5.0.1.2 Network Maintenance Development (Instructor Version)
Instructor Note: Red font color or Gray highlights indicate text that appears in the instructor copy only.
Objective
Describe the different levels of router log messages.
Instructor Note: This activity is best completed in groups of two to three students.
Scenario
Currently, there are no formal policies or procedures for recording problems experienced on your company’s network. Furthermore, when network problems occur, you must try many methods to find the causes – and this troubleshooting approach takes time.
You know there must be a better way to resolve these issues. You decide to create a network maintenance plan to keep repair records and pinpoint the causes of errors on the network.
Resources
- Word processing software
Directions
Step 1: Brainstorm different types of network maintenance records you would like to keep.
Step 2: Sort the records types into main categories. Suggested categories include:
- Equipment (Routers and Switches)
- Traffic
- Security
Step 3: Create an outline to guide the network maintenance planning process for the company.
Instructor – Example Activity Solution
Network Maintenance Records Options
I. Equipment (Routers and Switches)
a. Reliability
i. Reasons for Down Time
ii. Percentages of Down Time
b. IOS upgrades and patches
c. Error messages
i. Dates/times
ii. Type of error
iii. Description of error
iv. Method to resolve the error
II. Traffic
a. Wired and wireless traffic utilization
i. Network traffic utilization by application
ii. Network traffic congestion
b. System and servers
i. Applications utilization
1. Email
2. Web-based software
ii. Errors with applications
iii. Methods used to resolve errors
III. Security
a. Updates
b. Authentication methods
c. Encryption methods
d. Error messages
e. ACLs
f. Wired and wireless security
g. Methods to resolve errors
Identify elements of the model that map to IT-related content:
- Network maintenance
- Network recordkeeping
- Analysis of network maintenance