Central Hosting Services Information

Central Hosting Network Environment

EITS Network Engineering recently completed a network upgrade for the central hosting environment. The upgrade includes improvements to resiliency, capacity, and overlay network offerings. We now offer two 10Gbit ethernet single mode fiber handoffs as base client connectivity with the option of increased capacity as necessary. Each client uplink terminates on a redundant EITS switch. We have two sets (zones) of networking equipment; each zone serves one half of the hosted clients. At this time, the connectivity model between client and EITS is layer 2 only and EITS handles the network layer components for clients.

Figure 1 - Central Hosting Network Connectivity

All clients must meet the following criteria:

1. Provide a top of rack (TOR) switch for connectivity to EITS. We can make special accommodations as necessary.
2. The TOR switch must support LACP.
3. The TOR switch uplinks must have STP disabled. This is to separate spanning-tree domains between clients and EITS. EITS has other safety mechanisms in place to protect against broadcast storms.
4. All traffic between EITS and the customer must be VLAN tagged.

 

Existing Customers

This list outlines the requirements and steps needed from clients for a successful migration from the old environment to the new.

1. Steven Duffee (sduffee@uga.edu) or Chris Fleming (cfleming@uga.edu) will reach out to you to schedule a discovery meeting. Members from network engineering and operations will be in attendance to answer questions and gather information. During this meeting we will discuss:
   1. MOU review
   2. Cabling requirements
   3. Subnet/VLAN requirements
   4. Central firewall services (Layer 2/3 Overlay Networks)
   5. Migration timelines
   6. Any other outstanding items
2. Once the subnet/VLAN information is known, submit a ticket to the EITS Network Engineering group with desired subnets/VLAN IDs. We can assign new VLAN IDs as necessary.
3. EITS will handle the cabling and connectivity pieces of the migration. We will run new single mode fiber cables as necessary and provide 10G LR optics.
4. When all steps are complete, EITS will work with you on scheduling a migration date/time.

 

New Customers

This list outlines the requirements and steps needed from new clients for hosted services onboarding.

1. Steven Duffee (sduffee@uga.edu) or Chris Fleming (cfleming@uga.edu) will reach out to you to schedule a discovery meeting. Members from network engineering and operations will be in attendance to answer questions and gather information. During this meeting we will discuss:
   1. MOU
   2. Power, Rack space requirements
   3. Cabling requirements
   4. Subnet/VLAN requirements
   5. Central firewall services (Layer 2/3 Overlay Networks)
   6. Migration timelines
   7. Any other outstanding items
2. Once the subnet/VLAN information is known, submit a ticket to the EITS Network Engineering group with desired subnets/VLAN IDs. We can assign new VLAN IDs as necessary.
3. EITS will handle the cabling and connectivity pieces of the migration. We will run new single mode fiber cables as necessary and provide 10G LR optics.
4. EITS will assign rack space and install PDUs per the discovery meeting.
5. When all steps are complete, EITS will work with you on scheduling an install date/time.

 

FAQ

Q: Do customers need to provide 10G optics for connectivity to EITS?

A: EITS will provide client side and EITS side optics for client-EITS connectivity. The client is responsible for all optics and transceivers south of their top of rack switch.

 

Q: Can I use VPLS/Central Firewall services in the new hosted services environment?

A: The new environment is purely EVPN with no ability to accommodate legacy VPLS services. In order to continue using VPLS/Central Firewall services, all of your locations must be EVPN capable. This means all sites must have upgraded routers (Arista 7020 is the new standard). EITS is currently undergoing a mass router refresh program and information about the status of your sites will be made publicly available.

 

Q: Will I experience downtime during the migration from the old environment to the new environment?

A: Yes. The migration requires moving to new physical infrastructure and maintenance window will be reserved to make the transition.