K2.1 The principles of network and infrastructure design:

• resilience:

o high availability (HA) – primary and secondary configurations of systems to provide redundancy

o clustering – provides redundancy and scalability

o load balancing – directs network traffic based on load

o segmentation – network, systems, data, devices and services are split up to mitigate the potential

impact of risks

• quality of service (QoS) – used to guarantee a specific network service

• number systems – applied for subnetting and IP addressing:

o binary

o hexadecimal

o decimal

o octal

K2.2 The principles of the transmission of digital information over copper cable, fibre cable and

wireless networks and systems:

• signal type:

o electrical-based

o light-based

o wireless

• security:

o tampering

o signal loss

• segregation from electrical cables:

o susceptibility to interference:

▪ types of interference (for example electromagnetic impact on signal, static, crosstalk)

▪ mitigation techniques (for example shielding, run cables in parallel)

▪ adhering to industry standards

▪ BS EN 50174

• wireless bands and channels:

o 2.4GHZ:

▪ 802.11b

▪ 802.11g

▪ 802.11n

▪ 802.11ax

o 5GHZ:

▪ 802.11ac

▪ 802.11n

▪ 802.11ax

• internet protocol version 4 (IPv4) network and subnets:

o addressing schemes

o subnetting

o subnet masks

• internet protocol version 6 (IPv6):

o IPv6 address types

K2.3 The elements of infrastructure and associated technologies:

• network devices:

o firewalls (for example next generation firewall (NGFW)/unified threat management (UTM)

appliances)

o routers

o switches

o hubs

o bridges

o wireless/WiFi access points (APs)

o wireless range extenders

o modems

o media converters

• end user devices (EUDs):

o desktops and laptops

o mobile devices (for example smartphone, tablet)

o smart devices (for example wearable technology, smart speakers)

• storage devices and systems:

o hard disk drive (HDD)

o solid state drive (SSD)

o removable media (for example USB flash drive, external hard drive)

o network-attached storage (NAS)

o storage area network (SAN)

o block storage

o object storage

o redundant array of independent disks (RAID):

▪ RAID 0 – striping

▪ RAID 1 – mirroring

▪ RAID 5 – parity across drives

▪ RAID 10 – mirroring and striping

• wired and wireless technologies:

o unshielded twisted pair (UTP) cable:

▪ straight-through

▪ crossover

▪ EIA/TIA-568A layout

▪ EIA/TIA-568B layout

o RJ11 connectors

o 8P8C/RJ45 connectors

o copper cables (for example cat 5e, cat6)

o fibre-optic cables

o the point-to-point protocol (PPP)

o SDN

o WiFi protected access (WPA) 1, 2, and 3

• antennas:

o omni-directional

o directional

o patch

o yagi

o dipole

• cloud services:

o IaaS

o PaaS

o SaaS

o cloud storage

• test equipment:

o test plan

o testing kit:

▪ tone generator and probe

▪ cable tester

▪ tracing kit

• support scripting (for example automation and administration)

• network monitoring and logging

• capacity management (for example monitoring server load)

K2.4 The requirements of static prevention when working with electrostatic-sensitive equipment:

• mobility awareness (for example limiting movement to avoid electrostatic discharge (ESD))

• temperature/humidity checks (for example increased humidity resulting in increased static electricity)

• application of static prevention equipment (for example anti-static wrist strap)

K2.5 Health and safety legislation and regulations in the workplace and their application in a digital

infrastructure context:

• Health and Safety at Work etc Act 1974 (for example providing appropriate PPE, employer

safeguarding)

• Manual Handling Operations Regulations 1992 (for example moving hardware)

• Health and Safety (Display Screen Equipment) Regulations 1999 (as amended in 2002) (for example

reducing screen time, correctly configured workspaces)

• Control of Substances Hazardous to Health (COSHH) Regulations 2002 (for example printer

maintenance)

• Control of Major Accident Hazards (COMAH) Regulations 2015 (for example earthing)

• Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment (WEEE) Directive 2013 (for example removal or disposal

of hardware or network components)

K2.6 The advantages and limitations of physical servers:

• advantages:

o full access to server resources required for business-critical operations

o fully customisable and configurable to business requirements

• limitations:

o high purchase and running costs

o increased time allocation for maintenance

o storage cannot be scaled as easily as other server types

o requires physical space

K2.7 The advantages and limitations of self-hosted and cloud-hosted virtual servers:

• self-hosted server (virtual server on a physical host):

o advantages:

▪ lower expertise required to set up

▪ greater control of costs

▪ scaling can be applied

▪ high availability (HA)/clustering

o limitations:

▪ high upfront cost

▪ high cost for resilience

• cloud-hosted virtual server (for example Microsoft Azure, Amazon Web Services):

o advantages:

▪ scaling can be applied easily

▪ built in redundancy

▪ third-party support provided

o limitations:

▪ high subscription cost

▪ complex initial set-up

K2.8 The advantages and limitation of containers:

• advantages:

o require fewer system resources

o easily deployable due to portability

o applications run more consistently and efficiently

o low operating and development costs

• limitations:

o less secure if not configured correctly

o less flexibility on operating systems

o higher level of expertise required to set up and configure

K2.9 The types, benefits, similarities and differences of operating systems (OSs) and their application

within digital infrastructure:

• types of operating systems:

o end user/desktop (for example Windows, macOS) – applied to desktop PCs and laptops

o mobile (for example Android, iOS) – applied to tablets and mobile devices

o server (for example Linux, Windows Server) – applied to client-server environments

