Test laboratory and network infrastructure
A test laboratory — physical infrastructure, Linux, and hands-on implementation from the ground up.
Context and problem
A defence-industry supplier's production environments are network setups isolated from the internet, where segmentation, high availability, redundancy, and physical protection are baseline requirements. Development and testing work calls for matching environments. The task of the test laboratory was to mirror the production environments so that the topology, elements, and security model match the production situation.
What was done
I was responsible for the laboratory's Linux and network environments. I built the network from the ground up — physical networks and network elements with their cabling and the configuration of the elements — as well as the workstations belonging to the environment. The same applied to the production installations.
I procured and deployed the network elements (switches, routers, uplinks). The physical implementation of the data centre: rack layout, cabling, power, and cooling together with the facilities. The work was hands-on: unpacking, installation, patching, loopbacks, base configurations, and iterative tuning until the topology matched the program's assumptions. Delivery January–April 2016.
Key technologies: Linux, Bash, TCP/IP, VLAN, routing and switching, firewalls, VPN, data centre infrastructure, physical security.
Outcome
The test laboratory was handed over to the development and integration teams as a validated whole; the office local network and operating system environment served the parallel day-to-day work. In both contexts, the network, Linux, and physical layer formed a controlled whole.
