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Network Technologies

# Network Technologies

This article provides a comprehensive overview of the network technologies employed by our MediaWiki infrastructure. This is intended as a foundational guide for new server engineers and administrators responsible for maintaining the platform. Understanding these technologies is critical for troubleshooting, performance optimization, and future scalability.

Overview

Our MediaWiki deployment relies on a robust and layered network architecture. The core components include physical network infrastructure, logical network segmentation, and specific network services crucial for MediaWiki operation. We utilize a combination of Gigabit Ethernet, fiber optic connections, and virtual networking technologies. Proper configuration of DNS, firewalls, and load balancing is essential for high availability and security. This document will detail these aspects.

Physical Network Infrastructure

The physical network forms the bedrock of our system. It consists of high-performance switches, routers, and cabling. Redundancy is built into this layer to minimize downtime.

Component Specification Quantity
Core Switches Cisco Catalyst 9500 Series 2
Distribution Switches Cisco Catalyst 9300 Series 8
Server Network Interface Cards (NICs) Intel X710-DA4 10 Gigabit Ethernet 64 (across all servers)
Fiber Optic Cable OM4 Multimode Fiber 500 meters
Copper Cabling Cat6a Ethernet Cable 1000 meters

All servers are connected to the network via redundant NICs, configured in a link aggregation group (LAG) for increased bandwidth and fault tolerance. The LAGs are connected to the distribution switches, which in turn connect to the core switches. Network Redundancy is a key design principle.

Logical Network Segmentation

To enhance security and performance, our network is logically segmented into several virtual LANs (VLANs). This isolates traffic and improves overall network efficiency. VLAN tagging is implemented using the 802.1Q standard. Traffic between VLANs is controlled by firewall rules. Understanding VLAN Configuration is vital.

VLAN ID VLAN Name Description Subnet
10 Management Used for server management interfaces (SSH, IPMI) 192.168.10.0/24
20 Web Servers Hosts the front-end web servers serving wiki pages. 10.0.20.0/24
30 Database Servers Hosts the MariaDB database servers. 10.0.30.0/24
40 Cache Servers Hosts the Memcached and Redis cache servers. 10.0.40.0/24
50 Job Queue Hosts the job queue processing servers. 10.0.50.0/24

Each VLAN has its own dedicated subnet and is protected by firewall rules. This segmentation minimizes the impact of security breaches and improves network performance. See Firewall Ruleset for details.

Network Services

Several network services are critical for the operation of MediaWiki. These include DNS, load balancing, and firewalls.

⚠️ *Note: All benchmark scores are approximate and may vary based on configuration. Server availability subject to stock.* ⚠️

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