Small Business IT Network

IT network is a great way of connecting a number of computers through one connection of internet. You can build the time tested wired network, which is safe and reliable, or you can opt for the wireless network, which can cover computers located in different rooms or areas of a home or office.

Keeping in account the contemporary world, setting up a small business IT network can be immensely helpful for small businesses to flourish and progress. This enables one to possess the benefit of sharing a single Internet connection that is interconnected with other computers. This shall also enable you to share files with other computers connected to the same network.

In your office, you need to decide whether you want a wired or wireless IT network. If you want a wired IT network, you will need to get the network cabling done and you will need to buy a switch or switches for connecting the network. Depending on how large or small your office is you may require just one or two switches. What the switch does is that it distributes the network traffic. There are ports on the switch. Let’s assume you get a ten port switch. One port will be used by your internet modem. Therefore nine computers in the office will be connected in the office. If you get two ten port switches, one will connect to the internet modem. You can connect eight computers and one port will be used to connect the second switch. On the second switch you can connect nine computers. So in total you will be able to have a network of seventeen computers. In case you get a twenty port switch you will be able to connect nineteen computers on the network.

Small businesses can be started in any field e.g. accounting, advertising, business consulting, computers, education, fashion, furniture, graphics/design, photography, transcription services etc.

Your second option is to go for a wireless network. All laptops have inbuilt wireless connectivity. You will need to get wireless cards installed in the desktop PCs. A wireless switch will provide you the required connectivity to all the PCs and laptops in the office. This saves you the hassle of getting network cabling done. Also, in future, in case you decide to shift your office the cost of network cables will not be wasted. As the new premises maybe very different from the one you are occupying and some or all your network cables may have to be chucked in the bin.

If you want to use a server to control your network, any good, robust PC can be used for this purpose. You will need to get a server operating system installed on it. The most commonly used server software is Microsoft’s Windows Server. This is installed on the server and it manages the network. You will need an IT network person to setup the server and the network for you.

The networking wizard assists you in building the network step by step. Once the network is built successfully, you can check whether it is functioning properly or not. The next and the crucial step in the set up are to secure your network against viruses, worms and deceptive software that can access you from the internet. Windows service pack 2 is equipped with the antivirus software, but it is always useful to protect your computer and your network with strong and updated versions of antivirus and malware protection tools.

Maintenance and troubleshooting support is also offered by Windows XP networking of Microsoft. The whole idea behind small business IT networking is to stay connected, share files and access database and to play videos, demos and presentations stored in one computer.

All you wanted to know about UK IT network providers.