Consulting: Infrastructure

Network and Systems DesignNetwork and systems design continues to get more complex.  I help take the guesswork out of the design, operation, and expansion of your infrastructure including networks, security and applications.  Operational areas covered include:

  • System Design
  • Network Design
  • Network Security (physical, network and application)
  • Disaster Planning and Recovery
  • Policy Planning and Analysis
  • Server, Application and Network audits
  • Data Protection
  • Asset Management.

Network Management and Monitoring

Network Management SystemsProactive management and monitoring of all networks and services is essential.  Are they performing as expected?   Are there problems with certain machines or services?  If so what is the nature of the problems and how can they be resolved?  How are incidents detected, distributed, and then resolved?  What kind of management systems are in place to assist?  What we monitor, how often we monitor it, and how long we retain the records matters greatly.  Are you monitoring the right things or wasting time and resources on monitoring sensors not related to problems you may experience?  How simple is it to add another server or device to your network and integrate into your existing management infrastructure?

Are you using automation in the handling of incidents?  Does everything depend on a a single person or group to manually detect and fix all problems?  What do longer term analysis show you in terms of system and network performance and capacity?   Will the current systems and capacities hold you for another few weeks, a few months, or a few years?

These and many similar questions are critical when planning, building, and managing modern networks.  Computer networks have become the technological heartbeat of business and consumer worlds and are as critical as electricity and water.  To thrive in this interconnected world, services must be available at all times and fast enough to meet current and future demands.  I assist with the planning, design, simplification, and implementation of these managed applications, servers, networks and workloads.

Voice Over IP (VoIP)

IP PhoneI have been designing and building Voice over IP (VoIP) telephony solutions since 2000.  At that time I built the IMA call center in the Philippines catering to customers in the USA.  The office system was based on Windows NT and TeleVantage (Artisoft) software using Dialogic hardware.  The US phone service was provided in Sunnyvale, California and linked first through a Frame Relay circuit to Manila and then across town to our offices through a wireless E1 connection.  It worked well and we were able to provide 800 service in the United States seamlessly connecting to our Philippine call center.

MONIC VoIP Solution

When we built the new MONIC domain registrar, I designed and deployed an Asterisk based VoIP solution.   The local IPPABX connected to Cisco IP phones (SCCP) and to the local telephone company through Cisco/Linksys SPA 3102 Analogue Telephone Adaptors (ATAs).   Integrating Cisco SCCP support into Asterisk was initially a bit of a challenge but turned out well in the end.  The IPPABX integrated integrated a local Customer Resource Management (CRM) system.

Philippines Cost Constrained Solutions

FreePBXIn 2024 I started a different type of VoIP project for our Philippines network.  The design goals were different this time.  I wanted to see if we could build an IPPABX node based on inexpensive and easy to obtain hardware.  Previous projects did not focus on cost, but this time it was the driving force.  I wanted to find out if we could deliver inexpensive solutions to remote locations as part of a possible travel related business we were investigating.

As I happened to have a spare Cisco/Linksys SPA 3102 ATA, an 8GB Raspberry Pi 4 with SATA capability, and a box full of good quality and working Panasonic analogue phones I went that route.  The resulting IPPABX is a FreePBX / Asterisk solution running on the Raspberry Pi 4.  The local phone line connects through the 3102 as does one physical phone.   I picked up 2 additional Linksys PAP2T’s to build a proper office phone network to use and test against.  At the same time a VoIP.ms supplied phone number (IAX2 protocol) connects through our local fiber Internet connection (600M circuit).

USA Connection

While the Raspberry Pi will never win any awards for speed, and I don’t even consider transcoding on this platform, it has otherwise been a remarkable success.  Calls through the US number are crystal clear.  The voice mail to email gateway is fast, reliable, and good audio quality.  The call quality is actually better than local calls.  If I was to build such solutions for clients today I would use newer mini-pc solutions rather than the Raspberry Pi.  Otherwise I’ve been very happy with the outcome.  In time the ATA’s and analogue phones will be retired in favor of modern SIP based IP phones.

Web Services

Web ServicesI provide web services consulting involving the design and assistance with web infrastructure issues. This includes basic site design, capacity and performance planning.  I also do application integration with WordPress sites such as this one and the ones listed below.  Complete solutions are provided for most applications.  I also work with web frontend design companies with excellent application look and feel and graphics design skills.

Active Sites

Some of the active sites I developed and actively maintain are:

For More Information

For more information or to ask questions, please visit the Frequently Asked Questions page or reach out to me anytime.  You can contact me by email, instant messaging, or phone at any time.