Current CENIC Network Projects

CENIC is pleased to keep the community that we were created to serve apprised of current network projects categorized by segment. To learn more about the projects in progress for your segment, please read below.

CalREN Backbone Projects:

CENIC is currently completing a major backbone refresh project for the CalREN-DC network tier, which serves the day-to-day uses of California's K-20 community, as well as providing connectivity to the commercial Internet and high-quality videoconferencing via CalREN Video Services. When completed, the DC Refresh Project will result in a backbone bandwidth speed increase from 2.5 Gb/s to 10 Gb/s as well as the installation of new backbone routers and optical equipment to provide for technology currency. Learn more about the Router Refresh part of this project!

A refresh of the CalREN-HPR network, which provides connectivity for high-performance applications, is in the planning and evaluation stage.

The entire complement of dense wave division multiplexing optical equipment underlying both the CalREN-DC and CalREN-HPR networks is also being replaced. Initially, the route from San Diego to Sacramento (stretching from San Diego to Los Angeles, the Bay Area, and on to Sacramento) will be replaced, followed by the Bay Area ring (Sunnyvale, Palo Alto, San Francisco, and Oakland) and the Central Valley route.

K12 Projects:

CENIC is pleased to announce the completion of several large ongoing projects to better serve the K12 node sites, the connection points to the CalREN backbone, and ultimately the entire K12 community. These projects include a refresh of customer premises equipment (CPE), a UPS battery replacement project, and a large number of circuit upgrades to improve connectivity to County Offices of Education.

Gigabit upgrades to a further 40 sites are also in progress, as well as a redundant connection for the Imperial County Office of Education to the CSU San Bernardino Palm Desert Campus.

California Community College Projects:

The California Community Colleges are undergoing a significant upgrade to connectivity, with over 30 sites slated to receive Gigabit connectivity to the CalREN backbone. Phase 1 of this systemwide project is currently in progress. Also, Installation of a DS3 circuit for the Long Beach City College Pacific Coast Campus is currently in progress, as well as the second phase of the creation of a fiber ring for the Los Rios Community College District, serving American River College, Sacramento City College, and Cosumnes River College.

California State University Projects:

The California State University has been the beneficiary of an ongoing initiative to provide dual, diverse Gigabit connectivity to each campus in the CSU system, the Campus Access Infrastructure Initiative, about which you can learn more below. To that end, installation of dual, diverse fiber connectivity to the CalREN backbone for Cal Poly Pomona is currently in progress, as well as a second Gigabit leased line for Cal State Los Angeles, and a fiber build for CSU San Marcos.

Other CSU projects include a new DS3 circuit for the CSU Stanislaus Stockton Center and DS3-to-OC3 circuit upgrades for the Salt Lake City Data Center.

University of California Projects:

After the kick-off of the high-performance connectivity of UC Santa Cruz to the CalREN backbone in January 2008, the next UC connectivity project to follow is the connection of the UC State Governmental Relations office, located in Sacramento, to the CalREN backbone.

Private and Independent Charter and Non-Charter Projects:

The 2006-07 fiscal year saw upgraded connectivity for the Naval Postgraduate School and the coming on board of the Monterey Bay Aquarium Research Institute, the University of San Diego, and the University of San Francisco as well. So far this year, Pepperdine University's West LA Graduate Campus has joined CalREN; a project to upgrade the campus's connectivity is currently in progress.