Introduction
As a private institution on the verge of rising to the levels of the existing organizations, London’s Private Healthcare Provider comes out as one of the organizations with great need to engage the use of information technology, modern software as well as hardware. In addition to this effort, there has to be a concerted effort to increase the web presence of the services and clients not only for the benefit of the platforms provided but also for the increasingly dynamic rich sources of information on the internet. There is an objective to come up with a stable, informed, and skilled working environment that allows in the organization. In this perspective, the organization aims to reach the level of several other organizations while striving to surpass others by reaching the desired number of more than eighty employees. With this kind of workforce working on a departmental basis within the organization, the information technology infrastructure has to provide a match with the number of employees as well as the effectiveness of achieving the desired goals (Carpenter 56).
The services that the organization seeks to roll out to the market include healthcare-related platforms that go a long way to provide faster and quicker access to healthcare and its affiliated services. Healthcare is a broad field and is devoid of independence from other disciplines such as public health, environmental health, nursing as well as pharmacy, and many more. This will mean that there is a diverse range of clients and organizations that may be involved in business with LPHP. This means that the information technology platform should not only be secure and reliable but also far-reaching and flexible for the implementation of both the organizational objectives as well as individual client goals (Carpenter 111).
As a network system administrator, the understanding that from the point of idea generation to the point at which the network system has been taken through implementation and use a multifaceted approach ought to be inculcated the whole time, is an important part of the recommendation process. This allows for the considerations of the desired objectives, optimization of the performance of the technological platform while ensuring satisfaction for the stakeholders and the customers in the market. Healthcare financing requires a great deal of security if an organization delves into such a service. This is because, at any given time, accountability and reliability are key for the interested parties. On the other hand, research is one of the fields of organizational endeavors that require the use of security as well as stability of a database while giving the authenticated parties to have full access to the features and platforms; remotely or otherwise. Home care, primary and secondary care are services with a great need for keen scrutiny as well as production of services to clients in such a way that problems are solved on an evidence-based basis and efficiently. Record keeping in health informatics comes out as one of the best ways to keep records of the processes as well as diagnoses and results of treatment outcomes. This allows the organization to come up with platforms that enable the employees, administration, and stakeholders to access, control, and customize the available services (Shelly et al 189)
Installing, configuration and testing network operating system
Hardware specifications for server, client, and other devices
One of the most fundamental issues to be taken into consideration when handling a platform involving useful data and multiple users includes the accuracy of the performance as well as the speed and precision of executing tasks. For instance, there has to be an interface that allows the user to initiate the process in which they seek to engage in. It is also important for the machinery put in place to be able to, in as smart as possible way, to prompt the user on what they are meant to do by discovering the shorter routes to their desired destination. As such, it is worth noting that the hardware used, software installed and the interfaces put in place be as versatile as possible while upholding the concept of compatibility (Shelly et al 76).
The items to be available aside from the computer that is to be used for the software installation include; the installation disk, a high-speed processor with SLAT support. This speed is important for this system since, by design, it is meant to create a multifunctional platform with a number of clients accessing and making use of the services at the same time. In addition to a RAM memory of 2GB, the x64 processor of a minimum of 1.8GHz will help accomplish this aspect of the system. A hard disk space of at least 32 GB, as well as a VGA monitor with up to 1800 by 768 pixels, will allow for the storage and fast display of the data and interfaces. They will also provide a good situation and condition at which the server operating system can work efficiently. Other requirements include a USB mouse and Keyboard, DVD ROM drive, and an up-to-date Microsoft graphics card with WDDM drivers.
In order to install the client operating system, it is important to look at the balance between cost-effectiveness and functionality optimization. Windows 7 operating systems fit well with affordable mobile computers and this makes it a choice for the project. As such, the requirements of hardware will include the following:
- 1 GHz or faster 32-bit (x86) or 64-bit processor
- 1 gigabyte (GB) RAM (32-bit) or 2 GB RAM (64-bit)
- 16 GB available hard disk space (32-bit) or 20 GB (64-bit)
- DirectX 9 graphics device with WDDM 1.0 or higher driver
These specifications allow for the organization to minimize spending on the hardware to be used by multiple clients but maintains user-friendliness as well as the effective execution of commands.
The choice of operating system
At every given level of access, it is important that there is synchrony and harmony in the working process of the platform in such a way that the operating system at a higher administrative as well as the client levels have a liked way of executing commands. Therefore, it is worth noting that some available software used for such platforms require specific hardware with unique features. For instance, in order to cover all the functionalities of previous versions of operating systems, the Windows 8 operating system server helps to advance this quest such that machines with older versions of Windows operating systems can enjoy the utilities in the server operating system. An effective server will not only handle the myriads of data within the database but also allows real-time synchronization of new records. Apparently, there is a need for record-keeping while ensuring the data within the records remain accessible and safe.
