Remote network service or your own solution?

The digitalization of modern companies has increased the importance of a reliable network and WiFi infrastructure. Companies are faced with a choice: should they use an external remote network service via a service provider or prefer a standalone solution? This article looks at both options to help you make this decision.

What is remote network service?

Remote network service means that a third-party provider takes over the tasks of designing, installing and maintaining the network and WLAN - remotely if possible. These services often offer a wide range of services, including network design, hardware selection, configuration management, continuous monitoring and technical support.

Network design

Network design involves planning the network structure, including the placement of routers and access points. Well thought-out planning is crucial to ensure optimal coverage and performance. Without good planning, poor decisions can lead to poor coverage and performance. Correction is always much more costly in retrospect.

Planning and implementing your own network design can be an interesting challenge, but it also requires in-depth technical knowledge and time investment. If you are interested in IT or are already involved in it anyway, implementing it yourself is an interesting option.

A remote network service via a service provider offers the expertise and experience in this area to ensure an efficient and scalable network. By working with IT systems on a daily basis, experts can avoid known problems from the outset and possibly even help to save costs through appropriate planning.

That is part of it:

• General: Analyze requirements and translate them into a technical concept
• Consider possible future scenarios (flexibility)
• Analyze risks in order to have a basis for hardware selection and configuration
• Pre-planning cable points (e.g. for monitoring systems, cash registers, etc.)
• Calculate the required bandwidth

Hardware selection

Choosing the right hardware is crucial for network performance. This includes routers, switches and access points - but also the type of structured cabling. Not all solutions are suitable for every location. The wrong decisions can lead to inadequate performance and an unstable system. Stability in particular only becomes apparent after a certain period of time and when the network is under load.

For example, wireless connections are only a good option under very specific conditions, even if they appear easy to implement at first glance. Sometimes it can make sense to accept the greater expense of laying cables. The same also applies to hardware components. Especially in a professional environment, hardware must also be future-proof and allow remote maintenance from a distance, for example. Paying attention to such aspects can save costs in the long term.

That is part of it:

• Finding the right balance between performance and costs
• Plan for the long term (remote maintenance, updates and future-proofing)
• Plan for management requirements (e.g. customizations by customers in the web interface)
• Plan capacities (do not oversize or undersize)
• Infrastructure planning (low one-off costs vs. long-term stability)

Configuration

Configuration involves setting and maintaining the network settings. It involves taking the appropriate security precautions, dividing users into suitable network groups and preventing network overload. Open networks are always exposed to potential attacks. Be it for criminal reasons or "for fun" by tech-savvy users. Professional configuration is essential to protect guests' devices and the company's internal devices. Unfortunately, this is not done with a one-off setting, as new security vulnerabilities are regularly discovered. Only networks that are regularly maintained are protected against this.

Without IT expertise, network configuration can quickly become overwhelming. A remote network service provides ongoing support to ensure that the network is always properly configured and updated. With a corresponding maintenance option, the configuration and regular maintenance is carried out by experts, which in turn relieves the burden on internal IT and gives you as the operator a good feeling. Because your network is always up to date.

That is part of it:

• Network segments for user groups with different requirements / services
• Measures against digital vandalism (protection of guest and company devices)
• Legal protection in the event of illegal activities by users
• Regular checks and updates (network devices and servers or online controllers)
• If necessary, prioritization of services, users or data types

Continuous monitoring

Constant monitoring of the network is crucial in order to detect and rectify problems at an early stage. This involves defining a target status in which the network is considered to be "OK". If there is a deviation from this status, e.g. because individual devices are offline or the network is very slow, an alarm is triggered.

Constant monitoring requires resources and messages from the system need to be processed quickly. With a remote network service, you benefit from continuous, professional monitoring without additional internal effort. In the best case scenario, problems are solved before they are noticed by you or your customers.

That is part of it:

• Define target status to detect deviations
• Definition of response times
• Automatic alarm in the event of deviations from the target status

Technical support

Technical support is essential in order to be able to react quickly to network problems. Internet and WiFi are no longer just a nice service for guests. Cloud services, check-in scanners, office equipment and, of course, cell phones and computers all rely on a connection. An outage is nerve-wracking for everyone involved.

That is part of it:

• Contact person who can solve the problem quickly in the event of an alarm
• Remote access to the system

Conclusion

A remote network service offers a comprehensive solution that includes expertise in all aspects of network management. While self-management may seem attractive at first glance, the complexity and the demands on expertise and resources are often underestimated. Of course, self-management is a good option for keeping the network under your own control. Especially if sufficient IT expertise and time capacities are available.

Small networks, which can be used internally by a small number of users, are nowadays easy to manage yourself. This is because basic security aspects are already preset at the factory by reputable manufacturers. From a size of 50 users and more or if part of the network is publicly accessible, professional management should be considered. This can be done by an in-house administrator or by an external network service. This also applies to networks that form the basis for relevant services. An outage lasting several hours can quickly cost more than booking a network service.

At Eventnet, we tailor the options of a maintenance contract to your needs. Together we can find the right mix of security, convenience and cost factor.

To our remote network service offer