Expert's answer

This question is not as simple as it seems - although the smaller the network, the easier your work will be. What I'm going to describe is a plan to upgrade for today - and for the future when you'll want to move to gigabit speeds.

To get the most out of your upgrade, make sure that all the devices on your network (computers, printers, etc.) have at least 100-MB network cards installed. To avoid potential problems, make sure that the latest drivers or firmware are installed so that you avoid potential problems or security vulnerabilities that may be present in earlier versions.

Next, check is the wiring. If you have Cat 5 installed, you're good to go for 100 MB. While it is possible to run Gigabit Ethernet on Cat 5, it will be hit or miss in most cases. Your success will be depending on the quality of the cable used, how long the runs are and how good your terminations are. To go Gig Ethernet or 10-Gig Ethernet (for servers), you will want to be on at least Cat 6. While it is possible to run Gig Ethernet over copper, the support at a switch level is just starting to become available - and it only runs a very short distance. For 10 Gig, your best bet for the time being is to run this over fiber.

So far, so good, especially if you only have one switch. Where it starts to get complicated is if you have multiple switches, especially if they're on more than one floor, because now you'll have to think about the bandwidth available between switches. It would be awful to go to all the upgrade work and then have a couple of users tie up all the bandwidth between them and a server.

Newer network installs or upgrades are starting to use 10-Gigabit links between switches for that very reason. On these same switches you have mostly 100-Megabit connections with some 1-Gig connections for those servers or systems that really need that type of bandwidth. This is where you need to sit down and really do some planning so that you don't just get things ready to run today at 100-Megabit but leave yourself some growing room to make going to Gig speeds or higher a little easier as you make the move later on.