The development stages of  the AzScienceNet network 

Initial stage and network formation

• The first Data Transmission Network (Akademset network), which connected Republic Computing Center, was established in the 1980s using x25 technologies.
• The development of the Internet in the Republic of Azerbaijan began with the establishment  of an Azerbaijani  node of the EARN (European Academic & Research Network) organization at the Institute of Information Technology of ANAS.
• In 1991, the first electronic mail service was established through a connection to the international “Sovam Teleport” network. This service enabled ANAS institutes and organizations, as well as a number of government institutions, to use the services of international computer networks such as “Sovam Teleport,” “EARN,” “BITNET,” “RELCOM,” and “IASNET.”

• In 1991, the first Azerbaijani node of the AzScienceNet network was established using TCP/IP technologies. This node enabled the buildings of the Presidium of ANAS and the Institute of Information Technology to connect their local area networks to the global Internet.

• In 1995, the second Azerbaijani node of AzScienceNet was established in the main building of ANAS. The establishment of a direct connection between the first and second nodes via a dedicated telephone line marked the beginning of the operation of a computer network with extensive infrastructure in the country.

                         Figure 1.  Infrastructure  of the AzScienceNet network 

Development of the Science Portal and AzRENA

• In 1995, the first website in the Republic of Azerbaijan, www.ab.az, was created at the Institute of Information Technology of ANAS and hosted on AzScienceNet servers.
• The website www.ab.az was redesigned in accordance with the scale, content, and infrastructure of the information space it covered and was renamed the www.science.az portal (also available as www.elm.az and www.nauka.az). The portal was officially put into continuous operation on September 24, 2003.

                            Figure 2.  The ANAS www.science.az website 

The main objectives of the www.science.az portal are to facilitate the integration of Azerbaijani science into the international community; enable scientists working in various scientific fields to exchange knowledge and information with their foreign colleagues; share scientific achievements; and establish scientific, academic, and technological cooperation. The portal operates in Azerbaijani, Russian, and English.

Taking into account the recommendations of the NATO Science Committee, the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), and other organizations, the Azerbaijan Research and Educational Networks Association (AzRENA) was established as a public association in August 2000 by ANAS, the Ministry of Education, and several leading scientific and educational institutions. The association was established on the basis of the AzScienceNet network.

The “Virtual Silk Highway” Project

The assignment to ANAS of responsibility for implementing the “Virtual Silk Highway” project, proposed by the NATO Science Committee, marked the beginning of a new stage in the development of Internet connectivity at the Academy. The project envisaged connecting three South Caucasus countries ( Azerbaijan, Georgia, and Armenia), as well as five Central Asian countries (Uzbekistan, Turkmenistan, Kyrgyzstan, Kazakhstan, and Tajikistan) to the Internet using modern satellite technologies, thereby creating the “Virtual Silk Highway.”

                                                     Figure 3. The “Virtual Silk Highway” Project

On May 15, 2003, the opening ceremony was held at the Institute of Information Technology of ANAS marking the launch of VSAT satellite communication equipment supplied to Azerbaijan by the NATO Science Committee within the framework of the “Virtual Silk Highway” project. 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. During the ceremony, the first videoconference in Azerbaijan over a global network  was organized between the Network Operations Center located at the Institute of Information Technology of ANAS and the NATO Network Operations Center in Hamburg, Germany.

Figure 4. Videoconference held with the  participation of  NATO Secretary General Lord George Robertson

The growth dynamics of  of AzScienceNet’s international connectivity speed  through  DELTA TELECOM LLC (2005–2012):

The growth dynamics of the number of personal computers connected to the AzScienceNet network between 1997 and 2012:

Figure 5.Growth in the Number of Computers Connected to AzScienceNet

Infrastructure Expansion

In 2010, a new node of the AzScienceNet network was commissioned. Located in the building of the Institute of Information Technology of ANAS, the new Internet center was equipped primarily with telecommunications and server equipment manufactured by Cisco, IBM, and HP.

