Information Technology Reference
In-Depth Information
work, the edges are connected at 100 Mbps, and the edge switches linked into the
backbone by gigabit links, while in the network center, the servers may be connected
by multi-gigabit links or even 10 gigabit links.
The Internet, which is the ultimate connection of many networks, is also rap-
idly advancing in access speed. Corporate networks that were satisfied at 1.5
Mbps/T1 speeds are now bottlenecked at less than DS-3, 45 Mbps. Metropolitan
carriers are offering Ethernet over Fiber connections at 100 to 1000 Mbps, and their
peering connections to the Internet backbone may be at or above those speeds. The
Internet itself has quickly expanded its backbone speeds, and an amazing intercon-
nection between universities, called Internet2 (or Internet II), with a minimum con-
nection speed of 100 Mbps and a backbone of 40 Gbps. Much like the Internet
precursor ARPANET, originally used to link university researchers and the U.S.
Department of Defense, the purpose of Internet2 is to provide a reliable ultra-high-
speed link between universities to assist in research, as well as to foster the develop-
ment and implementation of new, higher-speed data transfer protocols. One of these
protocols, IPV6, involves expanding the addressing scheme of IP so that eventually,
practically every atom in the known world can have an Internet address. Start your
engines, lower your visor, and buckle your seat belts. The future is at hand, and you
are headed there at light speed.
