InteropNet: an open LAN

*InteropNet: an open LAN. (computer network for NetWorld+Interop trade show) (includes related article on industry vs. proprietary standards) (PC Week Labs: Tech View) (PC Week Netweek)
PC Week April 25, 1994 v11 n16 pN1(3)
PC Week April 25, 1994 v11 n16 pN1(3)

InteropNet: an open LAN. (computer network for
NetWorld+Interop trade show) (includes related article on
industry vs. proprietary standards) (PC Week Labs: Tech View)
(PC Week Netweek)

by Blakeley, Michael

Abstract
The design and testing of the massive InteropNet network that supports
the NetWorld+Interop trade show holds many lessons for IS managers.
InteropNet connects several buildings and includes 120 miles of wiring,
Internet connections for 7,000 host computers from various vendors,
cabling for LocalTalk, 10BaseT, FDDI and ATM networks and dedicated
lines, wireless bridges and fiber stands. The network, which is set up in
only two days, is managed by ZD Expos and staged beforehand in a
warehouse in Sunnyvale, CA. For the 1994 show, FDDI will be the
network backbone, replacing last year's Ethernet, and ATM will be used
experimentally. All equipment must support open, non-proprietary
standards, and all cable and connectors are tested before
implementation. The InteropNet design and test process also proves that
several basic guidelines can help IS managers develop large-scale
networks in a matter of months.

Full Text
As with any trade show, NetWorld+Interop features keynote addresses,
educational seminars, and exhibitor booths. The real star of next week's
show in Las Vegas, however, is the network known as InteropNet.

For many attendees of Interop, the show is the network. In a two-day
period before the show, volunteers will connect the most diverse
computing infrastructure in the world, which will support most of the
PCs and data being exhibited in the booths.

InteropNet's labyrinthian 120 miles of wiring connect roughly 7,000
host machines to each other and to the Internet. Cabling runs on
LocalTalk to 10BaseT to FDDI to ATM, at speeds from 200K bps to more
than 1G bps. The network spreads over several buildings on the famous
Las Vegas strip, with links between buildings over dedicated lines, fiber
stands, and wireless bridges.

While the InteropNet is full of gee-whiz technologies, it's also the
source for valuable networking lessons. Real-world IS managers can
learn from the experiences of the InteropNet team.

InteropNet teaches us that a large-scale, multivendor network can be
designed and deployed in a matter of months. Contrast this speed with
the pace of many corporate sites, where new technology requires a
five-year plan.

InteropNet also proves that you don't have to restrict your
enterprisewide network to a single-vendor solution, be it IBM's SNA
family or Novell Inc.'s NetWare line.

How do they do it?

Successful integration of a mixed network requires expertise. Bo
Pitsker, the manager for worldwide networking at ZD Expos in Foster
City, Calif., has spent years assembling and training a core team of
experts for setting up the InteropNet. (ZD Expos is a subsidiary of Ziff
Communications Co., PC Week's parent company.)

A total of 120 volunteers participate in the InteropNet hot-staging
process. The thirty-odd members of the Network Operations Center (or
NOC) team have done this as many as five times before, but many of the
volunteers are headed to their first Interop. The network is designed,
then "hot-staged" in a warehouse in Sunnyvale, Calif., during March and
April.

The first element of the InteropNet life cycle centers on designing the
network. Blueprints are drawn, using the exhibitor halls as the
geographical basis for the network.

Technologies used for the last InteropNet are re-evaluated, and new
technologies are considered for integration. Last year's network ran an
Ethernet backbone, and they implemented FDDI on an experimental basis.
This year, FDDI is reliable enough to replace Ethernet on the backbone,
while ATM will be used as an experiment. After the network layout is
done, equipment acquisition begins. Companies loan most equipment on
the InteropNet for the show, but Interop still faces late arrival and
vaporware problems.

The choice of equipment centers on open, non-proprietary standards.
Without common standards, equipment from different vendors won't
interoperate, and the hot-staging will fail. Routers, for example, must
talk PPP (Point-to-Point Protocol) over serial lines, and use OSPF (Open
Shortest Path First) to exchange routing information.

Vendor cooperation is also important. Despite claims of standards
compliance, problems in the hot-staging are often traced to faulty
implementations by one vendor or another. Vague aspects of a standards
specification can also cause interoperability headaches.

With fiber, twisted-pair, coax, and every other kind of wire imaginable,
cabling on the InteropNet is a potential nightmare. The NOC team
minimizes this problem by using high-quality cable and connectors and
testing each cable before it's plugged in.

