Did you know?

On this page, you'll find some little-known facts and interesting figures about the Campus Network Upgrade Project.

1. 2007 marks the 20th anniversary of the last time the campus network was upgraded.

2007 marks the 20-year anniversary of the last time the campus network was upgraded. In 1987, Ronald Reagan was President, the Berlin Wall still divided Germany, and the Dow had just surpassed 2,500. A lot has changed in 20 years, including network data transfer rates.

Since the data networks in the majority of campus buildings have not been upgraded since then, and campus use of the network has increased dramatically over the past 20 years, CITES staff, in cooperation with academic units and academic advisory groups, are now in the process of upgrading the campus network.

The network provides a key campus infrastructure resource that we have all come to depend on for our day-to-day activities of teaching, learning, research, and administration. The network needs to be robust, secure, and competitive with the capabilities of our peer universities.

Some of the benefits of the new network include:

• Increased Security: The network is more secure and less vulnerable to threats due to greater firewall and filtering capacity at the network entrance to the campus.
• Better Reliability: The core network is already redundant, but since the network upgrade improvements began, the redundant devices in the network backbone have become more durable and capable of handling more traffic.
• Higher Quality: The improved connectivity provides innovative opportunities to use the network in teaching and research situations.
• More Information, Faster: Large files of research data will move seamlessly from building-to-building on campus, to research databases off-campus, and beyond.
• Staying Competitive: The Campus Network Upgrade Project will guarantee that Illinois’s networking capabilities are ready for the demands of a top-tier public research university.
• Ready for Tomorrow: To prevent another 20-year lag before the next upgrade, CITES has built scalability into the current network upgrade to stay ahead of the technological curve. For example, the cabling infrastructure -- trays, conduits, and raceways -- that are being installed today can be reused in the future to hold new and improved communications cables when they are available.

2. Data traffic has increased 450 percent since 1998, almost 200 percent since 2002.

Since 1998, there has been a 450 percent increase in data traffic on the University network; since 2002, almost 200 percent. Network bandwidth usage at the University has grown (and continues to grow) at an exponential rate. Over the course of the next 10 years, CITES conservatively projects network usage to increase by at least 10 percent per year.

Modernization to a 21st-century network is required to prepare for the growing needs for voice and data communications. The increased use of the network makes it even more critical that the campus have a reliable, secure network.

3. The project will upgrade more than 260 buildings on campus.

The project is comprised of upgrades to more than 260 buildings, including network equipment upgrades, installation of new data jacks, cabling, and other infrastructure, and construction or remodeling of Communications Equipment Rooms (CERs).

• 159 buildings across campus are being completely upgraded. There are more than 100 buildings that are receiving electronics-only upgrades. The total number of buildings affected by the Campus Network Upgrade Project is more than 260.
• All Category 3 data cabling (copper cable that can support data speeds of up to 10 Mbps) will be replaced with Category 6 cabling (the latest standardized copper cable design, capable of supporting data speeds of up to 1 Gbps) as part of the Campus Network Upgrade Project.
• Category 6 cable can transmit data 267 times faster than Category 3 cable.
• New network equipment (e.g., switches and routers) will be installed, and each upgraded building will be connected at 1 Gbps to the newly improved 10 Gbps campus network backbone by fiber-optic cable.
• In the first two years of the project, the Network Upgrade has been responsible for 73 new or remodeled Communications Equipment Rooms (CERs), and the installation of 322 Gigabit Ethernet ports, 2,792 100 Mb/s Ethernet ports, 359 Wireless Access Points, and 14, 216 Category 6 jacks.

4. By the end of 2007, more than 77 percent of UIUC classrooms and teaching labs will have UIUCnet wireless coverage.

When completed, the Campus Network Upgrade Project will provide wireless network access to all interior public spaces on the Urbana campus. Anyone with a wireless laptop and a valid, NetID will be able to access the Internet without being tied to a physical network jack.

By the end of 2007, more than 77 percent of UIUC classrooms and teaching labs have UIUCnet wireless coverage.

What good is wireless coverage?

More than 70 percent of students use laptop computers at Illinois. Students can take their network connection with them -- to the Undergraduate Library, the Illini Union, or a University residence hall -- and still be fully connected to UIUCnet. Faculty and staff can more easily communicate with students and each other, even when they are away from their offices or without access to a conventionally networked computer.

5. Network reliability has increased to 99-plus percent from 98 percent since construction of the Campus Network Upgrade Project began.

Since network design is an ongoing process, and networks must continually evolve to stay at the forefront of technology, an added benefit to upgrading the campus network is increased reliability.

The ideal campus network is one that fulfills the needs of the campus community to communicate and is:

• Always live: Immune from attack and abuse;
• Scalable: Capable of growing and reconfiguring to meet changing needs;
• Efficient: Data is delivered in a timely manner;
• Versatile: Equipped to deliver a variety of services, including data, video, and voice.

UIUCnet provides a key campus infrastructure capability – a capability that we have all come to depend on for our day-to-day activities of teaching, learning, research, administration, economic development and public service.

Once the ambitious 5-year initiative is complete, the campus network will be robust, secure, and competitive with the capabilities of our peer universities.

6. Minimum 100 Mbps connectivity to every desktop computer on campus

One of the goals of the Campus Network Upgrade Project is to bring 100 Mbps connectivity to every computer desktop on campus connected to a UIUCnet jack.

Why is this increase in bandwidth so important for campus connectivity? Well, do you remember that old 56K modem you used a few years ago? The time it took to download 50 megabytes (10 large photo files or an album’s worth of songs) would be anywhere from 5 to 10 hours.

With 100 Mbps connectivity, that same transfer could be completed in 50 to 100 seconds, making 100 Mbps connectivity ideal for desktop video, multimedia, and other bandwidth-hungry applications prevalent on campus today.