Mris network architecture proposal r1

Milliman Retirement Information System
Network Architecture Development
Presented to:
M&R Offices
Partnering in the TRC
by
Craig Burma, DSC Technology Director

Table of Contents
Introduction..................................................................................................3
Vision Statement..........................................................................................4
Needs Assessment........................................................................................5
Guiding Principles – Objectives..................................................................6
Current Infrastructure Inventory..................................................................7
Network Architecture Design......................................................................8
Implementation Strategy and Funding.......................................................13
Network Team Roles.................................................................................16
Outcomes to Measure Performance ..........................................................18
Conclusion.................................................................................................19
Appendix....................................................................................................20
MRIS Network Architecture Proposal 2

Introduction
This proposal for network architecture development is the culmination of hundreds of
hours of research by M&R network team members, vendors and contractors.
Milliman & Robertson, Inc. is new to building mission critical systems with Internet
connectivity. Therefore, a primary research objective was to identify individuals with
first-hand experience in constructing these systems (see Appendix 1: Research
Participants).
For building the transactional network, Adam Waddell was enlisted for his experience,
including the creation of a 2,900 user network accessing a SQL server with 1.2
terabytes of information on a storage area network. Brenden Eagan’s experience as
an enterprise level consultant on mission critical systems for Compaq provided value
in building redundancy and scalability with the latest Compaq technology.
For the web servers, Brad Bartholow was contracted for his expertise gained from
building an e-commerce, database driven web site for an online dating service
(www.oneandonly.com). His experience helped define a web architecture to scale
with growing demands.
Finally, for Internet connectivity, Quentin Conner from Insource Technology, several
Cisco engineers and Joel Thonen from Sprint, worked through several options in
building cost-effective, redundant and scalable links to the Internet. Their experience
in routing, firewalls and co-location helped complete the network picture.
This experience is matched by the research of hundreds of articles, online bulletins and
technical specifications documents. These publications identified relevant trends in
technology used in building this network.
M&R Dallas Network Manager Greg Hoag’s efforts were particularly valuable in helping
detail the recommended purchases. His ability to coordinate configurations and consider all
the “hidden” costs shows in this detail of this network design.
At each point, from the transactional network to the web servers to Internet connectivity,
the experiences of these individuals and independent research was considered with a
constant vision for the future of data communications at M&R.

Vision statement
Every great network starts with a vision. Without a vision, it is impossible to chart a consistent
path through dozens of design choices and vendor sales pitches. This vision statement is based on
a review of the mission and service goals of M&R. The network team’s job is to translate these
initiatives into the role technology plays in their fulfillment. The complete mission statement for
this network is as follows:
We believe technology is a strategic resource creating
competitive advantages for Milliman & Robertson in the
financial services industry.
Toward this belief, we will build mission critical data
network exceeding organizational goals for:
• Rapid access to information anytime, anywhere
• Security of data from internal/external intrusion
• Capacity for extraordinary business growth
This network capitalizes on current assets and leverages new
investments to create strategic webs with vendors, partners,
clients and their participants. These relationships will propel
our growth and profitability in The Digital Economy.

Needs Assessment
Needs assessment identifies present status compared to the stated vision. Presently, the
current network contains 17 single points of failure. A single point of failure is defined as any
hardware or software system which, if disabled, denies access to any group of individuals
until that system or service is brought back online. These include:
• Each of the 4 TRC servers
• Compute servers monitoring each queue
• Travgate SQL database
• Fax Confirm SQL database
• Batch Entry SQL database
• Production IVR
• Intellicenter PC (IVR DNIS storage)
• Each of the 4 Winframe servers
• The Corebuilder 5000 switch (internal redundancy)
• The Cisco 2621 router to Sprint Frame Relay Network
• The Cisco 2621 router to Chicago and the Internet
From the transactional servers, to the computational systems, to connectivity paths, almost
every device possesses the ability to bring down a significant portion of access to the
information. These single points of failure are made apparent in the amount of downtime
experienced by users.
In the last 30 days, TRC4 has rebooted 9 times costing at least 60 hours of lost
productivity (9 X 20 min. X 20 users). This direct cost does not include the intangible
affects to credibility when the IVR is not accessible to participants.
The basic premise of a mission critical system is that any downtime for any reason is
unacceptable. Single points of failure need to be redundant to allow for offline backup,
upgrade or decommissioning while the network continues to function without interruption.
This is a critical deficiency of the current network. Because each node is a single point of
failure, downtime is magnified exponentially to the detriment of our relationship with
employees, sponsors and participants using the IVR.
Below are other current needs to be addressed by this proposal:
• Backup blackout periods irritate participants and hinder productivity
• Attended backups are costly requiring an operator to run each routine
• Crashes of production systems affect productivity and damage credibility with clients
accessing the IVR
• Crashes are identified only by user/client feedback vs. network system alerts
• Single points of failure make architecture upgrades difficult or impossible
• Applications launched on a one per server basis wastes server resources
• Unstructured hardware purchases make configuration and fault management difficult

