High Availability Network Fundamentals

Chapter 4. Factors That Affect Availability

Many misconceptions exist regarding what things need to be considered when designing a highly available network. Many network designers consider only the hardware availability when designing their networks. Over-simplified methodology is often supported by a lack of information provided by the manufacturers of internetworking equipment. It is difficult to remember that software will cause downtime when the product manufacturers clearly state MTBF predictions for the product, but completely omit any reference to software availability. It is even more difficult to consider the proposition that good and documented processes for installing, maintaining, and upgrading a network will have a critical effect ...