Recent network upgrade gives big data research at UB an edge

A recent upgrade to UB’s connection to the Internet2 nationwide network will increase tenfold the university’s data capacity, better positioning researchers for competitive funding opportunities by enabling faster and better collaboration on big data research.

The increase is particularly crucial for UB’s Center for Computational Research (CCR), which currently is working on a collaborative research project with the New York Genome Center. Tom Furlani, CCR director, says projects like this simply aren’t feasible without exceptional network capacity.

“In the past, it has taken us days to transfer 10 terabytes of data, and we envision even larger transfers — into petabytes — being needed in the future,” Furlani says. “Without this upgrade, the collaboration would not be possible.”

Access to grants often depends greatly on the ability to collaborate. “Granting agencies in the federal government often prefer collaborative projects between universities,” notes Mark Deuell, director of network and classroom services, part of UB Information Technology. “These network upgrades enable that communication and collaboration.”

The upgrade comes in time to take advantage of recently enhanced speeds on NYSERNet’s statewide network connecting New York research institutions — including UB — to the Internet2 network.

UB is a founding member of NYSERNet, a statewide, non-profit group committed to advancing network technology.