Optimising Internet Bandwidth in Developing Country Higher Education

We commissioned this report in 2003 in response to the concerns of partner organisations in Africa, Asia and Latin America that their use of costly Internet bandwidth was not as effective as it could be. The report was prepared with input from eight countries (from Africa, Asia and Europe), and has been written for three main audiences – senior management, librarians, and IT managers. It first identifies access problems in university environments, and then explains why access is frequently slow and costly, and how it can be affected by government policies as well as by other regulatory and economic restrictions. Finally, the report identifies how each stakeholder group can influence and improve online access within their institution. (The full report here has been summarised as part of our Infobrief series - see Infobrief 1: Optimising Internet Bandwidth in Developing Country Higher Education.)

The report was prepared by Gerhard Venter, Africonnect Ltd, Unit 5, Bennell Court, West Street, Comberton, Cambridge, CB3 7DS, United Kingdom.
Telephone: +44 1223 265685
Fax: +44 1223 265692
Mobile: +44-7 939 430 671
www.africonnect.com

Contents

The following links are to PDF documents with document download sizes shown in brackets.

  1. Executive summary and recommendations (Document BMO-chap1.pdf 32Kb)
  2. The need for bandwidth optimization (Document BMO-chap2.pdf 72Kb)
  3. Recommendations for librarians (Document BMO-chap3.pdf 54Kb)
  4. Network optimization review (Document BMO-chap4.pdf 193Kb)
  5. Charging and quotas (Document BMO-chap5.pdf 7Kb)
  6. Bandwidth (Document BMO-chap6.pdf 74Kb)
  7. Network design (Document BMO-chap7.pdf 18Kb)
  8. Usage policies (Document BMO-chap8.pdf 7Kb)
  9. Authentication (Document BMO-chap9.pdf 18Kb)
  10. Managing the IT department (Document BMO-chap10.pdf 22Kb)
  11. Using free software (Document BMO-chap11.pdf 18Kb)
  12. Connection options (Document BMO-chap12.pdf 11Kb)
  13. Glossary (Document BMO-chap13.pdf 87Kb)

Appendices
Appendix A: Practical technical implementation (Document BMO-appendixA.pdf 681Kb)

  • Web caching 
  • DNS caching
  • Content filtering
  • Monitoring
  • Bandwidth management
  • Security
  • Mail and dealing with spam
  • Web-based e-mail services
  • Anti-virus
  • Charging mechanisms
  • TCP/IP factors over a satellite connection
  • Major problem areas
  • Split DNS and a mirrored server
  • Bandwidth testing
  • Authentication
  • Network layout

Appendix B: Connection options (Document BMO-appendixB.pdf  43Kb)

  • Introduction
  • Connection via VSAT
  • Wireless WAN networks
  • Wireless LAN
  • Leased line
  • Peering

Appendix C: Usage policies (Document BMO-appendixC.pdf 83Kb)

  • Malawi College of Medicine
  • Addis Ababa University
  • Addis Ababa Library IT-related policy
  • Makerere University

Appendix D: Makerere University (Document BMO-appendixD.pdf 191Kb)

Appendix E: Malawi College of Medicine (Document BMO-appendixE.pdf 193Kb)

Appendix F: MIMcom VSAT Network (Document BMO-appendixF.pdf 321Kb)

Appendix G: University of Zululand (Document BMO-appendixG.pdf 352Kb)

Appendix H: Addis Ababa University (Document BMO-appendixH.pdf 115Kb)

Appendix I: University of Dar es Salaam (Document BMO-appendixI.pdf 165Kb)

Appendix J: University of Bristol (Document BMO-appendixJ.pdf 181Kb)

Appendix K: University of Moratuwa (Document BMO-appendixK.pdf 484Kb)

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