Network access point

New network architecture, c. 1995

A Network Access Point (NAP) was a public network exchange facility where Internet Service Providers (ISPs) connected with one another in peering arrangements. The NAPs were a key component in the transition from the NSFNET era when many networks were government sponsored and commercial traffic was prohibited to the commercial Internet providers of today. They were often points of considerable Internet congestion.

History

The four Network Access Points (NAPs) were defined under the U.S. National Information Infrastructure (NII) document as transitional data communications facilities at which Network Service Providers (NSPs) would exchange traffic, in replacement of the publicly-financed NSFNET Internet backbone.^[1] The National Science Foundation let contracts supporting the four NAPs, one to MFS Datanet for the preexisting MAE in Washington, D.C., and three others to Sprint, Ameritech, and Pacific Bell, for new facilities of various designs and technologies, in New York (actually Pennsauken, New Jersey), Chicago, and California, respectively.^[2] As a transitional strategy, they were effective, giving commercial network operators a bridge from the Internet's beginnings as a government-funded academic experiment, to the modern Internet of many private-sector competitors collaborating to form a network-of-networks, anchored around the Internet Exchange Points we know today.

This was particularly timely, coming hard on the heels of the ANS CO+RE controversy,^[3][4] which had disturbed the nascent industry, led to congressional hearings,^[5] resulted in a law allowing NSF to promote and use networks that carry commercial traffic,^[6] prompted a review of the administration of NSFNET by the NSF's Inspector General (no serious problems were found),^[7] and caused commercial operators to realize that they needed to be able to communicate with each other independent of third parties or at neutral exchange points.

Today, the phrase "Network Access Point" is of historical interest only, since the four transitional NAPs disappeared long ago, replaced by modern IXPs, though in Spanish-speaking Latin America, the phrase lives on to a small degree, among those who conflate the NAPs with IXPs.

See also

• Commercial Internet eXchange (CIX)
• Federal Internet Exchange (FIX)
• Internet exchange point (IXP)
• very high speed Backbone Network Service (vBNS)
• Commercial traffic and Controversy sections of the NSFNET article

References

1. ^ NSF Solicitation 93-52 - Network Access Point Manager, Routing Arbiter, Regional Network Providers, and Very High Speed Backbone Network Services Provider for NSFNET and the NREN(SM) Program, May 6, 1993
2. ^ E-mail regarding Network Access Points from Steve Wolff (NSF) to the com-priv list, sent 13:51 EST 2 March 1994
3. ^ The Cook Report on the Internet
4. ^ "A Critical Look at the University of Michigan's Role in the 1987 Merit Agreement", Chetly Zarko in The Cook Report on the Internet, January 1995, pp. 9-17
5. ^ Management of NSFNET, a transcript of the March 12, 1992 hearing before the Subcommittee on Science of the Committee on Science, Space, and Technology, U.S. House of Representatives, One Hundred Second Congress, Second Session, Hon. Rick Boucher, subcommittee chairman, presiding
6. ^ Scientific and Advanced-Technology Act of 1992, Public Law No: 102-476, 43 U.S.C. 1862(g)
7. ^ Review of NSFNET, Office of the Inspector General, National Science Foundation, 23 March 1993

This computer networking article is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it.v · Categories: Internet architecture Network access Telecommunications infrastructure History of the Internet Internet exchange points Computer network stubs Wikimedia Foundation. 2010. Игры ⚽ Нужно сделать НИР? Paroxysmal nocturnal hemoglobinuria Tube Bar prank calls Look at other dictionaries: Network Access Point — Saltar a navegación, búsqueda Network Access Point o NAP, en español Punto de Acceso a la Red, es el punto donde confluyen las redes de las distintas empresas proveedoras de servicios de internet. A través de los NAP se intercambia el tráfico de… …   Wikipedia Español Network Access Point — Network Access Point,   NAP …   Universal-Lexikon Network Access Point — Internet Knoten sind die Netzknoten des Internets, sie dienen als Austauschpunkte für den Datenverkehr des Internets. Als abkürzende Bezeichnung wird oft IX für engl. Internet Exchange verwendet, gebräuchlich ist auch die Verwendung der Abkürzung …   Deutsch Wikipedia network access point — network exchange point equipped with large scale switching facilities and serving as a connection point between individual Internet Service Providers, NAP (Telecommunications) …   English contemporary dictionary Network Access Point —    The point at which Internet traffic is exchanged or shared …   IT glossary of terms, acronyms and abbreviations Japan Network Access Point — The Japan Network Access Point (JPNAP) is an Internet Exchange Point situated in Tokyo and Osaka, Japan. JPNAP was established on 2001 and operated by Internet Multifeed Co.JPNAP is one of the largest Internet Exchanges in the world, by traffic.… …   Wikipedia Network Access Protection — (NAP) is a Microsoft technology for controlling network access of a computer host based on the system health of the host, first introduced in Windows Server 2008. With Network Access Protection, system administrators of an organization s computer …   Wikipedia Access Point Name — or APN is the name of an access point for GPRS.An access point is: * An Internet network to which a mobile can be connected * A set of settings which are used for that connection * A particular option in a set of settings in a mobile phoneWhen a… …   Wikipedia Network Access Protection — (NAP) est une technique de Microsoft en partenariat avec Cisco pour contrôler l accès au réseau d un ordinateur en se basant sur la santé de son système. Elle est utilisée sur les systèmes d exploitation Windows Vista et Windows Server 2008. Elle …   Wikipédia en Français Access Point — Wireless Access Point, links per Kabel mit dem Internet (unten) und drei Endgeräten verbunden, über die Antennen drahtlos mit weiteren Endgeräten. Ein Wireless Access Point [ˈwaɪəlɪs ˈæksɛs pɔɪnt] (WAP, deutsch „Funkzugangsknoten“) ist ein… …   Deutsch Wikipedia 18+ © Academic, 2000-2024 Contact us: Technical Support, Advertising Dictionaries export, created on PHP, Joomla, Drupal, WordPress, MODx. Mark and share Search through all dictionaries Translate… Search Internet Share the article and excerpts Direct link … Do a right-click on the link above and select “Copy Link”