Guiding Principles – Objectives
Using the vision statement and needs assessment as a guide, the following objectives for
network architecture development were written:
• Ironclad Reliability. Function 24 hours a day X 365 days per year; no blackout
period for backups or upgrades. Provide internal or external redundancy and fail over
to alternative systems at each point of failure.
• Scalability. Provide expansion in processing and storage capabilities while limiting
future obsolescence. Create a framework within which individual components can be
taken “offline” and upgraded without bringing down the network.
• Fault and Security Management. Catch the problems before the users do. Develop
proactive system-based alerting. Secure information from intrusion by unauthorized
users internally or externally.
• Configuration Management. Provide system-based performance measurement to
analyze in capacity planning for network upgrades. Build the foundation for a fully
functional disaster recovery plan.
• Rapid Development. Provide consistent systems architecture upon which TRC
members can develop database links to local production systems. Design network
systems that compliment the strengths of the MRIS application.
• Business Integration. Enable access to network resources in a variety of formats.
Create an environment that invites and facilitates communication with users,
telecommuters, partners, sponsors and participants.

Current Infrastructure Inventory
Adding to the complexity of this network is the need for it to run parallel to existing production
systems until its launch in February 2000. Appendix 2: Current Asset Configuration Diagram
shows the utilization of each existing production systems. Appendix 3: Redeployment of Current
Assets shows the redeployment of existing assets post-launch.
Following are highlights of the redeployment plans for existing assets:
Test Lab: A major tenant of redundant software systems development is the designation of a test
environment matching the variables of the production environment. The proposed test lab
includes each of the elements found in the live production network including transaction and
report servers on Intel XEON-based processor systems. The test lab also contains Delphi compute
workstations, Intranet and Internet web servers, a voice response system and Internet access via a
routed ISDN connection to UUNet. This link will continue to allow Panom, Tom and other
remote developers access to the development environment via Microsoft Terminal Server.
Building this infrastructure will be the first priority of the development team immediately after
launch. This test lab is vital to replicating and troubleshooting problems as they arise after launch.
RAS Dial-in Server – This is a former Citrix Winframe server functioning as an access point for
telecommuters to access IP services within the MRIS environment. While most network
functionality is provided through the browser using JAVA applets, there is a benefit to enabling
remote connectivity to the local network services via this server.
SQL 7.0 & SQL 6.5 Servers – These applications platforms reduce the need to configure a new
server for each SQL server-based application. The current network design contains 5 servers,
each running one database. In this proposal the 7.0 SQL server includes the creation of the
document server for access by the publishing network and the production LAN in Tualatin. The
SQL 6.5 environment will include the batch entry, fax confirm and MRIS gateway modules until
they are ported onto the transaction servers.
Citrix Winframe Servers – Regardless of the amount of browser-enabled capabilities, Citrix
Winframe access to the production network will continue to be an option preferred by some
clients and telecommuters. On low speed connections to the Internet, the Winframes allow faster
Intranet applications response than by browser alone.
Phased Out Systems – The goal of this proposal is to phase out Prosignia model servers with
a processor speed of Pentium II 233 Mhz or under. This proposal phases out 5 servers which
currently show no current value on the asset depreciation detail listing from Seattle.
The redeployment plans for these assets provide a foundation for future releases of MRIS.
They enhance the ability of developers, employees, sponsors and participants to connect to
the new production network.

Network Architecture Design
Overview
Now imagine it is six months from now and you’re a participant wanting to access the MRIS web
site to change your contributions. What you see is the site comes up on the screen as fast as your
connection to the Internet will allow. What you do not see is your request to access the site has
automatically been routed down the fastest route between MCI and Sprint. If one circuit, router or
firewall fails in service, its redundant partner takes over the entire load without any interruption
or notice by you.
Once the web page appears, you decide to view your balances; you see the page appear as fast as
your connection allows. What you do not see is your page request being balanced across several
possible web server based on their processor, memory and session utilization. If one web server
fails, another server immediately assumes the session without interruption or notice by you.
Now you decide, in the middle of the night, to request a loan. What you see the process create
dynamically on the screen and confirm your request. What you do not see is the web server
passing information to the transactional network and receiving a response at 200Mbps while the
SQL servers are simultaneously backing up to data tape. The request triggers the incremental
snapshot prompting one of several Delphi computation servers to take the request, process it, and
return the results to the SQL databases.
Throughout this scenario, component redundancy, applications throughput and hardware load-
balancing work together to provide consistent access to your data. The creation of this redundant
network involves several technologies as described in the following sections.

