way of the floppy disk (sure,
some are still around, but don't get used much). For this to
work well, I think the back-end terminal servers will all be
wired fiber, or some other high-speed/capacity medium, to attach
clustered servers, network storage devices, etc. - but the
wiring to the end user running on thin clients ('dumb'
terminals) won't matter much, as current Cat 5E is sufficient to
carry a lot of terminal traffic."

Next time: fiber to the desktop?

The top 5: Today's most-read stories

1. Cisco preparing management play
<http://www.networkworld.com/nllan5623>

2. VoIP security threats: Fact or fiction?
<http://www.networkworld.com/nllan3837nllansalert5566>

3. Questions surround smartphone security
<http://www.networkworld.com/nllan5624>

4. CLECs play a new tune
<http://www.networkworld.com/nllan5625>

5. Google goes berserk
<http://www.networkworld.com/nllan5415nllansalert5567>

Today's most-forwarded story:

Cisco preparing management play
<http://www.networkworld.com/nllan5626>
_______________________________________________________________
To contact: Jeff Caruso

Jeff Caruso is managing editor of online news for Network World.
He oversees daily online news posting and newsletter editing,
and writes the NetFlash daily news summary, the High-Speed LANs
newsletter and the Voices of Networking newsletter. Contact him
at <mailto:jcaruso@nww.com>
_______________________________________________________________
This newsletter is sponosred by Arbor Networks
Special Report: Internal Intrusion Prevention: Providing
Network Security Inside the Perimeter

In order to meet the demands of today's enterprise IT
infrastructures, enterprises must deploy the right solution for
mitigating threats that target internal resources. This paper
discusses the requirements for enterprise-wide network security
- to monitor, analyze, and react to threats across the network
in real-time.
http://www.fattail.com/redir/redirect.asp?CID=110795
_______________________________________________________________
ARCHIVE LINKS

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http://www.networkworld.com/newsletters/lans/index.html

LANs/Routers Research Center:
http://www.networkworld.com/topics/lans-routers.html
_______________________________________________________________
Asking More of Wireless LANs: The Rise of Multi-Service Networks

Join experts as they explore the expanding role of wireless LANs
in the enterprise, specifically the role of multiservice
networking. Learn about one company's approach to delivering a
multi-service wireless LAN.
http://www.fattail.com/redir/redirect.asp?CID=110739
_______________________________________________________________
FEATURED READER RESOURCE
WIRELESS LANS BUYER'S GUIDE: THE GOODS ON 185 PRODUCTS

We've compiled the largest buyer's guide ever on wireless LAN
equipment. Whether you're looking for an access point, PC Card
or trying to decide between 802.11a, b or g, take a look at the
information that vendors have provided us. We've got the goods
on 185 products. Click here for more:
<http://www.networkworld.com/bg/wlan/index.jsp>
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