Documentation and Processes
Objective 3.1: Explain the purpose of organizational processes and procedures
● Introduction
○ IT Governance
■ Used to provide a comprehensive security management framework for
the organization
■ Done using policies, standards, baselines, guidelines, and procedures
○ Policy
■ Defines the role of security inside of an organization and establishes the
desired state for that security program
○ Levels of Security Policies
■ Organizational
● Provide framework to meet the business goals and define the
roles, responsibilities, and terms associated with it
■ System-specific
● Address the security of a specific technology, application,
network, or computer system
■ Issue-specific
● Address a specific security issue such as email privacy, employee
termination procedures, or other specific issues
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■ Standard
● Implements a policy in an organization
■ Guideline
● Recommended action that allows for exceptions and allowances in
unique situations
● Common Documentation
○ Physical Network Diagrams
■ Used to show the physical arrangement of network components
■ Includes cabling and hardware layout, similar to a floor plan
■ Can also show rack layouts in data centers
○ Logical Network Diagrams
■ Illustrates data flow and device communication
■ Includes subnets, network objects, routing protocols, and domains, etc.
■ Traditionally drawn by hand with symbols for devices
○ Wiring Diagrams
■ Shows how cables are connected to devices
■ Can be part of physical or logical network diagrams
■ Includes floor plans or rack diagrams for cable routing
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○ Site Survey Reports
■ Often conducted for wireless network assessments
● Radio Frequency (RF) Site Survey/Wireless Survey
○ Process of planning and designing a wireless network to
provide a wireless solution
○ Show access point locations and signal strength
■ Wired Site Survey
● Usually done as part of a preparation for a major upgrade or
installation
● Checks power, space, and cooling for new equipment
○ Audit and Assessment Reports
■ Delivered after formal assessments
● Executive summary
● Scope and objectives
● Assumptions and limitations
● Methods and tools
● Environment and system diagram
● Security requirements
● Findings and recommendations
● Audit results
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○ Baseline Configurations
■ Most stable versions of device configurations
■ Documented set of specifications agreed upon and changeable only
through change control procedures
■ Changes require proper testing, approval, and documentation
○ These types of documentation are essential for understanding, planning, and
maintaining enterprise networks
● Asset Management
○ Asset Management
■ A systematic approach to the governance and realization of value of
things over their entire life cycle
■ Types of Assets
● Tangible Assets
○ Buildings, equipment, computers, servers
● Intangible Assets
○ Human capital, intellectual property, goodwill, reputation
■ Key Processes
● Developing, operating, maintaining, upgrading, and disposing of
assets in a cost-effective manner
● Includes costs, risks, and performance attributes associated with
the asset
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○ Asset Inventory
■ Maintain a complete list of all assets in the organization
■ Use a database system for efficient management and configuration of
asset details
○ Asset Identification
■ Each asset should have a unique asset tag and ID for tracking purposes
● Asset tags
○ Can be barcodes or RFID tags
○ Critical to ensuring good governance of assets throughout
the organization
○ Procurement Lifecycle
■ Birth to death of an asset
■ Use change management procedures for proper procurement and
deployment
● Change Request
○ Verifies business impact
● Procurement
○ Determines the budget and identifies a supplier or vendor
● Deployment
○ Implements a procedure for installing the asset in a secure
configuration with a secure baseline on the network
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● Maintenance/Operations
○ Implements procedures for monitoring and support
● Disposal
○ Implements procedures for sanitizing any data remnants
○ Warranty and Licensing
■ Keep track of asset warranties and support contracts
■ Ensure software licensing compliance for all devices
○ User Assignment
■ Assign assets to users based on organizational policies
■ Use asset management database to track user assignments
○ Key Points
■ Asset management is crucial for governance and value realization from
assets
■ Tangible and intangible assets are managed over their life cycles
■ Use asset tags and IDs for unique asset identification
■ Maintain an inventory list of all assets in a database system
■ Follow the procurement life cycle for proper asset management
■ Keep track of warranties, support contracts, and software licenses
■ Assign assets to users based on organizational policies
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● IP Address Management (IPAM)
○ IP Address Management (IPAM)
■ A methodology and suite of tools used to plan, track, and manage the IP
address space inside a network infrastructure
○ Automation and Orchestration
■ Importance of automation and orchestration in managing IP addresses at
scale
■ Automation in IP address assignment via DHCP servers is a part of IPAM,
but not its entirety
○ Manual vs. Automated IPAM
■ In the past, IPAM was done manually, often with spreadsheets
■ Modern cloud-based networks require automation due to scale and
complexity
○ Benefits of Automated IPAM
■ Detects and resolves IP conflicts to maintain network integrity
■ Integrates with DHCP and DNS servers for cohesive management
■ Supports horizontal cloud scaling by assigning IP addresses to new virtual
machines automatically
○ Key Features of IPAM Solutions
■ Comprehensive reporting for network performance analysis and anomaly
detection
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■ Supports cybersecurity efforts by tracking devices connected to the
network and identifying unauthorized devices or suspicious traffic
patterns
○ Strategic Importance
■ IPAM is not just about adopting new tools, but also involves a strategic
shift in managing network infrastructure to enhance efficiency, security,
and resilience
● Common Agreements
○ Three Main Types of Agreements in Network Management
■ Non-Disclosure Agreements (NDAs)
● Documented agreement between two parties defining
confidential data
● Used to protect intellectual property
● Can be between organizations or between an organization and its
employee
● Includes non-competitive clauses
● An administrative control; not a technical control
● Legally binding
○ Can be enforced with penalties such as fines, forfeiture of
intellectual property rights, or jail time
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■ Memorandum of Understanding (MOU)
● Non-binding agreement between two or more organizations
● Details common actions and responsibilities
● More formal than a gentleman's agreement
● Often referred to as a letter of intent
● Often used within organizations or between business units
● Not legally enforceable
● Can be modified or broken without serious consequences
■ Service Level Agreement (SLA)
● Documented commitment between a service provider and a client
● Defines quality, availability, and responsibilities
● Primarily concerned with supporting and responding to problems
within a given time frame
● Outlines responsibilities, guarantees, and warranties for a service
and its components
● Can provide predictability in service delivery
● Penalties for not meeting SLA terms depend on the agreement
and contract
● Product Lifecycle
○ Product Lifecycle
■ Every product, including operating systems, follows a product life cycle
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■ Manufacturers may dictate the life cycle, specifying support levels
○ Microsoft's Lifecycle Policy
■ Two types of support
● Mainstream Support
○ Lasts at least five years
● Extended Support
○ Can extend support for another three to five years or
longer
○ End of Life
■ Once an OS reaches end of life, it is no longer supported by mainstream
or extended support
■ Legacy Operating Systems
● Products that are no longer supported by the manufacturer
● Using a legacy OS can be dangerous due to lack of software
patches and bug fixes
■ Windows XP Example
● Windows XP reached end of life in 2015
● Even though it's no longer supported, some systems still use it,
especially in expensive-to-upgrade environments like ICS and
SCADA systems
● While it can still be used, Windows XP is extremely vulnerable to
attacks due to the lack of support and security patches
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○ Windows 10 and 11 Support
■ Windows 10 and 11 receive at least five years of mainstream support
from Microsoft
■ Large corporations adopting an OS can lead to extended support
■ Feature updates occur every 6 to 12 months, adding new features to the
OS without changing baseline requirements
■ Baseline requirements can change with feature updates, so it is important
to ensure hardware compatibility
○ General Recommendations
■ Upgrade legacy operating systems to modern, supported versions
■ Run the PC Health Check application to ensure hardware compatibility
with the latest OS and feature updates
● Change Management
○ Change Management
■ Orchestrated strategy to transition from an existing state to a more
desirable future state
■ Essential in modern business environments to handle inevitable changes
like new software or organizational structure
■ Requires precision, planning, and a structured approach to avoid outages
and other issue
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■ Purpose
● Ensure seamless integration of changes into existing architecture