Network Design Elements
The network architecture development is separated into three areas (see below and Appendix 4:
Final Launch Configuration):
1) The creation of a Core Transactional LAN (connected with green lines)
2) The implementation of load-balanced Administrative Intranet and Participant
Internet Websites (connected with purple and red lines)
3) The configuration of a fully secure and redundantly routed Internet Presence
(shown on the right side of the diagram)
Transactional LAN
The transactional LAN requires the most powerful processing and network configuration. To
meet this requirement, the following technologies are employed (each of the highlighted
technologies are explained in detail in vendor specification in Appendix 7: Listing of Vendor
Specifications):

Compaq ProLiant 8500 Server Technology – This server is the latest addition to Compaq’s
ultra-density data server product line. Based on the Profusion architecture, this server
features an 8 XEON processor capacity, 2 MB of cache, 2GB of RAM and 11 PCI slots.
This translates into the maximum performance possible on an Intel Compaq platform. The
servers are currently configured with 4 processors on the transaction servers and 2
processors on the report servers. Each of these systems can be upgraded with PCI devices
while the system remains in operation.
RA8000 Compaq Fibre Channel Storage System - The RA8000 FC storage systems offer
centralized management of data with maximum throughput and scalability. The system links
servers to a Storage Area Network (SAN) via Compaq’s Fibre Channel Technology. This
solution utilizes FC-AL (arbitrated loop) to transfer data at a consistently high rate of speed. The
RA8000 FC is a pedestal enclosure currently configured with one cabinet (24 drive capacity).
With additional cabinets the platform can scale to support 1.3 TB of total storage.
Microsoft NT MSCS Cluster – A Windows NT MSCS cluster enables the transaction servers to
share an RA8000 storage system. In the event of a server failure, the storage I/O and processes
are re-routed through to the functioning server. This process, called cluster fail over, requires no
resource downtime ensuring the high availability of data.
Compaq StorageWorks Virtual Replicator – This is the foundation for performing non-
disruptive backup and user initiated restores while the main production system continues to
operate. This software creates instant virtual “replicas” of production data. These replicas are then
backed up with DLT tapes and sent to off-site storage while the production server continues to
function without interruption.
Cisco 6506 Multilayer Enterprise Switch – This product is a hybrid acting as both a switch to
direct port-to-port traffic router sending traffic to the appropriate subnet on the network. This
switch has a full routing capacity of over 15 million packets per second and allows for the
creation of Quality of Service (QoS) policy routing for greater efficiency and throughput. A
unique feature of this switch is its ability to cache destination information from Cisco’s Local
Director (described below) alleviating traffic bottlenecks and increasing page response times on
the Participant and Administrative web sites.
Cisco/Compaq Fast EtherChannel – This technology builds upon standards based 802.3 full
duplex Fast Ethernet to provide a high-speed network solution for communication with the
Delphi compute servers. Fast EtherChannel provides bandwidth “bonding” within the network in
increments from 200 Mbps to 800 Mbps based on the number of cards in each server. This
configuration lists two cards in each server for 200 Mbps throughput while providing redundancy
in the event of a card failure. The capacity also exists within this standard to scale to Gigabit
Ethernet bonding.
Delphi Application Engine Workstations (Compaq 1850r) – These 1850r workstations are
calculation workhorses designed with processor power in mind. These calculations engines are
Compaq’s best selling server ever and have a proven track record in data intensive environments
for processing transactional data returned to databases.
Overland Data Model XLE Tape Library - Holding 26 tapes in the turn style and writing
simultaneously to two media, this system backs up 21.6 GB of uncompressed data per hour using
DLT tape media. Backups of the transactional servers will use the fibre channel communication.

This decreases network bottlenecks to the calculation processors and increases the throughput of
the tape-write function.
Administrative Intranet and Participant Internet Websites
One enlightening aspect of working with Brad Bartholow, an experienced website engineer, is
learning scalability and performance in web hosting is achieved through duplication of several
low-end servers, instead of having one high-end server. The key to the distribution of the load is
the installation of Cisco’s Local Director as described below.
Web Server Hardware (Compaq 1850r)– The web server hardware employs the Compaq 1850r
considered to be the best web server systems on the market. Their ability to serve web
pages with a Pentium III 500 mhz processor, 512 Level 2 cache and moderate price point
make this server an easy choice.
Cisco’s Local Director – Cisco’s Local Director intelligently balances the load of user traffic
across multiple TCP/IP web servers. The product tracks the number of sessions and server
load conditions in real time, directing each session to the most appropriate server. All
physical servers appear as one virtual server resulting in the use of one address for a
“farm” of redundant and balanced web servers. This system balances demands for both the
Participant and Administrative web servers.
Internet Presence Development
Creating a transactional web presence mandates the installation of redundant links to the Internet.
This involves three main components: 1) circuit specification 2) router configuration and 3)
firewall installation. These elements work in concert to ensure consistent and secure access to the
web servers and applicable areas of the transactional network.
Circuit specification – Redundancy is achieved at the carrier level by building T1 circuits to two
alternate carriers: MCI and Sprint. Together these companies control a dominating 47% of
all traffic carried on The Internet. Several research participants including the Cisco
engineers contend the benefits of connections with these providers outweighs any
consideration of reduced costs from alternative providers. The benefits are most noticeable
in reduced latency in the network translating into more responsive web page downloads for
participants.
These links are currently priced at full T1 prices (see chart below) to provide the worst-case
scenario in the launch phase. Currently burstable configurations are being negotiated with
MCI. A burstable circuit includes charges for the basic line plus additional charges based
on utilization; the circuit can always burst to the full usage of a T1 operating at 1.544
Mbps.
Vendor Access Type Type
Monthly
Port Cost Port Install
Access
Monthly
Access
Install
Total
Monthly
Total
Install
Sprint - 1 yr Propelling IP Ch T1 $1,150.05 $1,000.00 $0.00 $1,165.00 $1,150.05 $2,165.00
MCI - 1 yr Price Protect Ch T1 $1,610.25 $3,000.00 $0.00 $0.00 $1,610.25 $3,000.00
Totals $2,760.30 $4,000.00 $0.00 $1,165.00 $2,760.30 $5,165.00
Chart: Pricing for fixed rate T1 Access to The Internet