It is also desirable in an operating system to have a completely secure way of authenticating accessibility of the information, utilities, and services therein. On the other hand, there is a dire need for establishing the integrity of the data and the clients within the domain of the platform. This gives room for ensuring that the data entered and stored within the system is from valid sources and is devoid of any intentional, unintentional, or malicious modifications.
Thus, with the firewall provisions and coverage of online and offline data and software safety, the windows 8 server operating system comes out as the most well-suited for this venture. The basis of this lies in the kind of balance stricken between its ability to engage in functionalities more advanced and complex than its earlier counterparts and the ability to establish a safe and reliable platform for both offline and online operations. The other basis for this choice of the operating system is its ability to contain features of other operating systems and bring them to a higher level of functionality.
Installing server operating system
Conducting a pre-installation check is vital for the success in installation, configuration, and initiation of the desired functionalities. The checklists for this process include a number of items and factors as well as specifications of the company according to the objectives driving this process. The hardware for this stage of server installation should be ready and functional in order to allow for the opportunity to troubleshoot and create compatibility assured quality network provision and supply. The items to be available aside from the computer that is to be used for the software installation include; the installation disk, a high-speed processor with SLAT support. This speed is important for this system since, by design, it is meant to create a multifunctional platform with a number of clients accessing and making use of the services at the same time. In addition, as has been mentioned in the preceding sections the RAM memory of 2GB coupled with the x64 processor of a minimum of 1.8GHz will help accomplish this aspect of the system. The hard disk space of at least 32 GB, as well as a VGA monitor with up to 1800 by 768 pixels, will allow for the storage and fast display of the data and interfaces. They will also provide a good situation and condition at which the server operating system can work efficiently. Other requirements include USB mouse and Keyboard, DVD Rom drive, and an up-to-date Microsoft graphics card with WDDM drivers.
The initial step in the installation involves opening the DVD drive and inserting the disk with the software. An understanding of the specific working procedures and speeds of the hardware at the disposal of the administrator helps to create a situation of complete understanding between the machine and the user, who, in this case, is the server administrator. The first thing to be observed on the screen of the computer is the dialogue box with a prompt to make a selection of the preferred language for not only the installation but also the subsequent processes of use. This includes the choice of the general language to be installed and other transactional formats for the server. Upon entering the proffered language, which for this case scenario would be English, it is okay to initiate installation then proceed to the process of keying in the activation key (Oliva 43).
One unique and advantageous aspect of this windows 8 server operating system is that the version allows the ability to create multiple user interface accesses using one server. It comes out as an aspect that makes it more suitable for the services of the organization while nurturing the development of its client-administrator interactions.
The following screenshot sample provides a glimpse of the step-by-step method of installing the operating system.
The next step is to choose the kind of operating system you wish to install in the system. In this case, there are a number of available options, each of which has a number of advantages over the others. This organization seeks to venture into a service that has several departmental activities within it while ensuring that the number of employees is slightly below a hundred. For this reason, the server to be put in place will provide services to several departments while acting as the central hub for both information and internet or web services. The best platform to choose therefore is the small enterprise version of the operating system in order to maximize the available resources. This is achieved as follows:
Upon acceptance of the terms and conditions of the products and their services, the process of installation is preceded by the selection of the booting system. It involves the use of the prompt that allows the user to choose and create a partition of the memory of the computer that will act as a booting partition. As noted earlier, the boot partition should have a memory or disk space of at least 32 GB:
Upon completion of the installation process, it is the role of the administrator to know that in any information technology forum, security is of great importance. In this case, security is based and inclined towards the direction of confidentiality and authentication of access. For instance, in order to determine what takes place within the network, there has to be a secure process of ensuring that it is only the authorized personnel gain access to the functionalities within the operating system and the server computer. For this reason, there is a screen pop-up that requires the creation of an administrator password (Oliva 99). Issues to note while creating such a password include the length and the predictability. The password linked to the administrator use name ought to be of a reasonable length and of a combination of symbols in a security-based sequence (Oliva 33). Preferably, the password should be original and not shared and should consist of an alphanumeric combination:
Configuration of server operating system
In order to begin the operations of the server operating system, there is a need to configure it to the level at which the required objectives are met. For instance, the setup must include giving the platform an identity that strives to keep it unique to the company. In addition, depending on the number of services to be offered, the working stations in various organized areas of work need to be catered for while giving slots for the scope of reach by the operating system and, by extension, the administrator.
The first step in this process is the inclusion of the unique identity of the platform in such a way that it is identified by a numerical system known as the IP address and the domain name. Therefore, to provide the administrator computer with the domain name, go to the dialogue box and select the option to give the computer a domain name. In the box written “computer name,” type a name that is preferably the server name and select the workgroup option as shown below.
