Next Gen² Network

The Next Gen² Network Program will provide a modern, reliable, secure, and scalable network infrastructure for UW-Madison that supports university needs and delivers a seamless user experience across campus. Together, these projects allow UW-Madison’s campus to respond to current and future instructional, research, business, and operational needs within a framework that will enable timely and efficient changes within the network.

Future State

Our vision for the campus network is one that is secure and trusted, that enables seamless collaboration, and pushes the bounds of science and research. As we build the network, we will include sensitivity to instructional and research goals and policy audits.

Past and Current State

In our discovery phase, we documented the current state of the network and identified gaps that need attention in our quest to reduce complexity, increase uptime, improve agility, and reduce operational expenses within our network. Our holistic approach to discovery and implementation will help us create a secure, scalable, and flexible network allowing historic siloes and complexities to develop into a cohesive and simplified architecture.

In our implementation phase, we began work on a three-year roadmap of projects to advance toward a secure contemporary campus network for UW- Madison’s wired, wireless LAN (WLAN), wide area network (WAN), and cloud enterprise network. Projects are proposed, chartered, and managed individually under a portfolio umbrella.