Learn how to avoid wasting network resources as a network engineer by following these five tips: monitor network traffic, implement QoS policies, reduce network redundancy, optimize network protocols, and educate network users.

This is incredibly misleading - by using link aggregation you're not 'reducing network redundancy', and having multiple routes to a destination is good design. Routing and bridging loops indicate you did something wrong, not that you have too much redundancy in your network.

How do you avoid wasting network resources?

Network resources are valuable and limited, and network engineers have a responsibility to use them efficiently and ethically. Wasting network resources can lead to poor performance, high costs, security risks, and environmental impacts. In this article, we will explore some of the common ways that network resources can be wasted and how you can avoid them.

1 Monitor network traffic

One of the first steps to avoid wasting network resources is to monitor your network traffic and identify any sources of congestion, inefficiency, or abuse. You can use tools such as network analyzers, bandwidth monitors, or traffic shapers to collect and analyze data on your network usage, such as throughput, latency, packet loss, or protocol distribution. By monitoring your network traffic, you can detect and troubleshoot any problems, optimize your network configuration, and enforce your network policies.

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Shane Mason

Solutions Architect | Technical Consultant | Sales Engineer | Technology & People Manager | #opentowork
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After traffic network flows have been identified, moving traffic to the appropriate circuits is a good idea. This way, all are used and there’s never an “oops” moment when a site fails over to an inoperable backup circuit

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2 Implement QoS policies

Quality of service (QoS) policies are rules that prioritize and allocate network resources according to the needs and preferences of different types of traffic, applications, or users. QoS policies can help you avoid wasting network resources by ensuring that critical or sensitive traffic gets the bandwidth, latency, and reliability it requires, while limiting or shaping the traffic that is less important or more tolerant. You can implement QoS policies at different levels of your network, such as routers, switches, firewalls, or servers, using various methods, such as classification, marking, queuing, scheduling, or policing.

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Chikezie Okorie

Telecom Expert [Transmission & RF] || Cisco Networking || AIl things Internet || Open to work
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QoS policies allow network administrators to manage network traffic, reducing resource wastage. They can prioritize mission-critical applications, limit non-essential ones, offer different service levels to users, and adjust policies based on network conditions. This enhances network efficiency, customer satisfaction, and can save costs by avoiding unnecessary upgrades.

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3 Reduce network redundancy

Network redundancy is the practice of having multiple paths or devices for network communication, in order to increase availability, reliability, and resilience. Network redundancy can be beneficial for network performance and security, but it can also waste network resources if it is not designed or managed properly. For example, network redundancy can cause problems such as routing loops, broadcast storms, or duplicate packets, which can consume bandwidth, CPU, or memory. To avoid wasting network resources due to network redundancy, you should use techniques such as spanning tree protocol, link aggregation, or load balancing, which can prevent or mitigate these problems.

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Brendan Battersby

Network Architecture, Network Security, Cloud Network Engineering Consultant | Cisco CCNP Enterprise, Azure AZ-700
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This is incredibly misleading - by using link aggregation you're not 'reducing network redundancy', and having multiple routes to a destination is good design. Routing and bridging loops indicate you did something wrong, not that you have too much redundancy in your network.

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4 Optimize network protocols

Network protocols are the rules and standards that govern how network devices communicate with each other. Network protocols can affect the efficiency and effectiveness of your network communication, and thus the use of your network resources. Some network protocols are more suitable for certain scenarios or purposes than others, and some network protocols can be configured or tuned to improve their performance or compatibility. To avoid wasting network resources due to network protocols, you should choose the best protocol for your network needs, such as TCP or UDP, IPv4 or IPv6, or HTTP or HTTPS, and optimize their parameters, such as window size, MTU, or compression.

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5 Educate network users

Network users are the people who use your network for various purposes, such as browsing, emailing, streaming, or gaming. Network users can also waste network resources if they are not aware of the impact of their actions or the rules of your network. For example, network users can waste network resources by downloading or uploading large files, using peer-to-peer applications, or accessing malicious or unauthorized sites. To avoid wasting network resources due to network users, you should educate them about the importance and benefits of network efficiency and ethics, and inform them about your network policies and expectations.

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6 Here’s what else to consider

This is a space to share examples, stories, or insights that don’t fit into any of the previous sections. What else would you like to add?

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How do you avoid wasting network resources?

1

2

3

4

5

6

1 Monitor network traffic

2 Implement QoS policies

3 Reduce network redundancy

4 Optimize network protocols

5 Educate network users

6 Here’s what else to consider

Network Engineering

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How do you avoid wasting network resources?

1

2

3

4

5

6

1 Monitor network traffic

2 Implement QoS policies

3 Reduce network redundancy

4 Optimize network protocols

5 Educate network users

6 Here’s what else to consider

Network Engineering

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