This configuration is designed to be an active/active link allowing a participant to be dynamically
routed to the shortest logical path on the Internet. This ability employs Border Gateway
Protocol (BGP4) and Autonomous System Number (ASN) to advertise an Internet web
presence with available routes through either carrier.
Cisco 3640 Router Configuration – The Cisco 3640 is designed from the ground up for
performance, flexibility and cost-effectiveness. The four slot chassis affords expansion
capabilities for future growth while the 100 Mhz processor clock speed and 128MB of RAM
allow enough memory for full BGP4 routing between the two routers. These routers will also run
a protocol called Routing Information Protocol (RIP) which will allow fail over of packet traffic
from one router to another in the event of a circuit, physical or configuration failure.
Cisco PIX Firewall – This product provides highly secured communications on the Internet
while scaling to meet the throughput needs of large website installations. The PIX firewalls
are purchased in a fail over bundle where both systems operate in tandem connected via a
“heartbeat” cable. In the event of a hardware or configuration failure, the remaining
firewall dynamically intercepts packets destined for the downed firewall and routes them to
the appropriate router.
Network Architecture Design Summary
This design was peer reviewed by 5 different engineer level professionals for technical accuracy
and coherence in design. While this does not guarantee an error-free configuration, the concepts
on which this network is built help predict a successful network installation and continued
operation in a production environment.
It is important to note this design still presents three possible single points of failure: the fibre
switch, the storage network cabinet and the Cisco 6506 switch. Each of these elements is
prohibitively costly to purchase in duplicate. Moreover, configuring a redundant twin for any of
these components would involve an overwhelming amount of complexity for launch. Each of
these systems, however, does possess internally redundant features (extra power supplies, extra
cooling fans etc.) to ensure their continued operation under adverse conditions.

Implementation Strategy and Funding
The implementation strategy for this network involves two phases for launch. A third phase is
planned for physically distributed systems deployment and disaster recovery. The dates for
completion of each phase are discussed in “Outcomes to Measure Performance” below. The
implementation phases are defined as follows:
Phase 1 – Purchases for Completion of Unit Testing
Phase 2 – Purchases for Completion of Integrated Testing
Phase 3 – Design for Distributed Systems and Disaster Recovery
Phase I – Purchases for Unit Testing
The diagram below shows planned purchases to complete unit testing. The pricing for this phase
is listed in Appendix 5: Purchase List for Unit Testing Spreadsheet. This phase focuses on the
creation of the transactional and representative components of the Participant and Administrative
websites. This phase is a complex set of tasks required to create the clustered transactional
servers and the storage area network. Adam Waddell from All Stars will be consulting in this
installation.

Phase II – Purchases for Completion of Integrated Testing
This phase involves the implementation of the Internet connectivity and scalable assets. The
backup system for the transaction network is also added in this phase. The pricing for this phase
is listed in Appendix 6: Purchase List for Integrated Testing Spreadsheet. The T1 circuits from
MCI and Sprint will be ordered by the end of October for installation in early December. Much of
the logical routing will programmed into the firewalls and routers prior to the conditioning of the
circuits.
Additional servers are added on the Administrative and Participant webs after these servers prove
their performance in Unit Testing. The completion of Integrated Testing will include the first
sessions accessing the Participant website from the Internet using the new circuits and firewalls.
Completion of this phase will also include the configuration of the tape backup operation using
the Virtual Replicator to dynamically backup network components without interruption.

