How to Build Redundancy into Your Communications Infrastructure

In today’s collaborative business environment, efficient communication is crucial for innovation and differentiation.  

To achieve this, organizations need to invest in responsive, failsafe communications infrastructures to handle multiplying communication channels and provide seamless integration with other business systems.

Enterprise communications infrastructure is comprised of hardware and software systems that enable employees, customers and partners to communicate, including email, messaging, video conferencing, VoIP (voice over internet protocol) and unified communications.

A well-designed communications infrastructure can streamline communication, enhance collaboration, and reduce costs. But unless redundancy is built into the infrastructure, when a communications infrastructure goes down, productivity can come to a sudden—and costly—halt.

The importance of network redundancy in communications infrastructure

Network redundancy design increases the reliability and availability of the network by incorporating backup or duplicate network components. This ensures the network stays operational during a failure or outage, minimizing the impact of downtime from issues like:

• Slow network speeds caused by network congestion or limited bandwidth
• Security breaches like malware, phishing and weak passwords
• Wireless connectivity issues due to weak signals, device interference or old firmware
• Failure of network hardware like switches, routers, and servers
• Network configuration issues and outdated or failing hardware

Building for redundancy

One common strategy of network redundancy design is using redundant links. This creates multiple connections between network devices to ensure that data can flow even if one link fails.

Another network redundancy strategy is redundant hardware components. Switches and servers can be organized into a hot-standby architecture, where backup components take over if a primary component fails.

Multi-site connectivity can help eliminate network congestion through collective bandwidth that connects multiple locations. Using a dedicated internet access (unshared by nearby businesses or homes) locations can seamlessly tap into a private bandwidth pool to keep networks running smoothly.

And updated network security and wireless solutions limit network vulnerabilities and increase access. This means less of the network is exposed to cyberthreats while users can more easily access the apps and solutions they need to stay productive.

Keeping the lines of communication open

An effective communications infrastructure is essential for any enterprise. And network redundancy design helps ensure the ongoing availability and reliability of the enterprise network so organizations can stay ahead with better productivity and collaboration.

Learn more about Frontier’s Multi-Site Networking, Enterprise Networking Solutions, and Dedicated Internet Access.