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CITES > project status > campus network upgrade > announcements and presentations > March 2006 news brief

News Briefs

Campus Network Upgrade Project
March 2006 (Issue No. 5)

 

Network core upgraded

During the Spring Break week, staff from CITES Network Engineering and CITES Network Maintenance migrated the entire campus to the new network core equipment. The backbone network was completely stable by the end of the week despite some brief overall intermittent outages and some specific spot outages. On March 27, 2006, a summary of the upgrade efforts was sent to campus network and system administrators (via the CITES-Techsupport listserv).

Two articles about the core upgrade can be found at the links below:
Inside Illinois, February 2, 2006 (Click here for article.)
Daily Illini, February 7, 2006 (Click here for article.)

Meru wireless equipment purchase approved

In order to provide a much better performing and easier-to-manage wireless network service for UIUCnet, the purchase of Meru wireless equipment was approved at the January, 2006 University of Illinois Board of Trustees meeting. The Meru equipment is a wireless networking system that includes thin access points and smart controllers, all of which work in unison. The Meru system was selected because it excels in high-density deployments and in handing off mobile users between access points.

The first shipment of the equipment arrived during the last week of February. As of the end of March, the Meru hardware has been installed throughout DCL, and thus far is performing as expected. Further Meru deployments will be made after performance testing in DCL is completed. The purchase was noted in the Daily Illini on February 6, 2006. (Click here for article.)

February NuTech meeting

The Network Upgrade Technical Advisory Group (NuTech) met on February 16, 2006. The agenda included a status report on the new core upgrade. The group also discussed IPv6 and other advanced features that the new core can deliver and the group assisted in prioritizing them. Some other highlights of the meeting include discussions on the current status of IRIS (details on Iris 5.0 were sent to campus tech support staff on April 11, 2006, click here for article), technical details and features of the Meru product, and feedback and concerns about visitor wireless access on some parts of the campus, such as the Illini Union and Willard Airport.

Kick-off meetings, construction starts and completions in 2006

Network upgrade kick-off meetings were held for the Meat Science Laboratory and Foellinger Auditorium.  Construction was started in the Music Building, the Foreign Language Building, the Law Building, and the Meat Science Laboratory.  Construction was completed in Davenport Hall, Atmospheric Sciences, and the Children's Research Center.

For more scheduling information, please see the Campus Network Upgrade Project Status Table.