What do You need to Know about Routing and Switching?

A business network handles a lot of information from the company, clients, partners, etc, and makes it accessible to everyone which makes securing the network very important. 

Network security begins with securing the endpoints and two such critical endpoints that every enterprise environment consists of are – routers and switches. These two make the foundation for interconnectivity between networks and internal systems. 

In this blog, we will cover everything that you need to know about Routing and switching. Let’s begin by understanding what these are. 

What is Routing?

As and when the internet started taking over the world, we became familiar with some of its common components and routers are one of them. We know and have routers at the home, office and everywhere where there is the internet. We know that it enables internet connection for us. But it does more than just enable the internet on our devices. 

Routing is the process of connecting various networks. A router is used to tie various networks together and enable the internet on several networked devices from one single connection. The router acts as a dispatcher for your information, choosing the best route for it to travel faster. It basically connects your business to the outside world and protects you from threats. 

What is Switching?

In a network, there are many different devices that need to communicate with each other. A switch enables this interconnectivity of systems. It allows connecting multiple devices on the same network for example connecting your servers, computers and printer to create a shared resource for everyone’s use. A switch serves as a controller that allows the connected devices to communicate with each other and share information. They are very crucial for increasing business productivity by allowing a seamless flow of information. 

Switches are of two types: managed and unmanaged. 

• A managed switch provides more control over who can access the network and how data travels over the network and contains features to configure, monitor and manage traffic on LAN. 
• An unmanaged switch allows connectivity in its most basic form like the one we have at our homes. 

How are Routing and Switching concerned with network security?

Routers and Switches enable the transfer of information between large networks and computers, making them the primary target of cyber attacks. Both these components enable control over the entire network which is why cyber attackers try to hack into these two components first. 

Concerns about Router and Switch Security

The following factors are considered by network professionals when it comes to safeguarding networking components. 

User authentication: Because of ID thefts becoming so common, this involves measures taken to ensure the user’s identity within the network. 

Customized next-gen firewalls with specific policies: Previously there were no options for customizing the restrictions in firewalls that came in configured but now next-gen firewalls allow customization that can be configured to suit the needs of network security, perform several security checks, employing intrusion prevention systems, antivirus inspection and third-party integration, etc.

Detecting intrusions: This feature detects and monitors malicious activities in the network or any kind of violation of the network policy. It sends an immediate alert and takes some sort of action to disconnect the device posing a threat. 

Internal threats: While we talk about the internet network as the external source of information communication, internal sources like the hard-drives, USBs, etc are internal sources and pose an equal amount of threat. In this case, port filters are used to detect and monitor threats from external drives. 

How do businesses make use of Routing and Switching?

Since businesses depend a lot on data communication; and routers and switches play an important role in ensuring a secure and seamless transfer of information; they help improve business productivity and security, cutting costs and saving time, and improving customer satisfaction. 

Routers and Switches specifically help in:

Application Sharing: Sharing the apps and providing access to the staff, in or outside the office premise and keeping everyone connected. 

Faster access to information: Routing and Switching allows visibility to information on the network in real time and help in monitoring what is happening in the business. 

Improving Customer service: Customers don’t like to wait and expect personalized service. A reliable network gives employees access to all the information for speedy customer interaction and resolving their queries. 

Cost reduction: Routing and Switching enables sharing of office resources like servers, internet and printers, etc. reducing the overall cost spent on these resources. 

High security: The IPS and in-built firewall in routers protect the network from security threats like spyware, viruses, hacking, etc. and protect valuable business and customer information. 

Now you know how Routing and Switching are important components of the network and how important it is to ensure an updated and protected environment for them. They are much more than just relay points. They have become intelligent with advanced security capabilities like data traffic structuring, login denials, etc. If you too are looking for effective solutions for your fiber channel communications and ethernet security, Konverge Technologies is the right choice for you. Being a certified Cisco partner, Konverge technologies ensure world-class solutions to your routing and switching security requirements.