The development stages of AzScienceNet network :
- The first data transmission network, known as the Academicset network, was established in the 1980s of the previous century to connect Republic Computing Center using x25 technologies.
- The founding of the Azerbaijan Gateway of EARN (European Academic & Research Network-European Science and Research Network) organization at the Institute of Information Technology of ANAS marked the beginning of the Republic of Azerbaijan's Internet network development.
- Several ministries, state bodies, and ANAS institutions and organizations were able to use the services of the "Sovam teleport," "EARN," "BİTNET," "RELCOM," and "İASNET" international computer networks thanks to the establishment of the Azerbaijan station of the email service in 1991, which connected to the "Sovam Teleport" network for the first time in the Republic of Azerbaijan.
- Based on TCP/IP technologies, the AzScienceNet network's first gateway to Azerbaijan was established in 1991. It connected to the global internet network and included local networks from the Presidium of ANAS and Institute of Information Technology.
- In 1995, the AzScienceNet network's second gateway to Azerbaijan was established within the ANAS main corpus. The Republic's greatest computer network infrastructure started to function when contact was established over the phone line that ran directly between the first and second gateways.
Picture 1. AzScienceNet network infrastructure
- The first website in the Republic of Azerbaijan was created in 1995 at Institute of Information Technology of ANAS under the name www.ab.az and accommodated in the servers of AzScienceNet network.
- www.ab.az website re-processed in accordance with information space, the scope, content and infrastructure that had covered, was called www.science.az (www.elm.az, www.nauka.az) portal and constantly was put into operation on September 24, 2003
Picture 2. ANAS website www.science.az
The portal www.science.az aims to integrate Azerbaijani science into the international scientific community by facilitating knowledge and information exchange between Azerbaijani scientists and their foreign colleagues. It provides a platform for sharing scientific achievements and establishing scientific, scientific-pedagogical, and scientific-technical collaborations. The portal operates in Azerbaijani, Russian, and English.
Based on the recommendations of the NATO Science Committee, the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), and other international organizations, the public association “Azerbaijan Scientific-Research and Educational Networks Association” (AzRENA) was established in August 2000 by leading scientific and educational institutions of the Azerbaijan National Academy of Sciences (ANAS) and the Ministry of Education. AzRENA was formed on the basis of the AzScienceNet network.
Following the assignment of the implementation of the “Virtual Silk Road” project, proposed by the NATO Science Committee, to ANAS, a new stage in the development of the ANAS Internet network began. The project aimed to connect three Caucasus republics—Azerbaijan, Georgia, and Armenia—and five Central Asian republics—Uzbekistan, Turkmenistan, Kyrgyzstan, Kazakhstan, and Tajikistan—to the Internet using advanced satellite technologies, thereby creating a “Virtual Silk Road.”
Picture 3. Virtual Silk Road project
On May 15, 2003, the opening ceremony marking the launch of VSAT terrestrial satellite communication equipment, delivered to Azerbaijan by the NATO Science Committee within the framework of the “Virtual Silk Road” project, was held at the Institute of Information Technology of ANAS. The ceremony was attended by NATO Secretary General Lord George Robertson, ambassadors of foreign countries, leading Azerbaijani scientists, and representatives of various ministries, as well as scientific and educational institutions. As part of the event, the first videoconference conducted over the global network in the republic was organized between the Network Operations Center at the Institute of Information Technology of ANAS and the NATO Network Operations Center in Hamburg, Germany.
Picture 4. Videoconference with NATO Secretary General Lord George Robertson
Dynamics of the development of AzScienceNet’s connection speed to the international global network via DELTA TELECOM LLC (2005–2012):
Picture 5. Dynamics of computers connected to the AzScienceNet network
The new node of the AzScienceNet network was launched in 2010. This node is located in the building of the Institute of Information Technology of ANAS. The new Internet center of ANAS was established by providing telecommunications and server equipment, mainly products of Cisco, IBM and HP companies.
Picture 6. AzScienceNet's new center
The membership of the AzScienceNet scientific computer network in TERENA (Trans-European Research and Education Networking Association) was approved at the organization’s General Assembly held in Vilnius on June 3–4, 2010. This membership marked a significant step toward the integration of the Azerbaijan Research and Education Network into Europe’s research and education networking infrastructure. Azerbaijan is represented in TERENA by the Institute of Information Technology of ANAS, which maintains close cooperative relations with the organization.
On March 29, 2011, Valentino Cavalli, Secretary of the TERENA Technical Committee, and Kevin Meynelli, a senior representative of the organization, visited the Institute of Information Technology of ANAS to get acquainted with the infrastructure of the AzScienceNet scientific computer network and its ongoing activities. During the visit, the guests were briefed on the current state of the country’s research and education networks and discussed key issues, including the acceleration of integration processes into the European research and education networking environment.
Meeting with Valentino Cavalli, Secretary of the TERENA Technical Committee
A policy governing the efficient and secure use of AzScienceNet network resources has been established. The objective of this policy is to ensure the purposeful and secure utilization of AzScienceNet resources in addressing scientific research, scientific-practical, and educational tasks carried out by scientific institutions of the Republic of Azerbaijan.
To enable the effective use of AzScienceNet’s capabilities, a centralized registry of users’ computers and a network passporting system have been introduced.
A "Network Monitoring and Information Security System" has been created to improve quality indicators, as well as to ensure traffic control and information security.
The registry system was established using the MAC addresses of computers. Information about the AzScienceNet network and all computers connected to it was consolidated into a single centralized database.
The AzScienceNet network uses high-speed intelligent network equipment. In order to promptly eliminate malfunctions in this equipment and communication channels online, a network passporting system (a scheme for the location and connection of telecommunications equipment) has been created.
The AZSCIENCECERT organization was established within the AzScienceNet network to ensure rapid response to information security incidents, collect and analyze incident data, conduct scientific and analytical research, and establish cooperation with relevant international organizations. On May 31, 2011, AZ-CERT was officially registered and accredited in the Trusted Introducer system under the auspices of the TERENA organization.
A Distance Learning Center has been established at the Institute of Information Technology through the AzScienceNet network. The Center creates new opportunities for building sustainable cooperative relations among scientific and educational institutions in Baku and across the regions of the country, as well as with leading universities worldwide. It also contributes to improving the quality of education and supports the organization of courses in various fields of science.
The AzScienceNet network also provides Internet services to the Training Innovation Center (TIC), a structural division of the Institute of Information Technology of ANAS established in 2003. The network infrastructure of TIC was developed on the basis of the AzScienceNet network. TIC actively participates in projects implemented nationwide to support the formation of an information society and the development of e-government. As is widely recognized, a key prerequisite for building an electronic state is the development of computer literacy and an information culture among all members of society.
The eduroam service has been deployed within the AzScienceNet network. The server hosted on the AzScienceNet infrastructure serves as the national eduroam operator in the republic and was officially registered with the European eduroam Confederation under the auspices of the TERENA organization on November 11, 2011.
At the end of 2011, a Data Center was established on the basis of the AzScienceNet network to address complex, strategically important tasks within the institutes and organizations of ANAS that require substantial computing power and large-scale data storage resources.
DATA Center architecture
DATA Center
Current technical characteristics of the Data Center of the AzScienceNet network:
- Number of computer equipment connected to the AzScienceNet network - 7200 units
- Internet connection speed - 1.41 Gbit/s
- Computing power - 19 Tflops
- External memory capacity - 600 Tbytes
AzScienceNet Data Center
Current Service Portfolio of the AzScienceNet Network
