Electronic Registration

[Maximus]

Hi,

 

We're looking at putting in electronic registration in to the classrooms this september, problem is, how to do it. We've got two networks, curriculum and admin. The teachers laptops are on the Curriculum network and the electronic registration system is on the Admin Network. Our (small) physical network consists of a router through which we get broadband and two switches one at either side of the school. The switches aren't managed and are about five years old. I'm thinking of replacing the switches with managed lvl 3 switches (or getting in smaller ones to go along side the present ones just for the e registration) and setting up VLAN's to allow us to securely join the two networks. Is this the right way to go about it or am i barking up the wrong tree!!! lol

 

Regards

[p858snake]

Have you considered merging the networks and then just having two domains and having trusts to control the information between them?

[bossman]

@Maximus:

 

We used to have 2 networks but nowadays there is no need for this as one network with file and user permissions in Windows being as good as they are,

I would look at amalgamating both of your networks into one.

We built a new W2K network back in 2002 and built a new MIS server and made it a member server on that domain. Then set up user groups and file permissions so that only MIS group members had access to the admin file structure on that server.

 

It has worked really well here but I know LA was against it but they have used our experience throughout the County and advised everyone else to do the same.

I would get advice from your LA team first though. :)

[K.C.Leblanc]

Most schools have already moved away from the two networks model. VLANs doesn't sound like the right way of going about it. VLANs let you keep networks separate even if they share network hardware.

 

Are the two networks physicaly connected and are they using the same IP range?

[Maximus]

It's not through choice, we where given two ip address ranges from county LEA, on for the curriculum and one for the admin.

[plexer]

Does your LEA only allow machines on the admin ip's to access certain information from the county WAN?

 

If not just pick one of the ip ranges and use it for all your pc's

 

Ben

[Maximus]

we have to use to different ranges, this is set by county

[sparkeh]

we have to use to different ranges, this is set by county

 

Urgh! I though that most LAs had moved away from this being the recommended way. Here we were actively encouraged to join our networks together and the LA came out to help us to it.

 

So this is set in stone then? Talk to your LA and see what their advice on how to do it is. At some point they are going to have to come up with a solution to this as elecontric registration is an enevitability.

[rossbale]

Apart from having to manage two physically separate networks, unless the teachers require access to the Registration System from the Curriculum network, I can see no issue in splitting the two networks and putting the Electronic Registration system on the Admin network, depending on what electronic registration system you have selected.

[plexer]

"We have to use 2 ranges thats set by county" - pah what an excuse.

 

Schools are the customers of their LEA support teams why should you be dictated too?

 

Ben

[Maximus]

It looks as though the easiest solution is to combine the networks into one and just use file permissions on the SIM's machine for security.

[Mcshammer_dj]

you could use terminal services from the admin network to allow teachers full access to sims and additional information as required.

[Maximus]

The admin network doesn't have a server, it's just two machines on a different ip range.

[Ric_]

Put your registration system on the curriculum network then (or multi-home it so that it is on both).

[localzuk]

LA's cannot tell a school what to do with their network btw - schools have devolved control over that sort of issue. It is up to the head, and any head which says 'county says' is simply not bothering to think about it themselves.

 

However, the question I'd have is, what is the registration system. Can you not stick a router in between the LANs and set up ACLs allowing access to that particular server?

[sted]

almost all Leeds schools are 2 networks going to a sisko router though traffic can be passed across (as long as the curric pcs are in the top 32 ips (where all my printers/nas boxes/switches etc live grrrr). Certain bits of software they run (groupcall exporter for 1) will only run from certain ips (admin). In schools im supporting im tempted to just shove 2 nics in the server with sims etc on so it can have an admin ip and a curric one and the same with any workstation that needs it as sockets are cheap as are nics. Looking at the approved documentation for single network though they want you to use ipsec etc for admin workstations if you do it seems a bit ott to me as long as you strap down permissions and people arnt daft with passwords

[Heebeejeebee]

The admin network doesn't have a server, it's just two machines on a different ip range.

 

Two?

 

Chuck them all on the curric network. They probably wouldn't notice the change.

 

HBJB

[Maximus]

i imagine it will be the SIM's one, especially if its free

[Oops_my_bad]

LA's cannot tell a school what to do with their network

Yes, they can - particulary if that LA is your ISP. If the school doesn't conform then they can (quite rightly) disconnect you. If one school had an issue that was causing problems with other schools, you'd want that school disconnecting, right? Thankfully this is rare as LEA networks are more resilient nowadays, but there are a few authorities who still use archaic methods to seperate off schools (flat vlans anyone?)

 

I also see people on here discussing whacking in a L3 switch to route between vlans or multi-homing. If you're going to do that then do yourself a favour get rid of your vlans and flatten out your network.