Five steps to capacity planning

Capacity planning is no easy task. This series of tips, reposted courtesy of SearchNetworking.com, is designed to help value-added resellers (VARs) and networking consultants architect networks that support their customers' organizational and business growth.

Since most administrators are not in possession of a crystal ball, network capacity planning can be a very tricky endeavor. Unfortunately, there are no shortcuts to capacity planning. In fact, I could easily write an entire book on the subject. As I can't possibly tell you everything there is to know about capacity planning within the space of an article, I want to share five steps that will help you to be more successful with your capacity planning.

Capacity planning step-by-step guide

  Step 1: Meet with executive management
  Step 2: Determine how well existing hardware is meeting the company's needs
  Step 3: Determine the company's future needs
  Step 4: Identify opportunities to consolidate
  Step 5: Determine whether the existng infrastructure can support anticipated growth

Brien Posey

About the author
Brien M. Posey, MCSE, is a Microsoft Most Valuable Professional for his work with Windows 2000 Server and IIS. Brien has served as the CIO for a nationwide chain of hospitals and was once in charge of IT security for Fort Knox. As a freelance technical writer he has written for Microsoft, TechTarget, CNET, ZDNet, MSD2D, Relevant Technologies and other technology companies. You can visit Brien's personal Web site at http://www.brienposey.com.

This tip originally appeared on SearchNetworking.com.