Aside from the provided computer name, in terms of network and service provision to clients, there is a need to create an address that indicates a unique identity for the source of the information that runs within the system. This is the creation of an IP address, which is a combination of systematically arranged numbers to provide the identification protocol basis. The steps for this are initialized by a selection of the option to manage network connections under the network and sharing dialogue box. Clicking on LAN properties, TCP/IPv4 properties, and the “use the following address,” option respectively allows for setting up of a static IP address for the server as follows:
For each client or department to act as an effective workstation under the server, it is important to exploit the avenue of creating a static IP address. The process is aided by the option for configuring the dynamic host configuration protocol (DHCP). This allows the server to provide an avenue to create IP addresses automatically for the initiated clients.
Configuring server as a print server
One of the activities within each department or working station will require the production of printed hard copies of the documents or files. As such, the server computer should be configured in such a way that it allows this option to be implemented. Upon installation of the server, within the options on the taskbar for managing the server, there is the option of increasing the installing the print services on the server computer. This option will go a long way to create a platform in which the connected printers in the network will be chosen and used.
The print services installation a few steps and in order to finish it, it is important to specify the role as “printing services,” after which the option for adding a printer is considered for the test:
After connection of the printer and configuring it to work with the server computer, the print testing can be run:
The printer prioritization comes out as one of the hurdles the system has to deal with in an intelligent manner in order to reduce the possibilities of jamming the system with overlapping working commands from clients. With employees whose number approach a hundred divided into different departments, it is expected that at one given time, there will be a possibility of two clients may send simultaneous commands. Under normal circumstances, the service from the server will be on a first-come-first-served basis. However, in order to prioritize one group over the others, it is assigned a higher number than the rest such that the printer gives it more priority as follows:
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Mobile computer and power optimization
In the case of mobile computers such as personal computers and laptops, the possibilities of working and operating at a convenience are available. On the other hand, due to inevitable circumstances, the sources of power may undergo interruption or, being mobile in their nature, the user may find themselves at places without power. For this reason, it is often required that the power-saving procedure be taken into account. For instance, the basic steps include reducing the
computer functionalities that are not in use at times while giving preference to the more useful ones. The process begins by clicking on the following sequence:
Within the power option dialogue box, there are several options to consider. For the purposes of using default power-saving settings, we choose the “power saver” option. It is still possible to customize the functionalities that need to be optimized under each category. Apart from the power saving options for the mobile computing devices or clients, it is worth noting that there is a need for supporting functionalities such as LAN and Wi-Fi network access features, malware protection, extra sources of power, USB cables for printer connectivity as well as other necessary equipment for the utilization of mobile clients. This gives the clients ease of work and access to the server and the other services provided.
Installing the client operating system
Unlike the server operating system, the client operating system is simpler and requires simple hardware such as the personal computer or desktop with sufficient memory to contain and operate the regular operating systems. Nevertheless, specific considerations ought to be put into consideration when making decisions on the material to use. The software should be light and fast on a regular computer while having a number of features that need to be looked at. The basis for this lies in the fact that there is a need for compatibility with the server operating system. This is important because it allows the client to not only retrieve and record accurate information but also do so in a speedy manner. Having looked at the available options of windows XP, Vista, 7, and 8, one of the issues that pop up at every stage is the ability of the operating system to work on the available computers while providing optimal services.
Windows XP is one of the most powerful operating systems that Microsoft has ever produced. In this case, it does not fit into the chosen list because of the computer hardware under production today. Windows XP and windows vista do not have the feature required by the server operating system installed in the administrator computer. The result of this could be the availability of functionality but some portions of the service may come out as slow or very discouraging. Windows 8 is one of the most recent operating systems for internet-based personal computers yet it fails the test for this case scenario because this is because at any given point the utilities within the operating system will require the internet in order to update to the newest version. Apparently, the work of this server is to give rise to an effective process of working in the organization and regular updates may slow down the client computers and reduce productivity (Khadraoui & Francine, 102). Moreover, being a new operating system in the market, many users may require prior training which will demand more costs. The most advantageous operating system for this platform is therefore windows 7 pro (Khadraoui & Francine 87).
When installing the operating system, the steps are simple and straightforward but require keen scrutiny in order to come up with features that benefit the user. The first step is to insert the disc into the DVD drive and on the first window that appears, choose the language with which the operating system will be installed. By clicking install, the operating system will begin installing and will proceed to the terms and conditions of the agreement. These terms are important to understand and agree with because they are the ones that determine the legal and ethical aspects of using the operating system. Reading them and understanding them prior to the installation means that one agrees with the conditions and disclaimers from the company’s side making the license a mutually accepted pact (Slay & Andy 43). After reading the terms and conditions, there is a green light to proceed with the installation process:
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After installation is complete, there is the option of creating accounts for the user or group of users. The accounts can either be password protected or free access depending on the level of security needed by the client or the department. The configuration process involves going to the Ethernet settings option of the internet settings and setting up an automatic way of obtaining an IP address from the server. Once these settings have been put in place, it will be ready to use since the IP and DNS addresses will have been set automatically and each computer can be used as a workstation.
