As with most IT infrastructure, designing FANs involves balancing conflicting needs and reaching a compromise when necessary. For example, the requirement to deploy a low-cost network conflicts with the requirement to deploy a network with high availability. Because of this, FAN design is often about trade-offs.

Because every network has slightly different requirements, there are no absolute rules about the "right" way of doing things that can cover all scenarios. However, there are common areas of concern that apply to any FAN design, regardless of variables such as protocol, distance, topology, or performance. These factors have such wide-ranging applicability that it is important to keep them in mind when making all subsequent evaluations.

FANs are often composed of many varied components and sometimes extend all the way through the data center and across the enterprise, so organizations should be aware of potential issues before they design or implement FAN solutions. Areas of concern might include anything from device compatibility and protocols to future scalability of the network.

After designing their FANs, organizations can begin thinking about the physical requirements of implementing their solutions in a data center or at remote branch offices. They should consider the various processes they need for testing and validating their FANs before moving into the production and maintenance stages.

A well-designed FAN should be easy to understand and maintain over time. IT organizations should be able to easily troubleshoot potential problems or quickly isolate the roots of actual problems.