GuideInfrastructure & networking
Network documentation every organisation should have
By Inara Crest Engineering 1 min read
Diagrams, an address plan, a device inventory and a credentials register turn outages from guesswork into routine fixes.
When something fails at 8 a.m. on a Monday, documentation is the difference between a fifteen-minute fix and a day of tracing cables. These are the documents worth keeping current.
1. Network diagrams
- A physical diagram showing racks, switches, links and the internet connection.
- A logical diagram showing VLANs, address ranges, firewalls and routing.
2. Address plan
Every subnet, its purpose, gateway and DHCP range, plus the static addresses of servers, printers, cameras and network devices.
3. Device inventory
Model, serial number, location, firmware version, warranty date and support contract for every switch, router, firewall, access point and server.
4. Cabling records
Outlet-to-patch-panel mapping and the cable test results from installation.
5. Credentials register
Administrative accounts for every device, stored in a password manager with access limited to the people who need it — never in a spreadsheet or on a sticky note.
6. Change log
A simple record of what was changed, when, by whom and why.
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About the author
Inara Crest Engineering
Engineering team
Written by the Inara Crest Technologies engineering team, who design, install and support software, network, security, power and data centre systems for organisations in Kenya and East Africa.