Phase III – Design for Distributed Systems and Full Disaster Recovery
Although this is not a phase with definitive dates for completion, it is important to
demonstrate the plans for fully distributing this system and complete disaster recovery. As
shown below, this plan involves the configuration of remotely distributed Administrative and
Participant web sites and mirror images of the Internet architecture at another TRC office. A
co-location facility in Dallas, linked via fiber optics, will be populated with assets that
assume the core business transactions in the event of a disaster at the Dallas Service Center.
In this scenario, the StorageWorks system simultaneously writes data to the transaction
network and to a co-location facility while the report database is replicated to a TRC office
via the Sprint Frame Relay (WAN) network. As a side-benefit, the remote office will utilize
the local Administrative web server creating quicker response times than accessing these
pages over the WAN. In the event of failure, the transaction network fails over to the co-
location facility. The replication of the report database will fail over to the co-location facility
via a Permanent Virtual Circuit (PVC) on the Sprint WAN. Cisco’s Distributed Director will
be employed to dynamically route web traffic to the alternate TRC office web servers upon
losing contact with the Dallas routers on The Internet. Upon full completion of this
installation, it is estimated the fail over process will complete in less than 30 minutes.

Network Team Roles
Network faults will defeat all investments in redundancy if the system is not monitored in a
proactive manner. This requires talented people with tools that quickly identify faults. The
complexity of this network requires the hiring of two team members in addition to replacing
Randi Horne. The new “lineup” of the network staff is described below:
Systems Engineer (Greg Hoag) – Responsible for the design, implementation, upgrade and
engineering of server platforms directly related to the transaction databases, participant web and
admin web servers. It is estimated the TRC will contribute most costs associated with this
employee. This individual will be responsible for maintaining consistent and constant delivery of
information onto the production network. This person will:
• Evaluate performance of server resources and identify trouble spots
• Communicate with business units on scheduling and loading of servers
• Develop, implement and enforce procedural and security standards for server
functions including domain administration, directory structure and share creation
• Maintain the fiber optics and storage area network
• Design, implement and coordinate backup operations of the production environment
• Implement, maintain and test redundancy and fail over of production systems
• Research, plan and implement operating system software and hardware upgrades to
production servers
Network LAN, WAN and Internet Engineer (Craig Burma) – Responsible for the maintenance
and configuration of all internetworking facilities and their connected circuits. It is estimated the
TRC will contribute most costs associated with this employee. These circuits include Internet
connections, Sprint Frame Relay network and backup ISDN links. The responsibilities of this role
include:
• Evaluate performance of networked facilities including routers, switches and ISDN
links to identify trouble spots
• Responsibility for all logical routing including translation from the Internet onto the
production network
• Segmentation of traffic within the LAN/WAN for maximum throughput
• Security management including configuration and maintenance of firewalls
• Maintenance of remote connectivity systems including WinFrame, RAS dial-in, FTP
and Lotus Notes Web Interface
• Communicate with WAN and Internet providers on trouble tickets/capacity planning
• Research, design, and implementation of expanded new network services to match
business connectivity needs
Network Systems Monitor (Karri Valenzuela) – Responsible for the research, implementation
and maintenance of systems to monitor three types of network data: configuration of
network components, performance of each component and identification and notification
of faults in the network. It is estimated Dallas will contribute a portion of the cost of this
employee for monitoring and supporting Dallas LAN users. This includes monitoring of all
production network components. From the transaction network to the web servers, this
individual will provide feedback to network team on changes needed to maintain the
reliability, performance and scalability of this production network. This monitoring
position includes:
• Monitoring of systems including alerting of key events on production servers

• Monitoring of backup logs, procedures and tape maintenance
• Monitoring of firewall configuration and inspection of intrusion alerts
• Monitoring of SQL throughput, capacity and alerts
• Generation of statistics showing transaction system resource utilization
• Generation of statistics showing web server utilization and page hits
• Generation of statistics showing router and circuit utilization
• Generation and updates of systems configuration documentation
• Implementation and modification of network password procedures
• Maintenance of power systems including battery and generator backups
DataBase Administrator (DBA) & Webmaster (New Hire) – This individual functions in the
dual role. First, this person will be the database administrator managing the SQL
environment on all production systems. It is estimated the TRC will contribute most costs
associated with this employee. This includes the configuration of the SQL environments
(both 6.5 and 7.0 SQL) and standardization of database functionality. Capacity planning,
backups and database security will also be key responsibilities of this position.
Second, this individual functions as the Webmaster for both Participant and Administrative
websites. This position includes:
• Maintenance and updates to web content
• Capacity planning based on statistics provided by the network systems monitor
• Implementation and management of Cisco’s Local Director
• Web server links to the SQL databases and production systems
• Research and development of links with search engines and other vendors providing
complementary content on Participant Web
Help Desk Phone Support (New Hire) – This individual will respond to user requests for
support from Dallas LAN users, users on the TRC WAN and customer support calls in the Call
Center pertaining to the Participant Website. It is estimated, Dallas will contribute a portion of the
cost of this employee for support of the Dallas LAN. This individual will:
• Answer Call Center calls pertaining to Internet access to the Participant Web
• Answer calls from Dallas LAN and TRC member offices for Administrative Website
• Track each incoming support request in the Lotus Notes database
• Distribute support calls to appropriate network team member
• Follow up on open tickets with team members and resolve open tickets
• Generate statistics on support usage, subject and response time to close
• Maintain all documentation relating to the production systems including support
contacts, warranties and service level agreements
• Provide consistent accessibility to all users via phone/email
Hardware Support (New Hire) – This individual replaces Greg Hoag in supporting the hardware
and network servers in the Dallas office. It is estimated Dallas will contribute the majority of the
costs of this employee. The responsibilities of this position include:
• Network management of the Netware server and network printers
• Maintenance and upgrade of Dallas PCs, local and network printers and software
• Management of Lotus Notes Server including account setup and passwords
• Hardware configuration including desktop and notebook PCs

