In recent years research in networking, distributed systems, and high performance computing has been hampered by the research community's limited access to high performance networking equipment, and more importantly, the detailed technical information needed to use it effectively in experimental systems research programs. This project provides gigabit network technology to U.S. universities for use in research and education. This technology is distributed in the form of Gigabit Network Kits, each kit consisting of a high performance ATM switch (supporting link speeds of up to 2.4 Gb/s), six network interface cards for workstations or PCs, software (including source), extensive documentation, including hardware design information. The kits are designed to permit flexible use in a variety of different systems research contexts (networking, operating systems, multimedia and high performance computing), and can be modified at both the software and hardware levels. In addition to the hardware and software, the program provides initial user training in the form of a two week intensive course and ongoing support through a users' group, an electronic mailing list and a WWW site providing access to software, documentation, announcements of contributed research products, bug reports and a FAQ page. Hardware support is also provided. The program also provides for a series of user workshops, (one every six months), allowing users to share experiences and demonstrate results from their work.