and processes
● Ensure changes are properly controlled and implemented using a
plan to avoid chaos and resistance from employees
■ Critical for guiding organizations safely through changes or
transformations
○ Change Approval Process
■ Changes must be approved and undergo an assessment process to
determine their value and potential impacts
■ Change Advisory Board (CAB)
● A body of representatives from various parts of the organization
that is responsible for evaluating any proposed changes
○ Change Owner
■ Responsible for initiating the change request, advocating for the change,
and detailing its reasons, benefits, and challenges
○ Stakeholders
■ Any person with a vested interest in the proposed change, directly
impacted or involved in its assessment or implementation
■ Must be consulted, their feedback considered, and concerns addressed
before implementing a change
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○ Impact Analysis
■ Conducted before implementing any proposed change to understand
potential fallout and immediate effects on the organization, its processes,
reputation, and users
■ Helps prepare the organization for the change and maximize its benefits
○ By applying change management principles, organizations can adapt, thrive, turn
challenges into opportunities, and uncertainties into a defined pathway forward
● Configuration Management
○ Configuration Management
■ Focuses on maintaining up-to-date documentation of network
configuration
■ Helps in incident response by ensuring that network diagrams reflect the
actual network
○ Asset Management
■ Formalized system for tracking network components and managing their
life cycle
● Preparation and budget
● Planning purchases
● Network Design
○ Determines the best configuration for network devices
● Implementing the devices
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● Operations and Maintenance
○ Includes operating, maintaining, and supporting the
network on a daily basis
○ Accounts for 70% of time spent, emphasizing the need for
optimization and improvement
● Optimizing operations
○ Baseline Creation
■ Install the entire network and collect data under normal conditions to
create a baseline
■ Useful for troubleshooting by providing a reference for what is considered
normal
○ Cable Management
■ Process of documenting the network's cable infrastructure
■ Involves labeling cables, documenting their locations, and using a
standard naming convention for devices
○ Network Documentation
■ Keep documentation updated to reflect changes in the network
● Diagrams
● Wiring schematics
● Contact information for administrators
● Policies, procedures, and warranties
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○ Procedures and Documentation
■ Document procedures for network upgrades and maintenance
■ Store documentation in a centralized location accessible to all technicians
○ Knowledge Base
■ Use a central repository (e.g., binder, share drive, SharePoint site) for
storing network documentation
■ Ensure technicians know where to find documentation for quick access
during incidents
● Patch Management
○ Patch Management
■ Planning, testing, implementing, and auditing of software patches
○ Purpose
■ Security Enhancement
● Fixes vulnerabilities in servers, clients, routers, and switches
● Installs software and OS patches to fix bugs
■ Uptime Improvement
● Prevents resource exhaustion and crashes
● Ensures devices and software are up to date
■ Compliance Support
● A key aspect of compliance assessments
● Ensures systems are patched against known vulnerabilities (CVEs)
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■ Feature Upgrades
● Patches can add new features and functionality
● Ensures systems are running the latest version for best security
and features
○ Four Critical Steps
■ Planning
● Create policies, procedures, and systems for tracking patches
■ Testing
● Test patches in a small network or lab environment prior to
deployment
■ Implementation
● Deploy patches manually or automatically using tools like SCCM
■ Auditing
● Scan and verify patch installation to ensure they are properly
installed
○ Tools
■ Microsoft System Center Configuration Manager (SCCM) for patch
management
■ Mobile Device Manager (MDM) for patch management of mobile devices
■ Device Expert by ManageEngine for firmware management of network
devices
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○ Testing Strategy
■ Use patch rings to deploy patches in stages
■ Start with a small group of machines and expand to larger groups if
successful
■ Helps mitigate impact if patches cause issues
○ Firmware Management
■ Applies to routers, switches, firewalls, and other network devices
■ Update firmware to fix vulnerabilities and bugs
■ Use centralized tools like Cisco UCS Manager or third-party tools like
Device Expert for firmware management
○ Considerations
■ Ensure patches are compatible with systems
