Networking

Networking

The layer everything else depends on. When the network is designed properly, the phones, the conference rooms, and the security tools all stop being mysteries.

What's Included

What a network engagement covers

Network Design & Deployment

Switching, routing, and VLAN architecture designed for how your business actually segments traffic — not a flat network with everything on one subnet.

Firewalls & Edge Security

Next-generation firewall selection, configuration, and ongoing rule management, with content filtering and intrusion prevention.

Enterprise Wireless

Predictive and on-site wireless surveys, access point placement, and tuning for density — so coverage holds up when the building is full.

Multi-Site & SD-WAN

Connecting branch offices, remote sites, and field locations with consistent policy and centralized visibility.

ISP Procurement & Failover

Circuit sourcing, contract review, and automatic cellular or secondary-circuit failover so one outage doesn't stop the business.

Network Assessment

A documented picture of what you're actually running: topology, firmware currency, capacity headroom, and security gaps.

Our Approach

Most network problems are design problems that took a year to show up

Networks rarely fail all at once. They degrade — a flat network that was fine at twenty users, access points added one at a time until they interfere with each other, firewall rules nobody has audited since installation. We design for the headroom you'll need, document what we build, and hand you a topology diagram that stays accurate.

  • Written topology and configuration documentation you own
  • Segmentation designed for security and voice quality, not just convenience
  • Wireless designed by survey, not by guesswork
  • Failover tested before you need it
NETWORKING
Platforms

What we work with

We're vendor-neutral. We recommend what fits your environment and budget, not what carries the best margin for us.

Cisco MerakiCisco CatalystUbiquiti UniFiFortinet FortiGateSonicWallHPE ArubaRuckusPalo AltoSD-WAN802.1XVLAN / QoS

We're vendor-neutral here, which matters more in networking than almost anywhere else. The right platform depends on your site count, in-house skill level, and whether you want a cloud-managed stack or something you can run yourself.

Engagement Process

How a project actually runs

STEP 01

Survey & Assess

Site walk, wireless survey where relevant, and a documented assessment of current topology, capacity, and gaps.

STEP 02

Design

Topology, addressing scheme, VLAN plan, and equipment schedule — delivered as documentation you can bid against.

STEP 03

Deploy

Staged configuration, cutover planned around your business hours, and validation testing before we call it done.

STEP 04

Document & Hand Off

As-built diagrams, configuration backups, and credentials handed over. Ongoing management optional, not mandatory.

Budget

What this typically costs

Most providers make you sit through a demo before naming a number. Here are honest ranges so you can budget before you call.

$2,500–$9,000
network assessment

Documented topology, capacity, and security review with a prioritized remediation plan.

$8,000–$40,000
per site refresh

Switching, firewall, and wireless replacement for a typical single-location office.

$400–$900
per access point

Enterprise wireless, installed and tuned. Includes mounting, cabling coordination, and survey validation.

Ranges assume cabling infrastructure is already in place and serviceable. Where it isn't, that scopes separately under low voltage cabling — and we'll tell you upfront if the cabling is the actual problem rather than the gear connected to it.

FAQ

Common questions

Isn't networking already part of managed IT?

Ongoing monitoring and management of an existing network is, yes. Networking as a separate service covers the project work: designing a new environment, refreshing aging equipment, surveying and deploying wireless, or connecting new locations. Some clients hire us for the project and manage it themselves afterward.

How do we know if our WiFi problem is coverage or capacity?

They look identical to users and get fixed very differently. Coverage problems are about access point placement; capacity problems are about too many devices per radio. A wireless survey distinguishes them in a few hours, which is cheaper than buying access points that don't help.

Do we really need network segmentation?

If you process card payments, handle regulated data, offer guest WiFi, or run VoIP, yes. Segmentation is what keeps a compromised guest device off your payment network and what keeps a large file transfer from degrading call quality. It's also an explicit requirement under PCI DSS.

Can you work with our existing equipment?

Usually. We'll tell you plainly what's worth keeping and what's past end-of-support, and we won't recommend a full replacement when a firmware update and a configuration cleanup would do.

What happens when our internet goes down?

That depends on whether failover was designed in. We configure automatic failover to a secondary circuit or cellular backup, so a single ISP outage doesn't take down phones, payments, and access control at once.

Do you handle the ISP relationship?

We can. Circuit sourcing, contract review, and escalation on your behalf when a provider isn't responding — which is often more valuable than the procurement itself.

Let's talk about networking

Get a straight answer on scope and pricing — no obligation, no demo required first.