• Management of NT applications servers with file sharing and shared printer
configurations
• Troubleshooting problems in desktop operating and Microsoft Office software

Outcomes to Measure Performance
As this implementation moves forward, it is important for the network team to be
accountable for key milestones in measuring progress towards project completion.
Regardless of this installation schedule, however, unit testing will begin the first week of
November using the current development environment. Although it is difficult to plan down
to the day due to availability and delivery schedules, following are dates, which indicate
progress:
• Phase 1 Unit testing equipment purchased and delivered by October 31
• Physical configuration of transactional server and fiber LAN by November 5
• Launch of SQL environment and Delphi compute servers by November 10
• Segmentation and “go live” on Cisco 6506 Switch on November 21
• Phase 2 Integrated testing equipment purchased and delivered by November 23
• Launch of multi-server web presence with Local Director and Firewall by
November 30
• Completion of fail over testing of all internal routing components by December
10
• Installation of physical circuits with Sprint and MCI by December 15
• IP routing, network translation and firewall/router configuration by December 31
• Full secured external Internet access by January 3, 2000
• Completion of documentation for support, service agreements and fail over
procedures by January 31
Admittedly, this is an aggressive installation schedule and will involve the close coordination
of the schedules of many vendors and contractors. The installation team members will work
diligently to reach each of these deadlines to meet our launch window of February, 2000.

Conclusion
This network architecture proposal is written as much for the benefit of the network team as it is
for the equity principals partnering in the TRC. It describes our thought processes during design
and creates a roadmap for our efforts moving forward. Throughout this process, we have
sharpened the focus of where we are today, where we want to be in the future and how this
network architecture proposal gets us to that level.
We are committed to fulfilling our mission statement to make technology a strategic resource to
Milliman and Robertson, Inc. This design meets the needs and objectives defined above with
scalability to meet future needs. Therefore, we ask for your concurrence on this proposal
including the purchases and hiring required to build and maintain this network.
Your support contributes to our success; we welcome your participation in this process and
comments on this proposal.

Appendix Listing
Appendix 1: Research Participants
Appendix 2: Current Asset Configuration Diagram
Appendix 3: Post Deployment Server Configuration Diagram
Appendix 4: Final Launch Configuration Diagram
Appendix 5: Purchase List for Unit Testing Spreadsheet
Appendix 6: Purchase List for Integrated Testing Spreadsheet
Appendix 7: Listing of Vendor Specification .pdf files attached electronically

Appendix 1: Research Participants
Research Participants
Greg Hoag – Network Manager, Milliman and Robertson, Inc.
Seth Nielsen – Systems Manager, Milliman and Robertson, Inc.
Deryl Byrket – Pension Systems Manager, Milliman and Robertson, Inc.
Rusty Williams – Pension Systems Consultant, Milliman and Robertson, Inc.
Randy L. Clark - East Dallas Inside Account Manager
Cisco Systems, Inc.
Phone: 800.888.8187 ext: 2-6777
Email: randclar@cisco.com
Nicole Rasmussen – Account Manager
Cisco Systems, Inc.
Phone: 972-887-2895
Email: nrasmuss@cisco.com
Greg Tillet – Systems Engineer
Cisco Systems, Inc.
Phone: 972-364-8723
Email: gtillett@cisco.com
Brad Bartholow – Systems Development
Aztech Solutions, Inc.
Phone: 214-630-2223
Email bbartholow@aztechsolutions.com
Ed Kanarowski – Senior Sales Representative
Sprint Business Services Group
Phone: (972) 405-3113
Email: ed.kanorowski@mail.sprint.com
Joel Thonen – Network Engineer
Sprint Business
Phone: (972) 405-7442
Email: joel.j.thonen@mail.sprint.com
Liz Smith – Data Sales Manager
Sprint Business
Phone: (972) 405-2552
Email: liz.g.smith@mail.sprint.com
Adam Waddell – Systems Engineer
All Stars Systems, Inc.
Phone: (972) 774-7000
Email: adam.waddell@allstar.com

Richard Phillips – Account Manager
All Stars Systems, Inc.
Phone: (972) 774-7000
Email: richardp@allstar.com
Brendan Eagan - Consultant
Compaq Computer Corporation
Phone: 972-702-4509
Email: Brendan.Eagan@compaq.com
Jim Christle – Microsoft Channel Development, South Central District
Microsoft Corporation
Phone: 800-426-9400 x11363
Email: jimch@microsoft.com

