Network services

When assessing the technical requirements for Network Services, consider the following factors:

Domain names

Registering
Hosting in DNS
Renewal
DNS redundancy, reliability and load-balancing
Different top-level domains (.be, .uk, .com etc)
Correct address to host mappings
Reverse lookup zones

IP Address space

Static or dynamic IP addresses
Virtual IP addresses
Multiple IP addresses
IP address ranges

Messaging

Mail account requirements (number of user accounts, mailbox size)
Mail aliases (numbers, addresses)
Mail redirects (numbers, addresses)
Server forwarding (for dialup accounts)
Mailing lists and mailing list servers (number of addresses, frequency of mailing)
UseNet newsgroup access (which newsgroups, whether posting allowed)
Paging and SMS

Reliability/Redundancy

Availability requirements (what availability level do you want?)
Load balancing (for routers)

Security

Network intrusion detection
Penetration testing
Certification Authority (CA) services

Service and support

Hardware support
Support reaction time

Monitoring, Reporting and Analysis

Monitoring levels
Statistical reporting
Reporting metrics
Reporting period

Contractual Implications

Contract length
Time to delivery
Time to upgrade/downgrade
Service guarantees