■ Test patches before deployment to avoid new issues
■ Use automated tools for large networks for efficiency
■ Conduct auditing to verify patch installation and functionality
○ Patch management is essential for network security, uptime, compliance, and
feature enhancement
○ Proper planning, testing, implementation, and auditing are key steps in effective
patch management
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Disaster Recovery
Objective 3.3: Explain disaster recovery (DR) concepts
● Introduction
○ Disaster Recovery
■ Enables software, data, or hardware recovery to resume performance of
critical business functions after a disaster
● High Availability Approaches
○ High Availability Importance
■ High availability ensures continuous operations with minimal downtime
for end users
○ Network Redundancy
■ Ensures networks remain up and running at all times, increasing
availability
■ Servers have two or more network interface cards (NICs) for redundancy
and load balancing
● NICs can operate in pairs or groups for redundancy or increased
throughput
■ Use switches and routers with redundant network cables for internal and
external connections
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■ Should be planned in three parts
● Devices
● Network interface cards (NICs) and cables
● Router and switch perspective
○ Ensure redundant paths inside the network and to the
internet
○ High Availability Approaches and Strategies
■ Active-Active Approach
● Multiple systems run simultaneously and share the load
● Maximize resource utilization and ensure service availability even
if some systems fail
■ Active-Passive Approach
● Standby systems remain idle until the primary system fails
● Provides a reliable fallback mechanism
■ Load Balancers
● Distribute network traffic across multiple servers
● Ensure no single server bears too much load
● Continuously monitor server health and reroute traffic away from
failed nodes
■ Content Delivery Networks (CDNs)
● Network of geographically distributed servers
● Deliver content more efficiently and reliably
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● Store cached content closer to end users to reduce latency
● Reroute requests to the next closest server in case of server
failure or excessive traffic
○ Implementing High Availability
■ Design the network with redundancy at its core
■ Deploy multiple NICs in servers, multiple pathways between switches and
routers, and redundant internet connections
○ Combining Strategies
■ Combine active-active or active-passive approaches with load balancers
and CDNs
■ Achieve high availability, minimize downtime, and provide a seamless
user experience
● Designing Redundant Networks
○ Designing Redundant Networks
■ Involves deciding where and how to use redundancy in the network
○ Module/Parts Perspective or Chassis Redundancy
■ e.g., power supplies, network interface devices, hard drives, routers,
switches
○ Cost Considerations
■ Different redundancy options have varying costs
■ Decisions impact the overall network cost
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○ Software Redundancy
■ Software solutions can often provide redundancy without the need for
additional hardware
○ Protocol Characteristics
■ Protocol choice (e.g., TCP vs. UDP) affects redundancy requirements
● TCP provides additional redundancy by resending packets, while
UDP does not
○ Redundancy Features in Design
■ Consider redundancy features for powering infrastructure devices (e.g.,
internal power supplies, battery backups, generators)
○ Environmental Conditions
■ Redundancy considerations for environmental conditions (e.g., air
conditioning, generators) depend on the criticality of uptime
○ Technical and Operational Goals
■ Identify technical goals (e.g., uptime percentage) and operational goals to
determine network design and the budget
○ Business Application Profiles
■ Categorize business applications into profiles to aid in redundancy design
and quality of service considerations
○ Establishing Performance Standards
■ Define performance standards to measure success in maintaining high
availability networks
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○ Managing and Measuring High Availability
■ Use metrics and key performance indicators to manage and measure high
availability solutions
■ Metrics should align with performance standards and goals
○ Design Early for Cost Savings
■ It is cheaper to integrate high-availability practices and design
redundancy into a network from the beginning than to retrofit it into an
existing network
○ Trade-offs in Network Design
■ Key factors in network design
● Time
● Cost
● Quality
■ Trade-offs are necessary, and decisions should align with project goals
and constraints
● Disaster Recovery Metrics
○ Disaster Recovery Metrics
■ Quantifiable standards for planning and evaluating recovery operations
■ Focus on measuring and managing risks to critical operations