Installation of Client terminal system
The steps in this process include the following:
The different types of servers created in the system platform play different roles for the objectives of the company. The client-server has the primary function of allowing clients and departments to access the services either remotely or directly. In case of internet access need, the web server provides a forum for this process and allows users in the research department to gain full access to the services. In addition, the print server provides opportunities for the clients or workgroups to initiate their printing process through virtual and physical printers connection. File and folder server contributes to data safety and security by continuously synchronizing incoming information with the ones that already exist in the database.
Monitoring and performance optimization
The process of creating an effective workstation from the top to the bottom involves the use of evaluation techniques in order to optimize functionality. For instance, in the process of bringing up the system, it is worth putting in memory that the main objective of the endeavor was to create a platform by which work is not only made easier, but also more effective. With this in mind, the audit reports for evaluating the extent of success of this objective are vital for performance evaluation. Apart from the regular periodic audits, it is important to look into the security of the data within the database. This includes the integrity of the data, confidentiality of information, and authenticity of access to information. These are steps that should be handled in such a way that the monitoring is managed from the top downwards and on a regular basis (Kotlarsky et al 14).
In the process of monitoring the system, it is worth noting that there are two aspects of reasoning. For example, it is the aim of the person monitoring to know whether the system is working well or to detect any forms of activities that do not go in line with the objectives of the platform. Thus, monitoring will involve viewing and archiving event logs. This helps to understand any differences in the processes and functional provisions of the system by comparison. In case there is a need for probing into a periodic event, it is important to apply the archived logs of the specific period, process them into formats such as Microsoft Excel spreadsheet as an examinable output.
Monitoring is therefore done in such a way that the hardware such as internet server disks, speed of processors, space in or size of RAM, data transmitting cables, internet or web activity evaluation as well as.
The use of event logs helps in the following areas of monitoring:
- a) Security checks can be performed using events log monitoring and security information to detect network issues in real-time
- b) Event viewer can aggregate logs from numerous systems into a central location, thereby making it easy for the administrator to store, manage and analyze
- c) Event logs allows the administrator to detect possible network attacks, as the log will show failed attempts by attackers
- c) Event logs allows easy search through for a specific event
- d) Using events log, events can be correlated for use by the administrator, this is almost impossible manually
Disaster preparedness plans
The best way to handle any kind of disastrous outcome in the organization is to apply the contingency plans that are stipulated within the safety plan. Several types of disastrous occurrences occur on a daily basis and could range from slowing down of computers to huge problems such as the burning down of the establishment at the point where the workstation is located. No matter the size of the disaster, the repercussions are always detrimental to the output of the work environment and the services rendered. For crashed programs or slowed-down computers, regular check-ups will help to detect any kind of reduction in the functionality or loss of feature of operation. Such programs and hardware should be replaced or updated as soon they are detected to avoid disastrous outcomes. For data safety, it is important to apply the RAID system of implementation of data security. For such a small working station, the server ought to perform synchronization of data entered after a specified range of time. This allows the data to be stored on more than one memory location including the backup. At the end of a period, the permanent storage is replaced and stored in an independent area such that in case of inevitable damage, all the information is not lost (Hugos & Derek 213). Generally, the disaster plan works as in the cycle below (Slay & Andy 114):
Cost analysis for implementation
For the purposes of creating data security, it is important to consider the RAID system options of arming the server with drives. For instance, in the series ranging from RAID 0 to RAID 10, the option of taking RAID 5 for the system proves more viable to the project. This is because it strikes the balance between cost-effectiveness and optimized data safety and security. Its distributed parity and data reconstruction capabilities contribute to its redundancy and write operations suited for systems involving several users.
In order to maintain a securely and optimally performing system, several steps need consideration in terms of financial allocation as well as equipment availability. In addition to the sophisticated and modern machinery and computer costs, the cost of maintenance also applies and in this case scenario. Periodic check up on the physical and functional states of the equipment ought to be placed as one of the priorities for benchmarking this process. In light of this, there will be a need for in-house and outsourced technical staff for the implementation of the maintenance and repair of the servers, network, printers, computers, and software. Special equipment and software such as offline IP analyzer as well as anti-malware software should not only be available but also updated from time to time. The cost of the whole process is as hefty as it is necessary. Therefore, in the budget that goes to this project within the organization, at least 25% should be directed to monitoring, maintenance, and functionality optimization.
References
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