Since IP is one of the foremost protocols on the InteropNet, the
hot-staging also runs into IP address conflicts and netmasking
problems. The show floor will be connected to the Internet, so all
machines must be configured for Interop's registered Class A network.

The hot-staging also reveals defects in the initial design of the
network. To resolve these shortcomings, the InteropNet is continually
redesigned throughout the hot-staging process.

When all the problems have been resolved and the hot-staging is
complete, the team tears everything down. They ship the entire network
to Las Vegas and reassemble it in two days.

Back in the real world

Corporate network managers can draw important clues from Interop's
example. These lessons can help minimize your technical problems when
setting up a LAN, but they won't solve all your problems.

Keeping in mind that the NOC team gets free support from vendors and
enthusiastic volunteers, and doesn't have to deal with corporate
politics, apply the following guidelines to your own interoperability
effort (also see chart, above).

Design the network for your office geography.

Every network is constrained by cable pulls and closet space, so design
your network based on a blueprint of your site.

Build a networking team.

The NOC team is key to the success of InteropNet, built on teamwork and
motivation. Make sure your team is trained in the technologies you
implement.

Break the design into subsystems.

Each subsystem should be self-contained, so changes in one area won't
propagate out of control. Divide and conquer.

Know your legacy.

Take a hard look at the network you already own. Which components are
obsolete, or don't support open standards? Which components are
mission-critical, and which are geographically mobile? What has to stay
just as it is? What must you replace? What can you replace with a
faster, cheaper, more elegant solution?

Know your media.

For example, 10BaseT Ethernet can only stretch 300 feet without a
repeater. For links up to 1.3 miles between sites, use 10BaseF.

Use a common set of open standards.

Wherever possible, follow the lead of the InteropNet and stick to
industry standards. Proprietary standards are dangerous in any
environment -- Interop or your company -- because they close machines
off from other machines on the network. A network without open
standards is doomed to splinter into a thousand LANs, each blind to the
presence of the others.

IS teams can follow this example by refusing to buy into proprietary,
single-vendor solutions.

Consider your power requirements.

Look at the power ratings of the various circuits in your network. You
may need new AC wiring to accommodate new hubs, routers, and servers.

If you have mission-critical servers, put them on a UPS (uninterruptible
power supply). Consider putting your hubs and routers on a UPS, as well.
Have your power checked, and use filters if it isn't clean.

Getting it implemented is the No. 1 goal.

Design your network as completely as possible, but know when to stop
the design phase and move on to implementation.

Prioritize design goals by cost and necessity.

Think about every aspect of your network. How important is this
component to the whole? How much money can you afford to spend on it?

Delegate responsibilities.

Make members of your interoperability team responsible for various
subsystems in your design. Don't attempt to do everything yourself.

Schedule milestones for design, hot-staging, and rollout.

Schedule each subsystem, and make sure everyone knows when each
portion must be complete. Use your budget and your list of priorities to
cut features if a deadline slips.

Hot-stage the network.

Hot-staging is an expensive process, especially while continuing to
support the existing network.

But every problem resolved in hot-staging saves you money in the long
run. Would you rather find problems before the system goes into
production, or after?

You can reduce hot-staging costs somewhat by setting a demarcation
point. InteropNet "hot-stages" only to the entrance of each vendor's
booth.

You could hot-stage a limited number of desktop machines with a
complete infrastructure -- for example, on a 20-LAN, 1,000-client
network, you'd fire up all the networks but run only a small number of
clients.

Use high-quality cabling and connectors.

Many problems in large-scale networks can be traced to bad cabling.
Overengineer a little; use Category 5 wire.

Use SNMP.

Make sure that SNMP is supported by your hubs, routers, and other
infrastructure components. Settle on a single, flexible SNMP console for
the entire network.

Use remote-monitoring equipment.

Products such as Network General Corp.'s Distributed Sniffer or Frontier
Software Development Inc.'s NETscout can help you administer large
networks without resorting to "sneakernet" or airfare to remote
destinations.

Periodically re-engineer your design.

As problems appear, costs rise, and design goals change, go back to the
drawing board.

You don't have to erase everything. With a properly segmented design,
you can make iterative changes.

Topic: Trade Show
InterOp
NetWorld
Field Testing
Modeling of Computer Systems
LAN
System Development
Information Systems

Record# 15 331 708