Data network charges

Notes

1. Serial Ethernet entails extra charges based on the cost of leased circuits from BT or other external telecomms organisations.

2. Applicable for on-site work not covered by other standard charges.

In addition to the recurrent charges above, a volume-related charge is made to recover the HEFCE-imposed JANET network charge (see here for details).

These prices apply to University institutions and Colleges, and to Research Council institutions that have an appropriate agreement with the University. Output VAT will be applied to the charges where applicable.

Filtered ethernet

A filtered ethernet connection provides exclusive use of a 1 Gbps CUDN router port, and is suitable for connection of an institution's LAN on which there may be many kinds of traffic. An IP subnet is dedicated to the institutional network: IP traffic between that subnet and another is passed, but traffic not related to the institutional network does not enter it at all, and protocols not supported by the CUDN do not enter the CUDN (but see VLAN supplement below). The same link is used if the institution elects to join the Managed Cluster Service (MCS), or indeed wishes to use the Lapwing service. The connection, up to and including the point-of-presence (PoP) equipment on the institution's premises, is managed by the Computing Service Network Division. That PoP takes the form of a standardised switch, which has 10 Mbps, 100 Mbps or 1 Gbps ports; subject to prior agreement, the institution will be able to make use of multiple ports on it. The standard 1 Gbps CUDN PoP configuration is detailed here. Filtered Ethernet connections are available on sites directly served by the Granta Backbone Network and, using ntl's LANEX service (no longer available for new connections), other sites close to the centre of Cambridge. The charge covers installation adjacent to the site's GBN node: all additional trunking and fibre cabling incurs extra charges. Alternatively, where connections are made by ntl LANEX, the charge will be the sum of the standard filtered ethernet charge and the ntl LANEX charges.

Serial ethernet

A serial ethernet connection is the equivalent of a Filtered Ethernet Connection but is for a site not served by the GBN or by ntl's LANEX. In this case, a circuit is leased from a public telecommunications operator (such as BT or ntl). Serial Ethernet is the functional equivalent of Filtered Ethernet: it connects an institutional IP subnet. Historically, the service has been offered using HDSL bridges but this is now deprecated and higher bandwidth leased circuits are now recommended. The PoP equipment will be the standard equipment used for the 1 Gbps service. The charges will be based on the equipment installed including the shared cost of the CUDN infrastructure. The cost of the leased circuit is not included.

VLAN Supplement

Institutions with more than one CUDN Ethernet connection (eg department and annexe or college and hostel) are able to request a Virtual Local Area Network (VLAN) between them, though availability is presently subject to confirmation of technical feasibility in each case. The VLAN gives the effect of protocol-transparent bridging within the CUDN infrastructure, which will carry all traffic between the nodes of the VLAN. Note that this does not amount to support within the CUDN for non-IP traffic: it is equivalent to (and potentially cheaper than) private circuits, and connects only nodes belonging to the same institution. Node-to-node throughput will not necessarily reach the bandwidth of the physical connection.

Contacts

Enquiries and orders should be addressed to Network Support: telephone ext. 34691 or email to network-support@ucs.cam.ac.uk.

Network faults should be reported by phone only, to 0300 123 1164.

Scheduled interruptions will be announced on the UCS news page.

Last updated: January 2012