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FAQ for 2015 Broadband Library Participants

Broadband Libraries: Frequently Asked Questions for Project Participants

FAQ- High-Speed Broadband in California Public Libraries

Connecting to CalREN
Connectivity Speeds
E-rate and CTF Discounts
Confirming Your Membership in CENIC
Implementing Your Connection to CalREN
Reliability of CalREN
Other organizations on CalREN

Work is underway to bring high-speed broadband to all of California’s public libraries by connecting them to the California Research & Education Network (CalREN), a high-capacity 3,800-mile fiber-optic-based network designed to meet the unique requirements of over 20 million users, including the vast majority of K-20 students together with educators, researchers, and others in California’s colleges and universities.

Connecting to CalREN

What organizations are administering the project?

Four organizations have joined together to undertake this work:

The California State Library (www.library.ca.gov) serves as the central reference and research library for the state government; preserves and disseminates information and provides technical assistance and development opportunities to California’s public libraries. The California State Library is funded by the California State Legislature to set direction for this project and provide oversight.

The Califa Group (www.califa.org) is a non-profit library consortium of over two hundred libraries in California. They pioneer technology projects, negotiate discount rates for technology purchases on behalf of member libraries, and manage state-wide projects on behalf of the California State Library. Califa, acting as the administrative arm of the California State Library for this work, develops contracts with participating libraries for circuits and use of the CalREN network.

CENIC (www.cenic.org), the Corporation for Education Network Initiatives in California, designs, implements, and operates the California Research and Education Network (CalREN), a high-bandwidth, high-capacity Internet network specially designed to meet the unique requirements of its members which include higher education institutions and K-12 schools in the State. CENIC provides network design, procures circuits, arranges for state and federal discounts, purchases and installs hardware, and maintains and monitors network connectivity to each library.

Southern California Library Cooperative ( www.socallibraries.org), SCLC, is a cooperative library system created by the California Library Services Act. SCLC enhances the resources of its member libraries through cooperative services to better serve their local library users.

Where can I find a complete project description of the High Speed Broadband in California Libraries Project?

There is a project description on the CENIC website. Click here to learn more:

Will our library be a part of the CalREN network, or will it merely have access to the network?

Public libraries in California are members of CENIC (the organization that builds and maintains the CalREN network), and your library patrons and staff will have access to the CalREN network.

What is the difference between CENIC and commercial Internet providers?

CENIC is not a vendor; CENIC operates a private network (CalREN) designed to meet the needs of the education and library community. CENIC seeks input from its members on all aspects of its operations, including operation of the CalREN network.

What libraries are eligible to connect?

All public libraries in the State of California, who are members of a CLSA System, are eligible. Work began in 2014 to connect libraries to CalREN and will conclude when all libraries who wish to be connected are connected to CalREN.

When will libraries be able to connect to CalREN?

Per the federal rules, E-rate discounts apply to services starting July 1 of each year. The first group of libraries is being connected to CalREN beginning July 1, 2015. A new group of libraries will begin the process of connecting to CalREN during Round 2 of the project, which begins in July of 2015. These libraries will be connected beginning in July of 2016, but may connect prior to July 1, 2016 if the library is able to cover the full undiscounted costs of connecting, both the non-recurring and monthly recurring costs.

Why should our library connect to CalREN?

Just as there are a myriad of resources available that constitute 21st Century digital citizenship, there are a myriad of benefits to a library that joins CENIC and connects to the California Research and Education Network (CalREN). CENIC helps public institutions achieve their goals by providing advanced networking and consulting services and delivers the highest quality technologies at the lowest cost. The CalREN network was built to provide solutions tailored to the needs of public research and education institutions across California, and now, libraries. As a non-profit network owned and governed by its members in the education, library and research communities, the members have a direct role in shaping CENIC services, products and strategic direction, creating a high level of value, transparency and engagement.

CENIC provides the most advanced technologies at the lowest cost by passing along the pricing advantages of our large economies of scale and an owned backbone network infrastructure. With a presence in all 58 counties, there is no other network like it in California. By keeping network-related costs low and predictable, we help organizations meet challenging budget restrictions, reduce program expenses, and do more for their communities. CENIC does not limit members to a one-size-fits-all solution. Our tiered network approach and tailored solutions meet a diverse range of needs. Members are always able to choose the right level of services for them, with cost-efficient scalability as their needs evolve.

