Implementing Cisco Networking Solutions

Components of the Enterprise Network

"The whole is greater than the sum of its parts."

-Aristotle

We have discussed the different traits of a good network design in the previous chapter. In this chapter, we will talk about the different parts of the enterprise network and talk about how the fundamental principles discussed in the previous chapter are applied in the actual design of the network.

We will cover the following topics in this chapter:

• Introduction to networking devices (switches and routers)
• Introduction to Cisco Internetworking Operating System (IOS)
• Functional places in the network

If you have worked on IOS, you can move directly to the third section in the chapter.