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October 2010

Belnet News

 

Agenda 2010

 

 

IPv6 connectivity: Request your IPv6 address block now 

IPv6, the successor to IPv4, is the latest generation Internet Protocol. IPv4 is presently the standard protocol, but due to the growing number of users and web applications, this protocol will no longer be adequate. A shortage of IPv4 addresses is expected by 2012. For this reason, Belnet has decided to switch its network to IPv6.
 
Implement IPv6 in your organisation now
 
Due to the imminent shortage of IPv4 addresses, you are advised to implement IPv6 in your network now. Belnet in any case is taking the first step and reserving an IPv6 block for all organisations connected to our network. This will allow your organisation to switch to IPv6 connectivity quicker and more efficiently, without additional cost. The quicker you implement IPv6 in your network, the easier the transition within your organisation will be. An article in Datanews points to the acute shortage of IPv4 addresses and the urgent need to switch to IPv6.
 

 

Update on the Belnet R&E Federation

Belnet will be launching its R&E Federation in the winter of 2010. Students, researchers and staff will then have a unique access login to the services of their organisation, but also to services of other organisations.
 
What is a federation?

A federation allows broad use of the institutional login, beyond the services provided at the university or college campus. Several online services can be offered within a federation. Users, for example, receive access from home to online library sources with a unique login.

 

 

Belnet R&E Federation

An advisory committee of universities and colleges of higher education has been collaborating with us since the start of 2009 on establishing a basis for the Belnet R&E Federation. In addition, the members of the advisory committee are already using the Belnet R&E Federation. 
 
Thus their users receive standard access to the following web applications:
 
* Filesender: A web application that allows users to send extremely large files to other users.
 
* Digital personalised certificates: Users can choose from ‘Personal Certificates’ for general use or from ‘GRID User Certificates’ in the case of scientific research. These personalised certificates allow users to confirm their identity as sender based on a digital signature.
 
 
 

Extension and expansion of the domain name registration platform


To meet the growing demand of its customers, Belnet will be expanding its domain name registration service. This service will be launched on 26 October.
 
The expansion consists of two aspects. The first aspect is the inclusion of additional root names. Thus, shortly, in addition to ‘.be’ and ‘.eu’, Belnet customers will also be able to register ‘.org’, ‘.com’, ‘.info’ and ‘.net’ names. This will allow them to give their sites even more visibility.
 

Belnet previously offered the possibility of using its servers as recursive and secondary servers for managing the DNS zones corresponding to these domain names. This option of course still exists, but has been enhanced with the second aspect of the service expansion: the option to use the Belnet servers as primary servers. This concretely means that from now on, a customer can manage its DNS zones completely on the Belnet servers, and thus no longer needs to have its own DNS servers.
 

In addition to these improvements, special efforts have also been put into the ergonomics of the service access interface.
 
 

 

Increased DNS security with DNSSEC

DNS allows us to use internet domain names instead of IP addresses. The internet, however, has evolved considerably since the invention of DNS in 1983. In addition, various shortcomings have been found in DNS in recent years that affect reliability and allow people to be diverted – unnoticed – to spoofed websites. DNSSEC (Domain Name System Security Extensions) was designed to prevent such attacks.
 
DNSSEC uses private and public keys to sign the DNS data, so that its authenticity can be validated by other recursive DNS servers. To verify the authenticity of the keys used, a chain of trust is required that begins with the ROOT server key. This chain of trust is possible since the signing of the ROOT zone on 15 July 2010. A few weeks ago, the ‘.be’ zone was also signed, so that DNSSEC is now also possible for Belgian domain names. Presently some 30 TLD's support DNSSEC, including ‘.be’, ‘.eu’, ‘.org’, ‘.edu’ and ‘.fr’.
 

In order to make use of this extra security, Belnet has enabled DNSSEC validation on all of its recursive DNS servers. And starting in 2011, we will be securing our own domain names with DNSSEC.
 
 
 

New milestone for Belnet with QoS on entire network

In the world of IT, good architecture and sustainability are increasingly gaining in importance. In answer to these requirements, we have decided to prioritise the IP traffic within the extremely high-performance Belgian network for research and education. In addition, a study has indicated that demand was great for a comprehensive VoIP service.
 
Thanks to this step, starting this autumn you will be able to use innovative services and real time applications such as VoIP over the Belnet network, unhindered and with prioritisation. Over time, this could result in significant savings for you as well as a smaller ecological footprint.
 
In a second step, we are planning further voice facilities for the coming calendar year. In this, BELNET will be structuring its services similar to the (long-term) contacts with operators you already are familiar with. We ask your confidence and patience, and promise to keep you informed in a timely manner concerning further progress. If more information is needed for your plans, contact customer@belnet.be at any time.
 


New Belnet partners: more than 190 organisations connected to the research network


During the past months, a number of new institutions have connected to Belnet or are presently implementing a connection.

The Belnet network has been expanded to include a hospital, a school group and two government agencies. A large hospital and a research centre are presently awaiting final acceptance of their connection.
 
Below follows a summary of these new institutions that are now connected to the Belnet network:

Hospitals engaged in research
- Regional Hospital Heilig Hart in Tienen
- CHR de la Citadelle Liege (soon)

 
Research Centre
- Immunehealth Research & Services (soon)
 
School Group
- School Group 25 Brugge-Oostkust
 
Government agencies
- The Belgian Export Credit Agency
- N.V. de Scheepvaart
 
 


Belnet is moving: new address starting 6 December 2010

Belnet has been located at its Trône area address for 17 years, but will be moving soon! The new location, in the Châtelain-Bailli area, is better suited to the number of Belnet employees, and will allow us to receive you even better. 
 
New address starting 6 December 2010:
Avenue Louise 231
1050 Brussels
 
Our telephone and fax numbers will remain the same.
 

 

Belnet Networking Conference, 19 November 2010 – Register now!

 
The eighth edition of the Belnet Networking Conference, the annual networking event for all Belnet contact persons and end users, will take place on Thursday 19 November 2010 in Hotel Le Plaza, Brussels.
 
This year we are focusing on the evolutions and trends within ICT management in the research and education world. We will also be examining what the Belnet network can mean for its users. Belnet continues to adapt its services, and of course continues to guarantee that these services are of the highest quality. The BNC is an ideal moment to highlight services such as VoIP, Belnet R&E Federation, Antispam and security.
 
Not only Belnet services will be treated. A number of organisations connected to the Belnet network will present their projects. In any case, our programme contains topics such as PC virtualisation and podcasting.
 
And of course our conference includes a strategic component in the morning. Well-known speaker Ken Klingenstein (Internet2) will address the limits of our identity on the Internet. In addition, we also expect a speaker who will explain developments within the international e-science sector.
 
Have a look at the programme and register quickly via our website, http://bnc.belnet.be.
 
For all questions or additional information, contact us at any time at bnc@belnet.be.