By connecting to CalREN, a unified statewide library network can be developed and will allow applications to interoperate in ways that would be difficult if libraries were connected to disparate network providers. These applications might include shared licensing (for both content and business applications), broad-based content sharing, cloud computing applications, and system or multi-system library cards. Additionally, CENIC is managing a statewide E-rate consortium process and accessing the California Teleconnect Fund program for the broadband services provided through this project.

Connectivity Speeds

How fast will my connection to the Internet be?

The current target for a library connection is 1 Gigabit/second (also written 1 G or 1 Gbps). In some cases, this 1 Gbps connection is to be shared among library branches. Greater speeds of 10 Gbps is also possible, and several library jurisdictions have chosen this level of connectivity during Year 1. Lower connection speeds are also available, although mostly utilized in remote areas where there is simply no other option.

Can you give me some examples of increases in speed for libraries that are being connected in Year 1 (2014-2015)?

Alhambra Public Library is going from 100 Mbps to 1 Gbps (10 fold increase).
San Benito County Free Library is going from 1.5 Mbps to 1 Gbps (666 fold increase).
Santa Clara County Library has 9 branch libraries currently connecting at 20 megabits/second each, and sharing a single 100 megabits/second link to the Internet with other county administrative uses. When connected to CalREN, these libraries will each get 1 Gbps connection to the main library and the main library will get a 10 Gbps connection to the CalREN backbone. Internet connectivity will no longer be shared with other administrative offices in the county.

Will the upload and download speeds on my circuit be the same?

In all cases, CENIC circuits have the same bandwidth in both directions. So in the case of a 1Gbps connection, the upload connection is 1 Gbps from the library to CalREN, and a 1 Gbps download connection from CalREN to the library.

Costs of Connecting to CalREN

What are the total costs to connect to CalREN? Will there be any additional unforeseen costs?

The costs provided in quotes, except where we’ve explicitly stated that there are additional costs to be determined, include the total cost to the library for new circuits. The quotes include circuit costs and installation costs, including any special construction costs if required. A Library may need to upgrade their owned hardware to connect to CalREN. See below.

I understand that there are one time and recurring costs for the circuits. Can you explain the difference between these?

One-time costs are typically to pay for the cost of installation of service. These are costs carriers pass on to CENIC and Califa. These are typically referred to as “Non-recurring costs” or NRCs.

Recurring costs are typically billed monthly and cover the expense of carriers keeping the circuit working, including monitoring for problems, and doing repairs when something is damaged.

What about the costs of hardware a library must purchase to receive the new connection?

To take advantage of higher speed connections to the Internet, a library is likely going to need new hardware. A new router and a new firewall are commonly needed because it takes more advanced hardware to deal with a 1 Gbps data stream (connection speed) than a 100 Mbps data stream. (Sometimes the router and firewall functionality are combined into one piece of hardware.) A library may also want to upgrade the network in its building in order to allow patrons and staff to benefit fully from their new connectivity.

What if we cannot afford this hardware?

Options to assist with paying for a new router/switch at each branch include:

-A library can apply for E-rate on the necessary routers and/or switches. Please note that this option will require CIPA compliance.
The California State Library sponsored a grant program to help pay for the one-time costs including hardware (routers and/or switches). These grants will be available again during Round 2 of the program and more details will be forthcoming from CSL.

-To reduce costs, Califa, working with CENIC and CSL, coordinates a bulk purchase of hardware from Cisco using a competitive bid process with Cisco resellers. This bulk purchase takes advantage of deep discounts, substantially reducing costs for needed routers or switches at each branch. Money obtained through the CSL grant may be used to pay for hardware obtained through the consolidated bulk purchase.

Are there costs to prepare our site for service? For example, if we choose to relocate the circuit to a server room or any other location,will there be additional costs to pay for the move?

The service provider (e.g. AT&T, Comcast, Verizon, etc) will bring their service to the MPOE and no further. In some cases, the provider can be paid to move the MPOE, but it is likely to be less expensive to run cabling from the MPOE to wherever the Library needs the service. The MPOE move or cabling cost would be the responsibility of the library.

Also if additional electrical power is required in the library’s Minimum Point of Entry (MPOE) in order to house the hardware there, then this cost will need to be paid for by the library. However, both of these costs are eligible for grant funding through the CSL.

E-rate and CTF Discounts

How will the E-rate process be handled?

