How to get optimal network performance?
Network performance is gained from finding the right balance between bandwidth, capacity and load. Understanding how your network is performing is the first step in improving that performance.
A network doesn’t need to be very old. Often simple changes to your software and overall use strategy are enough to make a network show its age. So, you need to evaluate what it is doing now and understand what you need it to do.
By using an external network performance service, you can help your business drastically improve its network systems, allowing it to run optimally and be ready to weather any storm.
This will allow you to gain better understanding and control of your network, enabling you to understand how you can develop your network. In this article, we closely examine how your company could guarantee a high-quality network performance.
The complexity of modern networks
Technology is ever-growing, and this affects every network over time, sometimes requiring companies to invest in new hardware every few years. Modern systems are more complex and typically need more maintenance as a result, with more layers of functionality to account for. Though it’s easy to spot simple errors, there might be more complex issues impacting your network.
Add to this the high reliability of most networks and it’s easy to miss signs of problems emerging from within. It is important to have a good view of the networks performance and produce some benchmarks to quantify performance.
Measure the network’s performance
The importance of measuring the networks operation and performance cannot be overestimated. By taking a snapshot of current operation it is then possible to measure the effect of changes. It is also important to look for potential problems in the network and to try to remove those before attempting to improve network operation and performance. Very often small improvements lead to dramatic performance improvements sometimes without the need for large and expensive changes or upgrades.
Refresh the system without replacements
After this assessment, you will have a clearer picture of operation of your network. This allows you to look at where there are bottlenecks or choke points in the network, or perhaps how load is not well balanced across your network.
It may be possible to tweak the configuration of the network such that loads are more balanced and by careful rearrangement reduce or remove bottlenecks.
Minor changes to your network configuration might lead to a significant boost in performance. These changes could be all you need to extend the life of your system.
Use a network performance service
A network performance service can help you to understand your current levels of performance, your opportunities to increase or extend this performance, or look at how you design an upgrade path to get to the next level of performance.
At Layer3 Systems we can help to improve your organisation’s network use and ensure it is fit for purpose always. For more information, contact our team.