I am familiar with the basics of networking but I don't have much practical knowledge as I have been in a mainly desktop support role for the last few years. I know enough to be dangerous....
Current setup: We will be changing ISP's shortly from Centurylink (dual bonded DSL 2u/20d) to a new ISP offering gigbait fiber at a very reasonable price. We have a pretty basic network with the modem/router handling the role of DHCP and firewall. We use google apps for email so no exchange server and no domain controller. We have 6 development servers that we use for testing software and for demo purposes. Most of the users currently use their own laptops/desktops (Not ideal for support but it's what I have to work with for now.) We have a few AP's and several WiFi printers as well. Security is definitely a concern but is virtually non-existent at this point. I would love to be able to easily see/block traffic in/out and add VPN access for remote workers.
My question is in mainly this:
What is the best practice for setting up a small network ( < 50 devices)? dhcp, firewall, vpn, antivirus, intrusion protection.
- Should I buy a FIREWALL/VPN appliance like Sonicwall or build something myself using pfsense or untangle? My boss loves open source technology so pfsense might be a good fit.
- Do I need a managed switch? (my 24 port unmanaged switch is now full so I need to upgrade or add an additional at this point anyway)
- Should I separate VOIP, WAN, LAN, SERVERS, and PRINTERS into separate VLANS?
I'm sure I missed some basics but you get the gist. I have a decent budget but that being said, I would rather not blow money on something that is an overkill for such a small company. Any and all comments are greatly appreciated.