3 Common Mistakes When Setting Up an Office Network

As businesses grow, setting up a good office network is one of the most important steps in creating a productive work environment. After all, your network will allow you to access the Internet, share files between machines, and likely even facilitate your phone systems – all of which you’ll need to get things done.

Like most business endeavors, though, setting up an office network takes a good deal of planning and foresight in order to work properly. You don’t want to be caught off-guard by network problems down the road, so take the time now and review these 3 common mistakes that are made when setting up an office network. Avoiding these will put you and your network on the road to productivity.

1. They don’t construct the network with growth in mind
All too often, businesses will set up their network using the most basic components possible to get things started on the basis of their current needs. The end result is a network that’s functional and gets the job done for the company in its current state.

The problem is that this often results in a network that is tag lined and undersized for the company as it grows. A switch that may have worked for an office network when there were five employees can’t bear the load when the company expands to 10 employees. Often, office networks are restricted by a lack of bandwidth that could have been avoided with a bit of foresight.

Sometimes, a network’s hardware will even be restricted by the physical space of the office. For instance, brick walls or other dense obstacles can impede the functionality of wireless routers, so make sure to design your network in a way that takes the composition of your space into account.

2. They don’t invest in good hardware
This second mistake is a close cousin to a lack of foresight: the failure to invest in good hardware. The fact of the matter is that, in the end, one high-end switch will be less expensive than two low-end switches. Additionally, investing in good hardware upfront will allow you to use increased functionality as you require it.

For instance, say that in a year your business decides to make the move to Voice Over IP phone systems. If you haven’t invested in hardware up front that will be able to handle the bandwidth, you won’t have the push to make the transition without the headache and cost of revamping your network. That’s trouble that could have been avoided with high quality hardware.

3. They don’t make it secure
Again, in this case, a bit of foresight goes a long way. Many businesses that are first setting up an office network opt to believe in the pleasant idea that security only matters to giant corporations, and that security breaches or malware won’t affect them. Unfortunately, that’s simply not the case.

Remember: you simply can’t go wrong by investing in security. Even it requires high-end firewalls, routers, switches, or anything else, the trouble it will save you down the road is worth every bit of your initial effort.

Additionally, don’t make the mistake of leaving all of your passwords set to their defaults. Make sure to go in and set your own password for each component to avoid compromising your network. For more tips on staying secure, check out our advice on how to prevent malware.

How to make sure you set up your network correctly
If you avoid these common mistakes, you’ll have a much better chance of creating an office network that will work for your business. If you want to be certain that your network can meet your needs, though, it can be helpful to work with a managed IT services provider.

At Swift Systems, we take pride in being your true technology partner. We help business all over the Maryland area set up and maintain office networks. If you’re looking for a bit of help in creating a network that will work for you, we’d love to hear from you, online or at 301.668.5100.

Let our Specialists take care of your IT Support