Fault Tolerance Enterprise Network

Abstract

Enterprise Networks are private computer networks that are owned by a single organization in order to connect their various offices in order to share computer resources. The task of configuring and managing security policies in enterprise networks is becoming harder due to complex policy constraints of the organizations and rapid changes in the network topologies. The physical systems that compose a network, on the other hand, are subjected to a wide range of problems, ranging from signal distortion to component failures. Redundancy underlies all approaches to fault tolerance. Designing any system to tolerate faults first requires the selection of a fault model, a set of possible failure scenarios along with an understanding of the frequency, duration, and impact of each scenario. A simple fault model merely lists the set of faults to be considered; inclusion in the set is decided based on a combination of expected frequency, impact on the system, and feasibility or cost of providing protection. Most reliable network designs address the failure of any single component, and some designs tolerate multiple failures.