Major Network design help needed ....

[Ben Duncan]

OK, I have been called in by a Company to help with some MAJOR networking issues.
This involves an Apartment complex located on the grounds of a Major University.
The apartments are sponsored by the University, but operated by a private firm.
One of those "Future of" campus housing deals. All Apartments are wired with cat 5e,
come with cable Tee-Vee and telephone service.

Now, I have have 3 complex's. Complex A has 48 apartments, B has 24 and C has 36.
Each complex's wiring terminates in it's own "Equipment Closet" and has
a HP 4000M Procurve switch. Each Complex's Switch has a Fiber Connection that goes back
to a Central Location that then terminates in another HP Procurve 4000M
then goes out via a uBR900 Cable Router with 6Mbs/6Mbs internet connection.

They are reporting that the connections are being dropped, slow response, and
no DHCP address's are being given out. The cable techs' report that the Router shows
it has been trying to hand out 400 DHCP address's. The manager of this operation
knows that students are coming over to the Apartments and (ab)using the network,
since the University has port blocking and throttling in place. (I Suspect
some one's running some server farms as well as a on-line gaming
setup as well ;-> ). This equipment was installed around 2000/2001.

The managers seem convinced that the HP PRocurve 4000M is a "managed" switch with
various "features". The only things I see it has is "Spanning Tree", VLAN and
port trunking control.

They want a proposal on what to do. New Equipment? Routers at each Unit ?

Any suggestions out there ?

Thanks ...




-- 
Ben Duncan   - VersAccounting Software LLC 336 Elton Road  Jackson MS, 39212
"Never attribute to malice, that which can be adequately explained by stupidity"
        - Hanlon's Razor