• benefits of operating systems:

o improved usability

o no required knowledge of machine language from user

o increased security of data

• similarities across operating systems:

o provides user interface

o allows personalisation

o manages resources

o provides platform for installation of applications

• differences between operating systems:

o specific features aligned to purpose (for example personal use, supporting client-server

architecture)

o provides different levels of user experience (UX) and user interface (UI)

o supports varying types of functionality (for example touchscreen, wireless charging)

K2.10 Service functions and their application within a client-server network environment:

• active directory domain services (AD DS):

o active directory – provides functionality to centrally manage and organise user and device

accounts, security groups and distribution lists, contained in organisational units (OUs)

o group policy – provides functionality to create group policy objects (GPOs) which can be applied

to OUs. GPOs can be applied to deploy settings and files to users’ profiles and devices, based on

their OU

• dynamic host configuration protocol (DHCP) – to assign IP addresses to network client devices

• lightweight directory access protocol (LDAP) – used for directory services authentication

• domain name system (DNS) – for the translation of hostnames to IP addresses

• file server and distributed file system (DFS) – to provide shared disk access

• print server – to provide shared printer access

• web, proxy and cache servers – to provide efficient internet/web access, security and filtering

• mail servers – to handle the sending and receiving of emails to/from client mailboxes

• application servers – to provide access to network-based applications

• database servers – to provide backend shared databases

• security utilities (for example anti-virus) – to protect data or systems against loss or attack

K2.11 Methods of remote access and how they protect data:

• virtual private network (VPN) – network is private and the connection is encrypted to prevent any

unauthorised access

• remote desktop protocol (RDP) (for example proprietary RDP software) – data processing occurs on

the machine being accessed, no data is transferred to the client machine

• lights-out management (LOM) – the server can be remotely managed and many tasks carried out to

address problems or unauthorised access

• secure shell (SSH) – the connection is secure, only the 2 hosts can access the data

K2.12 The considerations involved in setting up a simple VPN to enable secure remote access:

• configuration of the VPN server:

o enabling the VPN service

o configuring IP address and DNS hostnames of the VPN interface

o managing user access including authentication and permissions

• configuration of the client device:

o creating the connection

o setting the destination IP address and fully qualified domain name (FQDN)

o setting permissions and conditions

K2.13 The principles of IT service management (ITSM):

• the co-creation of value through service relationships

• the delivery of great experience to customers

• considering the broader scope and potential impact of changes

• working across departments to learn how others use the systems

K2.14 The Information Technology Infrastructure Library (ITIL®) framework and how this is applied in a

digital infrastructure context:

• service strategy – aligned to business objectives to ensure that the service is fit for purpose and fit for

use

• service design – design of services and all supporting elements for introduction into the live

environment, ensuring that people, processes, products and partners are all considered

• service transition – building and deploying services and ensuring that any changes are managed in a

coordinated way

• service operation – fulfilling requests, resolving failures, fixing problems and carrying out routine

operational tasks

• continual service improvement – continually improving the effectiveness and efficiency of IT

processes and services

K2.15 The principles of disaster recovery plans (DRPs) and business continuity plans (BCPs):

• key principles:

o identify:

▪ risk

▪ operational critical systems

▪ requirements (for example resources)

o analyse:

▪ business impact (for example impact on departments, customers, suppliers)

▪ maximum downtime

o design:

▪ plan components

o implement:

▪ communication plan

o measure:

▪ test

▪ compliance (for example with relevant legislation, policies and procedures)

▪ review and maintain

K2.16 The different purpose of DRPs and BCPs in the context of digital infrastructure:

• BCP – planning and managing business continuity during a disruptive event:

o alternative business premises

o adaptive policies and processes

o application of alternative technologies

• DRP – restoring normal business operations following a disaster (for example flood):

o restoring functionality or access

o replacement of infrastructure resources

K2.17 The stages within a solution lifecycle (SLC):

• stages:

o discover:

▪ business requirements

▪ project definition and planning

▪ conceptual design

▪ feasibility and viability

o plan, design and develop:

▪ detailed design and planning

▪ proof of concept and prototyping

▪ compliance with organisational policies and standards

▪ utilisation of existing architecture and resources

▪ development

▪ integration

o testing and quality assurance:

▪ functional testing to ensure the product or service meets the agreed deliverables

▪ performance testing

o pre-production:

▪ sandboxed testing in a development environment

▪ sign-off and authorisation to deploy

o deployment:

▪ release into the live/production environment

▪ staged release plan for significant or high impact changes/updates

o monitor and evaluate ongoing performance:

▪ optimisation through continuous improvement in line with agreed change management

processes

o decommission

o migrate to new solution

K2.18 The principles, aims and benefits of a DevOps approach:

• DevOps principles:

o continuous integration

o continuous delivery (for example deployment)

o microservices

o infrastructure as code

o communication and collaboration

o automated testing

o adapt and scale

o monitoring and logging

• aims:

o to deliver systems, applications or services in an agile way

o to build, test and release changes

• benefits:

o rapid delivery of solutions (for example through automation)

o increased productivity

o improved processes across teams

o scalability

o reduced errors

K2.19 The principles of solution architecture:

• the importance of reuse

• the importance of documentation

• solution architecture as applied to hardware

• adherence to architecture frameworks (for example The Open Group Architecture Framework

(TOGAF))

• alignment to enterprise architecture

• architecture description:

o system

o view

o viewpoint

o concern

o stakeholder

K2.20 The concepts of virtualisation and the areas of application within digital infrastructure:

• concepts:

o the creation of many virtual resources from one physical resource (for example partitioning)

o the creation of one virtual resource from one or more physical resources

o isolation

o encapsulation

o hardware independence

• areas of application within digital infrastructure:

o network virtualisation

o server virtualisation

o desktop virtualisation

o operating system virtualisation

o data virtualisation