1. Kevin Meynell EARNEST Workshop, 24 May 20061 Session D Conclusions Question 1 (no specific response) –Ask the question why do NRENs still exist? –Provide sense of (national) community, and can claim to be representative. –Easier to collaborate at international level. –Not-for-profit aspect important for lower-end users (e.g. schools). –Competitive in terms of cost/performance. –Networks can be simpler technically. –Provide training and awareness. –Still push new services (e.g. eduroam) that are not forthcoming from ISPs. –Should facilitate new communities where there is demand, and where national policies support this (why have multiple public sector networks?). –Possible anti-competitive issues to resolve. Question 2 (Maybe) –Norwegian model is interesting, but is ‘small’ country with limited number of institutions –In most countries (esp. larger) there are overlapping authorities which make integrated solutions more difficult. –Should be more involved with campuses, but the degree of integration depends on local circumstances. –Needs funding incentives, otherwise it will be difficult to enforce.

2. Kevin Meynell EARNEST Workshop, 24 May 20062 Session D Conclusions Question 3 (No) –It’s not a option because of procurement rules. –With a single option, lowest common denominator issues apply and tailored solutions are impossible. –Would ultimately stifle competition and innovation. –Perhaps insist on procuring equipment with better adherence to standards (or at least those that work!). Question 4 (Qualified Yes) –Should do both, but… –High-end is main reason for existence as it drives user demand and trickle-down effect (e.g. www). –More support can and should be given to low-middle end users, but this should be more delegated to campuses etc.. –Shouldn’t ignore low-end because there can be trickle-up effect as well (e.g. e-mail).

3. Kevin Meynell EARNEST Workshop, 24 May 20063 Technical Issues Network management –Use of IPv4, IPv6 or something new (GENI?) –Should everyone have a public IP address? –Firewalls and NATs complicate management and force protocols to be used for unsuitable tasks. –How to manage multiple VLANs? –Concerns about increasing network management complexity with separate optical, IP (and other?) layers to manage. Wider issues –Investigate scaling of large AAI federations. –Focus so much on Grid requirements? –Work more closely with vendors as to community requirements. –General trend to support more, but smaller users (e.g. schools).