Connectivity Providers Database

From: Olivier MJ Crepin-Leblond <o.crepin-leblond@ic.ac.uk> To: randy@psg.com Date: Mon, 6 Dec 1993 14:26:37 +0000 Date: November 1993 GREECE ARIADnet Introduction ARIADNE is the National Networking program for Academic and Research networking in Greece. As from mid-1988 the program is administrated by the National Center for Scientific Research "DEMOKRITOS" in Athens, being a program of the General Secreteriat for Research and Technology (GSRT), where it was initially originated. It was in the first quarter of 1989 that the ARIADnet Network became available and operable and started to lay an infrastructure dedicated to Universities and main Research Institutes through Greece. The ARIADNE program is coordinated by the Greek representatives in COSINE and RARE in collaboration with the GSRT, with a strategic objective to establish a widespread harmonised infrastructure where OSI conformance is envisaged to be of prime importance. Maintaining continuity of services with existing widespread protocols is also a main activity and is fully supported. ARIADnet is active on several international fronts as well as national ones, as for example projects like X.400 (OSI-Kernel), X.500, and is also collaborating with and participating in international activities such as RIPE, EBONE etc to be able to keep up with new technologies and developments in the networking scene. Present Status The ARIADnet network operates and supports currently a private X.25 infrastructure which links via leased lines more than 20 institutions all over Greece, from the North to the South and from the East to the West. 15 X.25 switches are now servicing the main sites, while another 10 switches are to be installed until mid-summer 92. This private X.25 (84) network serves, through the respective computer centers the main Academic and Research Institutions in Greece and allows for off-site access for the hosts and workstations connected to local area networks existing within these institutions. The connections are of 9.6 Kbps speed and the number of connections is continuously growing. Users with low traffic usage have access to the ARIADnet services through HELLASPAC, or mainly through the dial-up service available in ARIADnet. At this moment 5 telephone lines are available and the service is provided at 9.6 Kbps. The number of organisations-subscribers through HELLASPAC is seven (7), while the number of organisations-Subscribers through the dial-up ARIADnet service is seventy (70). The total number of end users is estimated to be around 1000, with a total of 100 organisations being serviced at this moment, using one of the three possible access ways. The range of organisations is from large Universities and Research Centers, to smaller R & D Institutions and Departments of the Public or the Private Sector which do have some involvement in EEC projects. ARIADnet is coupled to two other networks, namely, HELLASPAC (The Public data Network) with two 9.6 Kbps X.25 links, and IXI with one 9.6 Kbps link and one 64 Kbps link soon to be operable. ARIADnet has also a connection with the EARN National Node of Greece in Heraclion (CRETE). A connection to RIPE (over IXI) is also available. At the same time, ARIADnet operates the Greek WEP for the X.400 MHS International Network. An IP link is also about to be established between CERN and the ARIADnet NOC. An experimental network based on routers is currently under installation connecting 8 sites and will be used to offer high speed Internet IP network services, which are now offered over X.25. A central router is already installed in DEMOKRITOS, the Network Operations Center (NOC) for ARIADnet, and will be soon connected to CERN. The remaining routers, with protocol translation capabilities will be installed in the main Academic and Research Institutions of the North, the South, the East and West of Greece, and the Athens area. The communication services which are offered include X.400, Triple X, Internet IP, Decnet over X.25. Help desk facilities are available and a pilot on-line information service namely PYTHIA is provided centrally in the NOC. ARIADnet network and Communications services are becoming increasingly popular and have built a sizeable network management task in dealing with a wide range of vendor machines and operating systems besides the management of the services offered. The operational network management is for the moment done by the Network Team of the NOC at DEMOKRITOS. --------------------------------------------------------------------- GREECE Name of Network ARIADNE Contact person/point Yannis Corovesis Postal address NRCPS DEMOKRITOS, 153 10 GR-ATHENS Telephone number +30 1 6513392 (9619932) E-mail address RFC822 ycor@isosun.ariadne-t.gr E-mail address X.400 C=gr; ADMD= ; PRMD=ariadnet; OU=isosun; S=corovesis; G=yannis; Newsletter Ariadne HELP DESK AND USER-DOCUMENTATION The most widely used information service at ARIADNE is the help-desk which is accessed by telephone, e-mail and computer dialogs over the network. There are also ad-hoc visits of users at the NOC. USER GROUP SUPPORT ACTIVITIES A line of work which has produced some good results has been with a special group of Chemists. This has been a "pump priming" exercise by just giving the user basic assistance and examples, after which he acts as a rapporteur. This has produced a series of documents, also available electronically, including "What the Chemist can find in the networks". This includes software, databases, ftp sites, discussion lists, contacts, projects etc. SUMMARY OF MAJOR INFORMATION SERVICES ON NETWORK Two projects carried out by student assistants, are just being completed. One group "hunts" information and documents it generally, the other group developed an information server, userid "pythia", on a SUN machine which is fed with the output of the former group. Certain browsing commands are available to the logged in user including a mail facility to describe unsolved problems. The server currently contains general information about ARIADNE, other networks, key network terms, contacts etc. A hardcopy report of the "what we have found" of the first group is to be printed and widely distributed, and is also available electronically. A problem that has been dealt with is handling information in the Greek character Set (ISO standard). An emulator is available on diskette for users with appropriate table translation so as to suit their terminal. A solution to cover "dumb" terminals has also been incorporated by using a Greek Standard which maps Greek characters into Latin. In general the activity on the NIS at ARIADNE has slowly increased. At the end of the year a more detailed, documented report is to be made available.