Building a Competitive National e-Infrastructure for Research

The Dutch Approach

Dr. L.A. Plugge SURF Scientific Technical Council

EuroRIs-Net Final Workshop 11 Oct. 2011, Athens

Our challenge in 1985

14 research universities

~8 big university IT centers for research

To keep up with competition:

8x investment needed, for similar equipment

Government proposal:- Collaborate in sharing facilities;- And we will invest.

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1987 SURF Foundation – innovation hotbed 1988 SURFnet BV – network services1991 SURFdiensten BV - procurement

Collaborate on challenges that you cannot solve by yourself

and no one else will solve for you

SURF members:• All Universities (14+41);• 7 other institutions.

SURFnet users:- All (Research) Universities;- Academic Hospitals;- Top Clinics;- Research Institutions;- University and Royal Libraries;- Other subsidized institutions.

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New challenges since 1990

• (e)Science is increasingly a global multidisciplinary cooperative effort;− Need for excellent global connectivity;− Need to share resources;− Need to combine generic resources; − Exchange, combine and integrate data and information;− Reuse of methods and techniques across disciplines.

4SURF – ICT innovation by and for higher education and research

Create a single national ICT infrastructure for research− Hardware (network, computers and data storage

facilities);− Software (web and grid middleware); − Harnessing resources.

Not in grant competition with our user community!

Global Lambda Integrated Facility (GLIF) Infrastructure

5SURF – ICT innovation by and for higher education and research

NetherLightGLIF Open Lightpath Exchange

For:• Service providers• Carriers• Research• GLIF members• NRENs

National ICT infrastructure for research

6SURF – ICT innovation by and for higher education and research

Challenges ahead:• SURFSARA

(the computing and data facility management organization)

• Capability computing resources(replacing the current national supercomputer Huygens)

• Capacity computing cluster resources(upgrading the current BiG Grid computing infrastructure)

• Data storage resources(upgrading and extending the BiG Grid storage infrastructure)

• Structural funding for innovation(not in competition with researchers)

• Structural ICT budget reservation in research projects(ICT budget for use of generic services)

• Rethinking Scientific Communication− e.g., what is the future of University Libraries?

7SURF – ICT innovation by and for higher education and research

SURF – ICT innovation by and for higher education and research

Dr. Leo Plugge

plugge@surf.nl

www.surf.nl/wtr

Thank you

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