Our systems comprise about 40 physical machines ranging from generic white boxes to high-performance, rack-mounted multi-CPU machines.
Production machines run one of Windows Server 2003, Centos Linux 5.2 or OSX 10.4, although we also have a few systems running Redhat Enterprise Server and earlier versions of Centos. Non-production machines that run testing or experimental systems can run anything; Fedora is our popular choice at the moment.
We are moving away from running dedicated services on dedicated physical machines as we suffer the problem of many IT centres in that not all of our machines are fully utilised all the time.
To counter this, we are moving towards virtual servers and are running about 20 virtual machines on some of the beefier hardware. This allows us to activate and move systems as required or as needed, providing us with greater value for money.
We run an iSCSI Storage Area Network (SAN), comprising two SUN 2510 systems. One has 3.6Tb of SAS hard drive storage, the other has 6Tb of SATA storage. These are connected by multiple gigabit links to our virtual servers.
Networking-wise, we are primarily a Cisco network. Our core switch is a Cisco 3750 that feeds Cisco 2950 distribution switches. If needed, there are some dumb unmanaged switches that feed off those, but we try not to encourage their use. Security comes from the University's central Lucent firewall brick, a Cisco PIX and two custom Linux boxes.
The School provides wireless coverage, but ITS manages the equipment. There are Cisco wireless base stations on each floor of the School, giving full coverage of the CSSE building. These are connected to the University's SNAP Network, allowing access to anyone with a SNAP account.
School of Computer Science and Software Engineering
University information
CRICOS Code: 00126G
