During 2007, Internet2 worked with members, regional research and education networking organizations, and international partners to complete a new nationwide infrastructure that provides the U.S. research and education (R&E) community with dynamic, innovative, and cost-effective hybrid optical and packet networking. The network infrastructure was designed to meet the requirements for next-generation production network services, and to provide an experimental platform for the development of new networking ideas and protocols. With community control of the fundamental networking infrastructure, the Internet2 Network provides scalability for member institutions to efficiently provision resources in support of collaborative applications, distributed research experiments, grid-based data analysis, and other network-intensive requirements.
The initial deployment of the new infrastructure provides 100 Gbps of capacity, with the ability to seamlessly scale to greater capacity on either selected segments or the entire 13,500 mile network footprint. Because it provides the ability to run multiple networks on the same physical infrastructure, the Internet2 infrastructure supports leading-edge production networks and breakable testbeds side-by-side. Internet2 continues to provide a highly reliable advanced IP network, in addition to a new developmental Dynamic Circuit Network. The new infrastructure also enables the deployment of new services, such as the Internet2 Commercial Peering Service that provides cost-effective access to the commercial Internet, while allowing members to leverage the investment they have already made in their advanced connection to the Internet2 Network.The new Internet2 infrastructure also provides a platform for long-term dedicated point-to-point circuits (wavelength paths), which can be provisioned anywhere on the national fiber footprint or interconnected with our regional and international partners. This dedicated optical circuit capability can support demanding individual research projects. It is already being used by ESnet as a foundation for implementing ESnet4, the next generation nationwide network for Department of Energy researchers.
