Internet2 2003 Annual Report

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Abilene: Leading-edge Backbone Networking

abilene.internet2.edu

With the completion of the next generation upgrade in mid-December 2003, the Abilene Network remained one of the premier research and education networks in the world. Increasing the bandwidth of the network, from 2.5 Gbps to 10 Gbps, provides students, researchers and faculty at Internet2 member organizations a more robust, better- performing network on which to conduct research and experiments. Internet2 worked closely with Abilene partners Juniper Networks and Qwest Communications to make the upgrade smooth and successful.

Strong partnerships continued to form the foundation for the Abilene Network, including: Indiana University for the Abilene Network Operations Center (NOC); the Ohio and North Carolina Internet2 Technology Evaluation Centers for test facilities; Qwest Communications for network infrastructure; and, Juniper Networks, Cisco Systems, and Nortel Networks for continued support of new network technologies.

Advanced network services—including IPv6, multicast, and large maximum transition unit deployment—were a critical focus during the last year.

Security on advanced networks also continued to be a major focus. With the advent of the Research and Education Networking Information Sharing and Analysis Center (REN-ISAC) at Indiana University, the Abilene Network will participate in defining the national strategy to secure cyber- infrastructure.

As a result of the upgrade, the Abilene cost recovery model was revised for 2004 to encourage upgrading the bandwidth of connections while keeping costs constant. Thus, the number of Abilene participants grew to 224 participants. Additionally, the number of connectors decreased to 47 direct connectors because several individual connectors are now behind other connectors (e.g., OC-3s going behind larger OC-12, OC-48, and higher bandwidth connections).

The advent of regional optical networking initiatives provided another vehicle for connecting to Abilene. Internet2 encouraged connectors to work with the organization and the Abilene NOC to help facilitate potential use of such networks for access to Abilene.

The number of sponsored participants and sponsored educational group participants (SEGPs) continued to show strong growth. The number of peer networks has increased to include almost all international research and education networks, and every federal research network. Most federal networks now peer at the three primary federal exchange points: NGIX-WEST at NASA Ames, StarLight/StarTap in Chicago, and NGIX-EAST at the University of Maryland. Abilene upgraded to 10 Gbps connections to key exchange points such as MAN LAN (Manhattan Landing), Pacific Wave, and StarLight, improving peering with the networks of International Partners.

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