Press Releases
Queen Mary, University of London Uses Juniper Networks Junosphere Classroom to Enable Research and Education with Virtual Networks
Junosphere Classroom Enables Queen Mary to use Virtual Network Environments to Advance Students' Network Skills While Lowering TCO
SUNNYVALE, Calif., May 16, 2011 — Juniper Networks (NYSE: JNPR) today announced Queen Mary, University of London is using Juniper Networks® Junosphere Classroom to provide a cost-effective and scalable virtual network lab solution. Launched today, Junosphere Classroom provides flexible, on-demand access to virtual networks and routers running the Junos® operating system. Queen Mary is using Junosphere Classroom for students studying the Internet Infrastructure Masters course and the Internet Protocols Undergraduate course, as well as a series of ongoing research projects.
A key part of Queen Mary's curricula includes providing hands-on experience to reinforce traditional lecture-based teaching, however supporting many students simultaneously in a physical lab environment can be challenging. Queen Mary found that traditional solutions relying on routers and other networked PCs lacked scale and flexibility. In addition it was costly to maintain from the perspective of efficient use of power, cooling and rack space when the equipment is only needed for selected parts of the curriculum.
Junosphere Classroom enables the students to have flexible, on-demand access to a virtual classroom environment consisting of networks and routers running Junos operating system dramatically reducing costs, and increasing flexibility while giving students experience with commercial network operating systems. Queen Mary students and facilities use Junosphere Classroom for realistic, extensive and sophisticated network modeling, as well as intensive configuration experimentation.
Because Junosphere Classroom is a virtual environment, Queen Mary can instantiate a much larger set of 24 teaching networks than its physical equipment previously provided, dramatically improving the student-to-equipment ratio and enabling much longer periods of individual study. In addition, distance-learning students in the UK, Portugal and China have been able to access the same environment, a capability missing from Queen Mary's physical teaching networks. Junosphere Classroom can be modified or re-initialized much faster than actual routers, which is especially valuable in a teaching environment, where rapid turn-around of facilities is required.
"Hands-on experience and experimentation with networks is a critical part of the education process which augments the theoretic principles we teach our students," said Dr. Chris Phillips, Network Research Group, Queen Mary, University of London. "Junosphere Classroom effectively gives students experience with cutting-edge, commercially available networking technology and demonstrates the real-world relevance of the programs we offer, but in a flexible, on-demand manner that improves efficiency and reduces costs."
Within the Computer Science networking module, students now have hands-on experience using equipment and technologies in a "real-world" context. Students are provided both theoretic classroom lessons and a variety of practical experiments that include the configuration and operation of routers. In addition to being accessible from Queen Mary, this facility was used by Distance Learning students located throughout the world.
"Junosphere Classroom is an innovative approach to learning, research and student collaboration which demonstrates how cloud-based technologies can advance network research and education," said Judy Beningson, vice president and general manager, Virtual Junos Business Unit, Juniper Networks. "Juniper Networks' pioneering work on virtualized networking, combined with the power of Internet clouds, makes Junosphere possible and gives Universities a whole new tool to grow a generation of Internet experts."
Junosphere Classroom
Junosphere Classroom enables businesses and educational institutions to cost effectively educate students, employees, or partners on the principles and operation of Junos OS, routing protocols, and networking in general. Junosphere Classroom allows the creation of virtual networking labs that provide full hands-on access to Juniper Networks' state-of-the-art commercial networking technology, with the flexibility, efficiency and scale of a cloud-based delivery model.
About Juniper Networks
Juniper Networks is in the business of network innovation. From devices to data centers, from consumers to cloud providers, Juniper Networks delivers the software, silicon and systems that transform the experience and economics of networking. Additional information can be found at Juniper Networks (www.juniper.net).
Juniper Networks and Junos are registered trademarks of Juniper Networks, Inc. in the United States and other countries. The Juniper Networks and Junos logos are trademarks of Juniper Networks, Inc. All other trademarks, service marks, registered trademarks, or registered service marks are the property of their respective owners.