CENIC will handle all aspects of the E-rate process, including filing all E-rate forms (470, 471, 486, 472, etc) on behalf of consortium members for the new broadband services identified through CENIC’s bid process. However, libraries who wish to receive E-rate discounts on circuits to connect to CalREN must complete a Letter of Agency (LOA). CENIC will also respond to questions, if any arise through the Program Integrity Assurance (PIA) review, regarding these broadband services. The PIA is a process used by USAC to review applications for compliance with program rules and policies. During this process, USAC reviews the information submitted on a Form 471 and may contact the applicant with additional questions prior to awarding funds.

Libraries who are currently applying for E-rate discounts are encouraged to continue to do so until they have connected to CalREN or if they are seeking funding for other eligible services. See below.

How do E-rate reimbursements work?

A library will pay the undiscounted full price for CENIC service from July 1, 2016 (or whenever CENIC service starts for that library) through June 30, 2017, and then, on or around July 1, 2017, the library receives E-rate reimbursements for the whole previous year in one check.

Will libraries still need to file for E-rate discounts?

This consortium project is specifically for high-speed broadband services to connect libraries to CalREN. If a library would like to receive E-rate discounts for other eligible services, such as internal Wi-Fi or voice/phones, then that library must file separately for these other eligible services in order to receive E-rate discounts on them.

Will libraries participating in this E-rate consortium need to comply with Children’s Internet Protection Act (CIPA) requirements?

The broadband services being procured through this E-rate consortium are telecommunications circuits, which are not subject to CIPA. Therefore, if the library is only receiving E-rate funded services through the consortium, it will not be subject to the CIPA compliance requirements. If the library is separately applying for E-rate on other services, the library will need to follow E-rate guidelines regarding CIPA compliance on those services. Libraries connecting to CalREN will also receive Internet services from CENIC. There is no CIPA compliance requirement for receiving Internet access through CENIC.

Are there any restrictions on the use of the circuits purchased in this program?

The circuits are to be used by libraries and their patrons. E-rate guidelines state that E-rate funded services for libraries should be used to support activities that are integral, immediate, and proximate to the provision of library services. We encourage all libraries to follow USAC guidelines (http://www.usac.org/sl/about/program-integrity/appeals-guidelines.aspx) with respect to use of circuits purchased through the consortium. All activities that occur on library property are presumed to be integral, immediate, and proximate to the provision of library services to library patrons.

What about non-recurring charges (e.g. installation charges)? Will these be included in the E-rate consortium application?

Yes, all non-recurring charges will be included in the E-rate consortium application. Please note that these costs are eligible for E-rate discounts, but they are not eligible for CTF discounts. Libraries will also need to complete a separate LOA for the California Teleconnect Fund.

Will libraries be able to receive California Teleconnect Fund (CTF) discounts on broadband services?

Yes, in addition to applying for E-rate discounts, CENIC will also apply for CTF discounts on these recurring circuit charges for consortium members.

Confirming Your Membership in CENIC

Once we decide we would like to connect, what are the next steps?

Libraries give permission for CENIC to seek bids for Internet service on their behalf by submitting a letter of agency.
Technical information and network designs are discussed with libraries. Network design decisions are agreed upon by each library and CENIC.
Through a Request for Proposals (RFP) process, CENIC obtains quotes for services from providers on behalf of participating libraries.
Once participating libraries accept quotes, contracts for Internet service are between the library and Califa are executed.

Is there a sample contract for broadband services that we can show our administrative personnel?

Yes, a contract template can be found at :

Implementing Your Connection to CalREN

This topic is covered in more detail in a document titled Steps to Connect to CalREN, which can be found at Steps to Connect.

Circuits

Our library needs two lines to connect to CalREN: one line from the County Main Library and another to the CalREN Hub. I thought the upload and downloads shared the same line. Can you explain why I need two lines?

This situation only applies to those libraries that are connecting using AT&T Switched Ethernet (ASE) service. This "cloud" networking service requires one circuit from the County Main Library to the "AT&T cloud" and then another from the "AT&T cloud" to CalREN. These are shown separately on the quote for service libraries receive. Both MUST be present for the service to work.

I am filing for our “backup” Internet service so service is not interrupted while the CENIC connections are made. I plan to sign a month to month contract. How many months should I extend this back up?

Until libraries have successfully migrated over to CENIC, we encourage all libraries, especially for those libraries who currently apply for E-rate discounts, to continue to file a separate Form 470 for existing and new Internet and voice services. It would be prudent to continue to apply for discounts on existing services until the new service is installed and operational. While each situation is different, a 3-6 month back-up period would be prudent.

Hardware to be Installed by CENIC at the Library Site

What type of hardware will we be connecting to at the CalREN connection point?

