University of Calgary AirHeads Report

AirHeads Wireless – More Strategic Than Wired Tom Seto –Associate Director, Infrastructure –Dept of Information Technologies –University of Calgary –Responsible for Network Services, Telecommunications, and the Data Centre

Calgary, Alberta, Canada 5 th Largest City in Canada (pop ~950,000) 2 nd in Head Offices in Canada “Houston North” 26% growth in last 10 years Most educated population in Canada –69% post secondary education Site of the 1988 Winter Olympics

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The University of Calgary 8 th largest university in Canada Calgary’s 4 th largest employer –2400 faculty, 2500 staff 28,000 FTE students $C781M annual budget $C247M sponsored research revenue Students from over 80 countries 15 Faculties, 53 Depts, 30 Research Inst

U of C Mission The University of Calgary is a place of education and scholarly inquiry. Its mission is to seek truth and disseminate knowledge. Our aim is to pursue the mission with integrity for the benefit of the people of Alberta, Canada, and the world.

Academic Plan Principles To enhance the learning experience To enhance research, discovery and creativity To promote multi-disciplinary inquiry To give back to the community

Inquiry and Blended Learning Inquiry Based Learning Seeking of truth, information and knowledge through the process of questioning Blended Learning Thoughtful and logical integration of the inherent strengths of face-to-face and online learning

Campus Technology Vision Connected Campus “Enabling the learning, research, and administrative, and community goals of the U of C, through the effective and efficient use of technology; allowing people to access information they need, at the required time, in the desired location, and in the appropriate format”

Wireless Project Sponsor In December, 2004, President Harvey Weingarten decided that wireless access for students was a top priority Funding was made available Outsourcing was considered

Why Not Outsource? Outsourcer wanted to segregate wireless network from campus networks Separate management platform Loss of control of applications on wireless Had to rip out existing wireless hotspots 5 year contract Cost

Existing Wireless Access AirUC –150 Heinz 57 access points RezNet –144 Nortel 1 st Gen access points –1600 pillows –We also provide dialtone and voic –Ethernet access for 800 pillows

AirUC

Reznet Upgrades Upgraded and reconfigured many access points (APs) Installed “Fortinet” to mitigate malware traffic – no need for scan and patch parties Reznet for Residence students only Considered replacing 2250 controllers with Aruba – will do that in Phase II

Wireless Initiative Phase I –August 31, 2005 –Targeting “student spaces” –Ground floor of all buildings with student spaces –Add 400 access points Phase II –August 31, 2006 –Ubiquitous campus coverage –Add 800 access points

Phase I Phase I by September 2005 Didn’t get go ahead until February Fast track - 5 parallel activities RF Assessments Equipment Selection Installation Management Tools Post Production

RF Assessments Led by David Yang Used Ekahau In house staff and contractors Now have an experienced, well-trained resource

Wireless Coverage

Equipment Selection Invited 3 Vendors to provide overview –Cisco –Nortel –HP Cisco purchased Airspace! Decided to open up selection –Proxim, Symbol, Trapeze, Aruba

Equipment Selection Sent team to Silicon Valley to visit multiple vendors Decided on thin AP technology Integration with wired networks Seamless roaming for voice, multimedia

Why Did We Choose Aruba? Security ICSA Certification Per User Firewall VPN Termination Basic IDS/IPS (Strong offering available) Virus Control offloading (via Fortinet) Remediation (via Sygate OEM) Full Featured Captive Portal

Additional Critical Features Wireless delivery across internet/NAT boundaries (AirUC at home or anywhere on the internet) Can route wired connections through Controller to offer functionality to wired ports (captive portal, firewall, guest access, virus control, remediation, etc.) Infinite expandability of number of AP’s Make use of existing AP’s (roaming, captive portal, some management) – Others must replace all legacy AirUC AP’s Integrates with Microsoft NAP (Network Access Protocol) Remote packet capture from any AP

Installation With RF heat maps, can proceed with installation Required cable and conduit Built backend wired network with HP POE switches Lots of campus fiber Left cables dangling in ceiling!

Management Tools Integrate with wired networks Network Access Control Malware remediation and control

Post Production Lesson learned from previous hotspots – communicate! Strategies –Banners –Website –Newsletter articles –Work with External Affairs Dept

Applications Student access to Portal, BlackBoard, webdisk, VoWIP Voice over Wireless IP GSM/WiFi Phones (UMA) Private VLANs Parking Security Inventory Bookstore Museum RFID

Blackboard Course Management System Almost all U of C courses are on Blackboard Integrates with Elluminate for Synchronous Audio and Video Presentations

Blackboard Student Survey Results Question 2

Blackboard Student Survey Results Question 11 Notes & Course Materials Review notes after class Sample exams & assignments Announcements Discussion boards Input from both students & prof Group projects File exchange & Grades Assignment submission

Blackboard Student Survey Results Question 15

Elluminate

More Strategic than Wired(1) Access –Usage growing rapidly –Many more devices – PDA, Blackberries, UMA phones –Future faster wireless technologies WiMax, 802.1n, etc. –Many more uses – IM, Videoconference, etc –Re-assess computer lab strategy Currently around 2500 computers across campus AirUC usage high-water mark so 1200 –Remote AirUC over Internet

More Strategic than Wired(2) Cabling –15,000 cable runs –80% still Cat 3 –Revising cabling standard Network –Standards revising –More POE switches –Less drops per location –Gig home runs only as required

More Strategic than Wired(3) Telecom –Migration of TDM to VoIP –Unlicensed Mobile Access (UMA) Cell voice and data services over WiFi 1000 university-paid cell plans Combine deskset & cell handset

Where are we now? Number of access points (APs): 700 Number of buildings with coverage: 35 Total coverage: 290,000 sq m Total University space:509,000 sq m

AirUC Login Screen

Questions? Contacts: Architecture & Security –Dean Berschl – Deployment & Operation –David Yang – He’s here at AirHeads Installation –Terry Bellward – Website: