Network, Server & Workstations for a Makerspace

[CobbyUK]

Hey Guys,

 

Greetings from across the pond! I am opening a Makerspace in the UK and could do with some advice on the IT infrastructure.

 

I realise this can be quite complex and involved, i have many years of IT experience from building to support but unfortunately this was all pre Windows 7! I have been trying to keep up to dat bu watch LTT for the past few years but I still feel a bit out of my depth, whilst I know i can build and put something in place that works - i am confident there will be far better solutions hence me reaching out to this community.

 

I will try cover the bullet points of what (i think!) we need;

 

- Wired & Wireless LAN for members

- Secure network for admin machines, cctv, alarm and access control etc.

- UPS for servers and the cctv & access control which will all be PoE.

- Storage for upto 200 members, from general documents and files to larger files fir graphic designs, video etc.

- remote access, I would like member to be able to log in from home to work on their projects.

- software management, i would like members to have access to MS office, adobe creative cloud and other applications such as 3D printing, laser cutting apps etc. Can/should these be on server or each local machine, is there a way for members to use these apps remotely too?

- workstation, laptop setup - should anything be ran locally or is it more cost effective to have a high end server(s) and cheaper devices?

 

I was looking at having on-site 6 laptops and 4 desktops for general use, with 4 more powerful setups for photo editing, video editing and 3D modelling / CAD/CAM work. Im sure members will bring in their own laptops too. We may need to expand as we grow obviously so im leaning towards planning ahead for this with regards to capacity.

 

any help, advice and suggestions would be much appreciated.

 

Paul

 

 

Edited December 22, 2019 by LogicalDrm
Links removed

[tech.guru]

Wired & Wireless LAN for members

use a web proxy for signon and to track web usage

 

- Secure network for admin machines, cctv, alarm and access control etc.

this can be either a separate vLAN or a segregated network depending on the security requirements.

based on what you are saying separate switches on an isolated network is probably best

 

- UPS for servers and the cctv & access control which will all be PoE.

okay

 

- Storage for upto 200 members, from general documents and files to larger files fir graphic designs, video etc.

lots of solutions probably a NAS appliance or a custom built one based on freenas is suitable for that users.

consider tiering storage,

               

 

- remote access, I would like member to be able to log in from home to work on their projects.

depending on security requirements you can either go with a RDS farm of VPN (or both). VPN should only be used on corporate devices while RDS being a terminal window may be allowed on home devices.

 

- software management, i would like members to have access to MS office, adobe creative cloud and other applications such as 3D printing, laser cutting apps etc. Can/should these be on server or each local machine, is there a way for members to use these apps remotely too?

these are specialized but yes there is solutions out there for this. look at citrix hdx pro but you will need to consider print drivers

 

- workstation, laptop setup - should anything be ran locally or is it more cost effective to have a high end server(s) and cheaper devices?

depends on the investment and the level of customization and personalization you want. when you virtualize desktops personalization will come at a cost.

[LogicalDrm]

-> Moved to Servers and NAS

 

Also removed link.