Currently, users store data in their home directories on their Local Area Networks, (LAN). Eventually users across the Wide Area Network (WAN) will store the data on Domain Controllers for their specific segment. These Domain Controllers will be centrally located in the Main District Server Room at the Middle/Senior High School. These directories are secured by user-specific permissions, and are backed up nightly. The LAN stores the data using a RAID 5 configuration. This technology provides a more failsafe environment and the ability to recover quickly from a hardware failure.

Exchange Server

All Staff members currently have email accounts on the Microsoft Exchange Server, which is located in the Main Server Room at the Middle/Senior High School. All email messages are stored, by default, on the Exchange Server, which is backed up nightly. End users can choose to archive their messages on their local hard drive. This practice is not recommended though, if the local hard drive fails then there is no backup of archived messages. The recommendation would be to store all archived data in their home directory so archived email is properly backed up and the chances of losing the data would be minimized.

Veritas Backup

Veritas Backup Exec with the Exchange Agent and the Open Database Agent is the application used for backups in the domain.

Effective backup procedures including archiving monthly backups to a safe located in the District Offices, and tape rotation are strictly adhered to. The procedure for backup, tape rotation and data recovery is as follows.

The Primary Domain Controller for storing user data as well as the Active Directory Global Catalog, DHCP, Internal DNS, print and application server. This server is backed up nightly to an external backup device. Currently there are six tapes in rotation, one for each day of the week and one for a monthly store. A full backup is performed each night. In the event of data loss or a total hardware failure, all data can be recovered.

The Microsoft Exchange Server is also backed up to an external device utilizing the same rotation and storage as RSD-PDC.

All Data deemed crucial to the district is backed up nightly.

Internet Firewall
The Cisco PIX 515E is a modular, purpose-built security appliance that delivers enterprise-class security for small to medium-sized business networks.
The Cisco PIX 515E versatile one-rack-unit design supports up to six 10/100 Fast Ethernet interfaces, making it an excellent choice for businesses requiring a cost-effective, resilient security solution with "demilitarized zone" support. It also delivers up to 188 Mbps of firewall throughput with the capability to handle more than 130,000 simultaneous sessions.

Internet Content Filtering

The District currently utilizes SmartFilter®, Bess® edition filtering - Bess helps to protect students from inappropriate Web content while maintaining access to the Internet resources they really need.
Easy to use and CIPA compliant, SmartFilter, Bess edition offers Safe Search enforcement, education-specific categories and a variety of implementation options.