CENIC will install an Internet Router at your main library. In almost all cases, this will be a Cisco ASR router. CENIC will install and configure both ends of the link between your main library and the CalREN backbone so that CENIC can maintain the circuit and ensure its reliability.

How can we be sure it is configurable to communicate with our hardware?

CENIC’s hardware uses only standard internet protocols, and will communicate with other standard hardware via copper (up to 1 Gbps, using RJ45 connectors), or fiber optic cabling (Multimode or Single Mode). You will have to let CENIC know what kind of cabling you need. A Library’s hardware should be capable of communicating using the Border Gateway Protocol (BGP), a standardized exterior gateway protocol designed to exchange routing and reachability information between autonomous systems on the Internet. If your technical staff has questions, we are happy to work with them.

Does CENIC provide IP addresses? How many per library? We currently use 2 IP addresses?

CENIC does provide public (globally routable) IP addresses upon request. You can apply for up to 32 (a /27) per library branch, but there is an application process in which you must justify your need for that many. Public IP addresses are a scarce and valuable resource, so CENIC is very careful about their use, under the direction of the CENIC Board of Directors.

Preparing to accept the CalREN Connection

I need help figuring out how to set up my library network to take full advantage of the much higher speeds, who do I ask?

If your technical staff needs help with this (or if you don’t have technical staff), Califa maintains a list of consultants that have been proven to be helpful to libraries. Email the project team at: broadband@califa.org to obtain a copy of this list.

Hardware Needed by Libraries to Connect to CENIC Hardware

Do we need to use Cisco hardware? We typically buy another brand.
No, a library does not need to use Cisco hardware. There are many other vendors that make hardware that will work very well. A very important consideration is the ongoing maintenance and support for your hardware. If your IT support people are used to using a particular brand and can support it well, then it is probably a very good idea to use that brand to remain compatible with their support procedures.

How do we know if our current switches and routers are compatible with the CENIC Broadband service?
IT consultants can help you assess the compatibility of current hardware or hardware you plan to purchase. Califa maintains a list of potential consultants and they are happy to share this list. Assessing compatibility can get very complicated. Most Internet switches and routers are compatible with each other in a basic sense, but that doesn’t mean that you’ll get the results you hope to see. So it is worth spending some time investigating this.

For example, your current hardware may work reasonably well when your Internet connection runs at 10 Mbps. It may continue to function without disruption when you have a 1 Gbps Internet connection, but you and your patrons won’t see much benefit from the upgrade. So you may want to plan to upgrade several pieces of your current hardware--either right away or over time. A competent consultant can look at what you currently have and work with your staff figure out if upgrades are necessary or would be helpful.

Which firewall option is best for our library? Will any additional hardware be needed at each library branch?

This is another question that you need to address in house with your IT support staff and/or with an IT consultant. There is no one right way to do this. Many libraries with multiple branches use only one firewall, at the main library where it connects to CalREN. Others place firewalls at each branch. There may even be some that do not use firewalls at all. Libraries that are part of City or County networks may have requirements related to those networks and these will need to be addressed locally.

Site Preparation

What do we need to do to prepare our site for the connection?

There are a number of things you should evaluate for upgrades to make full use of your new connection. They include evaluating the:

Security of your server room
Rackspace
Heating and air conditioning
Capacity of your current router
Capacity of your current firewall

How can I find the MPOE (Minimum Point Of Entry) in my building?

The MPOE is the point in the building where the phone company stops being responsible for the wiring. Typically it will be in a closet or server room. It is where network service is also brought into the building. If you aren’t able to locate your MPOE, you can ask your phone company to identify it for you. This may require that they schedule a site visit.

Reliability of CalREN

What do I do if the Internet goes down at my library?

The CENIC Network Operations Center (NOC) provides a single point of contact for all inquiries regarding network services, from your on-premises network router through your site’s connection to CalREN, including the health and status of the CalREN backbone itself. CENIC Operations Engineers are available to assist you 24 hours per day, 7 days per week, including holidays (24/7/365).

The CENIC NOC can be reached at:

Telephone: (714) 220-3494 (714-220-FIXIT)
E-mail: noc@cenic.org
WWW: http://www.noc.cenic.org/ urgent problems, your site contact(s) or technical staff is encouraged to call our telephone number to receive immediate assistance. If at any time you feel that you are not receiving appropriate assistance, please ask the on-duty Operations Engineer to escalate your issue to CENIC management.