■ Used to assess availability and service restoration speed
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○ Availability and Uptime
■ Availability
● Being up and operational
● Measured as uptime percentage (e.g., 5 9’s = 99.999% uptime)
● 5 9’s of Availability
○ Maximum of 5 minutes of downtime per year
● 6 9’s of Availability
○ 31 seconds of downtime per year
● Balancing high availability with maintenance needs (e.g., patching,
upgrades)
○ Reliability
■ Concerned with maintaining network operations and data transfer
efficiency by not dropping packets
■ Reliable network must be both highly available and pass data effectively
○ Measuring Metrics
■ Mean Time To Repair (MTTR)
● Average time to repair a network device after failure
■ Mean Time Between Failures (MTBF)
● Average time between failures on a device
■ Maximum Tolerable Downtime (MTD)
● Longest period a business can be down without causing failure
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● The upper limit on the recovery time that the system and the
asset owners must resume normal operations within
● Example of MTD Calculation
○ Dion Training's MTD for student support is 12 hours,
balancing response speed and cost
○ Geographic team split (Philippines, USA, Egypt) ensures
24/7 coverage and disaster resilience
■ Recovery Time Objective (RTO)
● Time taken to resume normal business operations
● Goal is to resume operations within a defined time frame (e.g., 60
seconds)
■ Recovery Point Objective (RPO)
● Longest tolerable period of data loss
● Example
○ RPO of 6 hours means data backups should occur at least
every 6 hours
● Redundant Site Considerations
○ Redundant Site
■ A backup location that can take over essential functions in case of
primary site failure
■ Important for business continuity and disaster recovery planning
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○ Four categories based on continuity locations
■ Hot Sites
● Up and running continuously
● Ready for immediate switch over
● Requires duplicate equipment and constant data mirroring
● Expensive
○ Cloud computing has made hot sites more accessible and
cost-effective
■ Warm Sites
● Not fully equipped like hot sites
● Can be up and running in a few days
● Have basic facilities in place but may need to purchase additional
equipment
● Cheaper than hot sites but with longer response times
■ Cold Sites
● Cheaper than hot and warm sites but adds more time to recovery
● Contains fewer facilities than warm sites
○ May be just an empty building
● Can be turned into a new headquarters in one to two months
■ Mobile Sites
● Can be hot, warm, or cold sites, depending on configuration
● Use portable units like trailers or tents for recovery
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● Provide rapid deployment and full functionality for users
○ Fifth category
■ Virtual Sites
● Represent a modern approach to redundant site strategies using
cloud-based environments
● Offer various alternatives for hot, warm, and cold sites.
● Provide rapid scalability, cost-effectiveness, and easy maintenance
○ Platform Diversity
■ Diversifying operating systems, networking equipment, and cloud
platform providers reduces the risk of a single point of failure
■ Enhances resilience and adaptability in the face of unexpected
disruptions
■ Allows organizations to leverage unique features and pricing structures of
different providers
○ Continuity of Operations
■ Refers to an organization's ability to maintain essential functions and
services during a disruption
■ Consider both tech stack and people's locations when choosing a
redundant site
■ Use geographic dispersion to spread resources across different locations
for higher redundancy
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● Training and Exercises
○ Tabletop Exercises (TTX)
■ Use an incident scenario against a framework of controls (red team)
■ Discuss simulated emergency situations and security events
■ Simple to set up but more theoretical, lacking practical evidence
○ Penetration Testing
■ Test using active tools and security utilities to simulate an attack
■ Verify threats and vulnerabilities, bypass security controls, and exploit
vulnerabilities
■ Scope and resource properly before beginning
■ Can use internal or external teams, preferably third parties or separate
internal red teams
● CompTIA Pen Test+ curriculum is a good resource for learning
penetration testing
○ Red, Blue, and White Teams
■ Red Teams
● Hostile or attacking teams in penetration tests or incident
response exercises
■ Blue Teams
● Defensive teams in penetration tests or incident response
exercises
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● Includes system administrators, network defenders, and
cybersecurity analysts
■ White Teams
■ Administer, evaluate, and supervise penetration tests or incident
response exercises
■ Build and support simulated environments for testing
■ Act as referees and report on the exercise outcomes