News for and about the Internet2 community

[Patty Giorgio <>]

Merit Network Announces Online Classes Including BGP, Data Center 
Infrastructure

IT classes available to national research and education community


Ann Arbor, Mich. -- Merit Network, Inc. today announced a number of 
upcoming online classes including summer workshops on data center 
infrastructure management and the BGP routing protocol. Available over 
the Internet via desktop interface, the classes can be taken from any 
location, and registration is open to members of the educational community.

On August 1-2, "BGP and Advanced Routing Concepts: A Practical Workshop" 
introduces BGP and related routing concepts, including configuration, 
path selection, best practice recommendations and examples of BGP 
problems and solutions. Participants will configure Cisco routers during 
a half-day lab to simulate different BGP configurations. This course is 
developed and presented by engineers from NYSERNet, New York's research 
and education network.

http://www.merit.edu/bgp2012

Presented on August 7-9, "Data Center Infrastructure Management" is a 
three-day course on the critical features of managing a data center or 
server room of any size. The course is led by David Cole, a data center 
expert and technology veteran, who will discuss the most pertinent 
topics in the data center/server room industry, including power, 
cooling, energy efficiency, management tools, and integrating IT Service 
Management.

http://www.merit.edu/dcim2012

Andy Rosenzweig, Merit's Manager of Professional Learning, notes that 
the courses are relevant to the needs of many educational institutions. 
"The BGP course leverages the long internetworking experience of 
NYSERNet's engineering staff and provides a unique learning experience 
for engineers that manage organizations' connections to multiple network 
providers. The data center course is one that Merit has hosted twice 
before, with very positive reviews from students for its completeness 
and relevance for professionals who manage data facilities."

Other online classes available in the next several months include Linux 
security, IT project management, SELinux, network security and web site 
security auditing. They are part of Merit's ongoing Professional 
Learning program, which offers professional development opportunities of 
particular interest to IT professionals in education. A full calendar 
for2012-2013, including traditional classroom courses and special 
events, is available at http://www.merit.edu/learning.

Elwood Downing, Vice President of Member Relations, Services and 
Communication at Merit, is pleased that Merit is able to offer these 
professional development opportunities for the research and education 
community nationwide. "These classes continue our efforts to help 
enhance the skills of technologists in education through unique learning 
opportunities. Offering these courses via the Internet makes them 
accessible to a larger audience and reduces the difficult logistics and 
costs of attending traditional courses."

Registration and more information for all courses are available via the 
schedule at:

http://www.merit.edu/learning

About Merit Network

Merit Network Inc., a nonprofit corporation owned and governed by 
Michigan's public universities, owns and operates America's 
longest-running regional research and education network. In 1966, 
Michigan's public universities created Merit as a shared resource to 
help meet their common need for networking assistance. Since its 
formation, Merit Network has remained on the forefront of research and 
education networking expertise and services. Merit provides 
high-performance networking solutions to public universities, colleges, 
K-12 organizations, libraries, state government, healthcare, and other 
non-profit organizations. Merit has been Michigan's Internet2 Network 
connector since 1999.

Contact:
Andy Rosenzweig
Manager, Professional Learning
Merit Network
734-527-5753

http://www.merit.edu/learning