Figure 6. AzScienceNet's new center

At the TERENA General Assembly held in Vilnius on June 3–4, 2010, a decision was made to admit the AzScienceNet research and education network to TERENA (the Trans-European Research and Education Networking Association). This membership represented an important step toward integrating Azerbaijan's research and education network into the corresponding European network infrastructure.

On March 29, 2011, Valentino Cavalli, Secretary of the TERENA Technical Committee, and other representatives, including Kevin Mainelli, visited the Institute of Information Technology to learn about the AzScienceNet infrastructure and its activities. During the meeting, issues related to accelerating integration into the European networking environment were discussed.

Figure 7. Meeting with Valentino Cavalli, Secretary of the TERENA Technical Committee

Network Management and Information Security

A usage policy was established to ensure the efficient and secure use of AzScienceNet network resources. Its objective is to ensure that the network resources are used appropriately and securely to support scientific research, practical scientific activities, and educational tasks within scientific institutions in the Republic of Azerbaijan.

A computer registry and network registration system were developed. MAC addresses were used to register computers, and information about AzScienceNet and the computers connected to it was collected in a centralized database.

 A "Network Monitoring and Information Security System" has been created to improve quality indicators, as well as to ensure traffic control and information security.

A network documentation and registration system was developed to record the locations and connection diagrams of telecommunications equipment, enabling faults in network equipment and communication channels to be identified and resolved promptly online.rity.

n 2010, the Az-CERT service was established as the first CERT structure created in Azerbaijan. It subsequently continued its activities under the name AzScienceCERT. The service worked to respond to information security incidents within the research and education network, manage information security risks, protect critical infrastructure, and ensure operational resilience.

On May 30, 2011, AzScienceCERT received international accreditation. Since then, the service has regularly undergone international assessments, improved its operations, and actively participated in the global cybersecurity community.

New Services and Research and Education Infrastructure

A Distance Learning Center was established at the Institute of Information Technology using the AzScienceNet network. The center created new opportunities for cooperation between scientific and educational institutions in Baku and those in the country's regions, as well as with leading universities worldwide. It also enabled the organization of courses in various scientific disciplines.

The eduroam service was introduced on the AzScienceNet network. The server hosted on the network performed the functions of the national operator in Azerbaijan and was registered with the European eduroam Confederation, operating under TERENA (now associated with GÉANT), on November 11, 2011.

In late 2011, a Data Center was established on the basis of AzScienceNet to address complex computational problems requiring substantial computing and storage resources at ANAS institutes and organizations.

The eduGAIN service was introduced on the AzScienceNet network. In 2022, AzScienceNet's membership in the eduGAIN interfederation service was confirmed.

On December 20, 2019, the LoLa (Low Latency) audiovisual transmission system was officially commissioned at the Baku Music Academy named after Uzeyir Hajibeyov, with the support of GÉANT's EaPConnect project and through the AzScienceNet network.

The online event was organized within the framework of the MIRCO project through cooperation among AzEduNet, AzScienceNet, HITSA EEnet at the Estonian Academy of Music and Theatre, and GARR, the Italian research and education network.

With the support of AzScienceNet, LoLa technology was also installed at the Conservatory of Nakhchivan State University. On May 3, 2025, a LoLa concert was held between the Baku Music Academy and Nakhchivan State University in Nakhchivan, with the support of GÉANT and the EaPConnect project.

                       Figure 8. DATA Center architecture

                                    Figure 9. DATA Center

Current Technical Characteristics of the AzScienceNet Data Center:

• Number of computer equipment connected to the AzScienceNet network - 7900 units
• Internet connection speed - 3.5 Gbit/s
• Computing power - 21 Tflops
• External memory capacity - 800 Tbytes

            Figure 10. AzScienceNet Data Center

                  Current Service Portfolio of the AzScienceNet Network