Appendix 2: Current Asset Configuration Diagram

Appendix 3: Post Deployment Server Configuration Diagram

Appendix 4: Final Launch Configuration Diagram

Appendix 5: Purchase List for Unit Testing Spreadsheet
Purchases for MRIS Unit Testing
DESCRIPTION QTY UNIT Total Cost
SQL Servers
Proliant 8500 6/550 Xeon, 2MB Cache,
2GB RAM 4 Processors 2 $48,009.00 $96,018.00
(includes Array Controller, CD, 10/100 Enet)
9.1GB 10K rpm Ultra2 4 $739.00 $2,956.00
Proliant 8500 6/550 Xeon, 1MB Cache,
2GB RAM, 2 Processors 2 $25,935.00 $51,870.00
(includes Array Controller, CD, 10/100 Enet)
9.1GB 10K rpm Ultra2 4 $739.00 $2,956.00
Web/Compute Servers
Proliant 1850R 6/550, 128MB, 0HD 6 $3,992.00 $23,952.00
2nd Processor Option for 1850R 6 $1,727.00 $10,362.00
128MB RAM Upgrade, ECC SDRAM 6 $339.00 $2,034.00
256MB RAM Upgrade, ECC SDRAM 6 $898.00 $5,388.00
SmartArray 221 Ultra2 Controller 6 $774.00 $4,644.00
9.1GB 10K rpm USWE 6 $739.00 $4,434.00
Storage Works Fibre Channel RAID Array
RA8000 Pedestal Unit w/2 HSG80 Controllers 1 $29,735.00 $29,735.00
18.2GB 10K rpm Ultra2 10 $1,451.00 $14,510.00
8 Port Fibre Channel Switch 1 $15,886.00 $15,886.00
PCI to Fibre Channel Host Adapter 4 $3,527.00 $14,108.00
Windows NT Platform Kit 2 $590.00 $1,180.00
2 M Fibre to Host Cable 7 $93.00 $651.00
5 M Fibre to Host Cable 0 $116.00 $0.00
Rack System
Rack 9142 Pallet 3 $1,384.00 $4,152.00
Rack 9142 Sidewall Panel Kit 2 $216.00 $432.00
Monitor Shelf Kit 3 $114.00 $342.00
1U Keyboard Drawer 3 $245.00 $735.00
Internal Keyboard/Trackball 3 $170.00 $510.00
Server Console Switch 1x8 Port 3 $1,182.00 $3,546.00
V75 Color Monitor 17" 3 $372.00 $1,116.00
Cisco Catalyst Switch
Catalyst 6506 Chassis 1 $7,995.00 $7,995.00
Catalyst 6000 1300W AC Power Supply 1 $3,995.00 $3,995.00
Catalyst 6000 Second 1300W AC Power Supply 1 $3,995.00 $3,995.00
AC POWER CORD NORTH AMERICA 2 $0.00 $0.00
Supervisor Flash Image, Release 5.3(1a) 1 $0.00 $0.00
Supervisor Engine1-A, 2GE, plus MSFC & PFC 1 $29,995.00 $29,995.00
PCMCIA Flash Mem Card, 16MB Option 1 $400.00 $400.00
MSFC Mem, 64MB DRAM (Default) 1 $0.00 $0.00

Cisco IOS Catalyst 6000 Family MSFC - IP 1 $0.00 $0.00
Catalyst 6000 48-port 10/100 RJ-45 Module 1 $12,995.00 $12,995.00
* Redundant Supervisor 1A, 2GE, w/ MSFC & PFC 0 $14,995.00 $0.00
* PCMCIA Flash Mem Card, 16MB Option 0 $400.00 $0.00
* MSFC Mem, 64MB DRAM (Default) 0 $0.00 $0.00
* Cisco IOS Catalyst 6000 Family MSFC - IP 0 $0.00 $0.00
Cisco Local Director
LocalDirector 416 1 $9,990.00 $9,990.00
Power Cord,110V 1 $0.00 $0.00
Software Licenses
MS SQL Server, Enterprise 4 $3,396.00 $13,584.00
MS Windows NT Enterprise Server 4.0 4 $2,257.00 $9,028.00
MS Windows NT 4.0 Server Lic. 4 $584.00 $2,336.00
MS Windows NT 4.0 Workstation 2 $298.00 $596.00
SQL Server Enterprise CDROM Media 1 $17.00 $17.00
NT Server Enterprise CDROM Media 1 $17.00 $17.00
NT Server 4.0 CDROM Media 1 $17.00 $17.00
Backup Systems
Compaq Virtual Replicator 1 $1,248.00 $1,248.00
Compaq Virtual Replicator Server License 4 $1,248.00 $4,992.00
$392,717.00

