Excellence in Networking 2003 Award Winners

Indiana University and Purdue University

I-Light: Indiana's Optical Fiber Network

To meet the dramatically increased demand for network capacity to support teaching, learning, and research, Indiana University and Purdue University collaborated to create I-Light, a cross-state, university-owned fiber optic network linking Indiana University at Bloomington, IUPUI in Indianapolis, and Purdue University in West Lafayette, to each other, the Internet, and Internet2.

Funded in 1999 by an initial state appropriation of $5 million and completed in 2001, I-Light quadrupled the available Internet bandwidth without increasing operating costs. It supports significant high-end collaborative applications and faculty research programs in such areas as grid computing, human genomics, remote instrumentation, and visualization. For the Indiana Genomics Initiative, for example, I-Light provides high-speed access to huge DNA and protein databases for scientists analyzing genetic and protein sequences. By allowing the three campuses to pool their advanced computational and data storage resources, I-Light has enabled the development of a distributed supercomputing grid with an aggregate theoretical peak capacity of 1.5 TFLOPS (trillions of mathematical operations per second), providing an unparalleled platform for collaboration, research, and distance education. Local economic development has also benefited: the city of Bloomington has leveraged the initiative by adding two empty conduits connecting its new carrier hotel to the regional facilities in Indianapolis, and the greater Lafayette area is developing a comprehensive plan for fiber infrastructure in that region. The ongoing operating budget is about $175,000 per year, largely offset by savings of nearly the same amount for annual circuit lease charges through local carriers that previously provided drastically less connectivity. There are no additional, ongoing staff requirements.

In addition to research applications, I-Light also supports voice communications, e-mail, and videoconferencing between the campuses, and presents countless possibilities for collaborative research and an unparalleled platform for distance education. Future plans include implementation of eleven additional points of presence across Indiana, which will greatly expand access to high-performance networks. The university ownership of this high-power network provides at least two clear advantages: a fungible asset on which to build tomorrow's technology at marginal cost, and the freedom for creative thinking generated by being able to work in that dream environment, "What if networking were free?"

State University of New York, Cortland Campus

IP Communications: Converged Voice and Data Network

Early in 2001, SUNY-Cortland found itself faced with the formidable task of upgrading both their 17-year-old PBX and their flat, ATM campus backbone that delivered only shared-10 Mbps to the desktop. An extensive examination of technical options led them to the bold conclusion that addressing both needs with an integrated solution was better and cheaper than dealing with each independently. Embracing a move into cutting-edge technologies, in mid-2002 SUNY Cortland built a converged IP voice/video/data layer-3 network. The total process took eight months from the April/May 2002 decision about the desired solution to the voice infrastructure cutover in January 2003.

The new network is fully redundant and is composed of 500 switches and network equipment, and 11,000 data ports that will support more than 5,000 faculty, staff, and student computers as well as 4,100 phones. The system includes:

• Gigabit Ethernet, scalable to 10 Gbps, as the campus backbone
• switched 10/100 Mbps as a standard to the desktop
• capacity to deliver streaming media across campus
• greater network redundancy, reliability, and stability
• streamlined management tasks and reduced maintenance costs
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• mproved quality of service through IP voice messaging
• numerous improvements to functionality for voice services including unified IP messaging that allows voice, e-mail, and fax messages to be retrieved from a single inbox and integrated call-center software that assists with directing callers to needed information as well as informing offices about the call volume and patterns they receive

The robust nature of the new network, as well as its reliability and scalability, mean that the university will be able to provide for the needs of its 7,800 students plus faculty and staff for decades to come. The solution also provides opportunities for revenue generation by giving the university control over its phone network, and vastly improved customer experience through new applications for financial aid, admissions, registration, and other services.

The success of this project is, in large part, based on the close three-way partnership forged between SUNY Cortland, a technology vendor (Cisco Systems), and an implementation consultant familiar with both voice and data systems (Ronco Communications). Extensive planning and intensive work made it possible to completely replace two core campus infrastructures in minimal time, with almost no disruption to users.