The new campus-wide technology plan has made the management of networking equipment ever more complex. As a result, all network functions are now concentrated in the hands of ITS. Even the wiring closets in the new Library are off-limits to AIT staff. As a result, we can no longer add computers to existing locations, or correct minor networking problems, without ITS's intervention. We have given up our last shred of independence: like the rest of the campus, we are completely dependent on ITS.
A key networking issue this year has been our extranet server. This server enables both AIT staff and faculty developers to run applications considered to be security risks to the College network; thus it runs outside the College's firewall. Reliability for this server has been a constant problem, but the more significant problem is ITS's incessant tinkering with the campus firewall. Often, refinements and changes to the firewall are not announced to the general campus–or to AIT. Each change in the firewall or in the routing tables can lead to major problems in implementing a new service or, worse still, disrupts an existing service. Things often stop working for no apparent reason.