Appendix 6: Purchase List for Integrated Testing Spreadsheet
Integrated Testing Purchases
DESCRIPTION QTY UNIT TOTAL Total
Web/Compute Servers
Proliant 1850R 6/550, 128MB, 0HD 6 3992.00 23952.00 $23,952.00
2nd Processor Option for 1850R 6 1727.00 10362.00 $10,362.00
128MB RAM Upgrade, ECC SDRAM 6 339.00 2034.00 $2,034.00
256MB RAM Upgrade, ECC SDRAM 6 898.00 5388.00 $5,388.00
SmartArray 221 Ultra2 Controller 6 774.00 4644.00 $4,644.00
9.1GB 10K rpm USWE 6 739.00 4434.00 $4,434.00
Storage Works Fibre Channel RAID Array
18.2GB 10K rpm Ultra2 6 1451.00 8706.00 $8,706.00
PCI to Fibre Channel Host Adapter 1 3527.00 3527.00 $3,527.00
Rack System
Rack 9142 Pallet 1 1384.00 1384.00 $1,384.00
Server Console Switch 1x8 Port 1 1182.00 1182.00 $1,182.00
Cisco Catalyst Switch
Catalyst 6000 48-port 10/100 RJ-45 Module 1 12995.00 12995.00 $12,995.00
* Redundant Supervisor 1A, 2GE, w/ MSFC &
PFC 0 14995.00 0.00 $0.00
* PCMCIA Flash Mem Card, 16MB Option 0 400.00 0.00 $0.00
* MSFC Mem, 64MB DRAM (Default) 0 0.00 0.00 $0.00
* Cisco IOS Catalyst 6000 Family MSFC - IP 0 0.00 0.00 $0.00
Cisco Local Director
LocalDirector 416 1 9990.00 9990.00 $9,990.00
Power Cord,110V 1 0.00 0.00 $0.00
Cisco Routers
Cisco 3600 4-slot Modular Router-AC with IP Software 2 6500.00 13000.00 $13,000.00
Power Cord,110V 2 0.00 0.00 $0.00
Cisco 3640 Series IOS IP Plus 2 700.00 1400.00 $1,400.00
8-to-16MB Flash Factory Upgrade for the Cisco 3600 2 700.00 1400.00 $1,400.00
32-to-128 MB DRAM Factory Upgrade for the Cisco
3640 2 5760.00 11520.00 $11,520.00
1 Port F Ethernet 1 Port Channelized T1/ISDN-PRI with
CSU 2 4650.00 9300.00 $9,300.00
1-Port Fast Ethernet Network Module (TX Only) 2 2000.00 4000.00 $4,000.00
T1 RJ45-RJ45 straight-through cable, 6 ft. 2 20.00 40.00 $40.00
Cisco Firewalls
PIX 515 Chassis 2 2500.00 5000.00 $5,000.00
Power Cord,110V 4 0.00 0.00 $0.00
PIX 515 Unrestricted Function software license 2 9500.00 19000.00 $19,000.00

PIX version 4.4 software for 515 chassis. TFTP only. 2 0.00 0.00 $0.00
PIX 515 chassis and software license fail over bundle 2 3000.00 6000.00 $6,000.00
Software Licenses
MS Windows NT 4.0 Server Lic. 4 584.00 2336.00 $2,336.00
MS Windows NT 4.0 Workstation 3 298.00 894.00 $894.00
MS Backoffice CAL 100 136.00 13600.00 $13,600.00
MS SQL Server Internet Connection Lic.(Per Processor) 4 2407.00 9628.00 $9,628.00
Backup Systems
Proliant 3000R 6/550 512K Cache, 128 MB RAM, 1
Processor 1 4380.00 4380.00 $4,380.00
128MB RAM Upgrade, ECC SDRAM 1 339.00 339.00 $339.00
256MB RAM Upgrade, ECC SDRAM 1 898.00 898.00 $898.00
9.1GB 10K rpm FW SCSI-3 1 739.00 739.00 $739.00
Overland Data Enterprise Express
Model LXE 470226, 2DLT7000 Drives 1 26997.00 26997.00 $26,997.00
26 Slots
64MB Cache Fiber Bridge, Atto 1 3895.00 3895.00 $3,895.00
$222,964.00

Appendix 7: Listing of Vendor Specification .pdf files included electronically
*Each of these files is saved in Adobe Acrobat Reader format (.pdf) on the accompanying
disk in “Vendor Specifications” Folder.
Document Description Name of .pdf File
Cisco Systems 3640 Router Specification 3600_pl.pdf
Cisco Systems 6000 Multilayer Switch Specification c6000_si.pdf
Cisco Systems LocalDirector 416 lodir_ds.pdf
Cisco Systems PIX 515 Firewall pix51_ds.pdf
Compaq Fibre Channel Storage System Technology ecg0430998.pdf
Compaq Proliant 8500 Server Technology 0091_0899-a.pdf
Compaq StorageWorks Virtual Replicator swvr.pdf
Overland Data Tape Express Library spec_LXE.pdf
Strategic Direction for Compaq Fibre Channel-Attached
Storage Technology ECG00091097.pdf

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