about Bandwidth

New !  Check your current bandwidth consumption.

Note: ResCom student employees do not make the bandwidth policies.  There are no appeals on violations except for the 4th violation. This appeal is handled through your local ResLife office.

Note: These links will show you what you agree to when you use these programs. They cover themselves legally. Do you know what "you" are legally agreeing to?  It is interesting reading when in the mood to research the facts:  Kazaa, Morpheus, Imesh, Audigalaxy, DivX. 

1. What is bandwidth?
2. What does upload and download mean?
3. Why is Penn State restricting the use of my network connection?
4. What is being measured or monitored?
5. Is Penn State Connecting to my computer?
6. What are the bandwidth limits?
        Bandwidth comparison chart
7. Will Penn State considering changing the limits?
8. How can I reduce my bandwidth consumption? 
9. There is no way I used 4 Gigabytes. I can't be downloading or uploading that much. There must be something wrong with your system. Why am I getting the emails?
10. What happens if I ignore the violation and warning notices?
11. Everyone copies music and movies.  Why should I be concerned?  What happens if I get caught having or possessing copy written movies or music on my computer?
12. How can I monitor my network usage?
13. Why didn't I receive a warning before receiving a violation notice?
14. Can you tell me exactly what I uploaded or downloaded?
15. Why doesn't ResCom backup MP3's and movies on student machines?
16. Is there any way to appeal that bandwidth limitations?
17. What is the difference between Megabits and Megabytes?  What do I need to look for?
18. Does downloading Morpheus Preview Edition, the latest edition of Morpheus, have anything to do with the email violations I have been receiving?  

Question:  What is "Bandwidth"?

Answer:  Essentially, bandwidth is the size and speed of the "pipe" that connects your computer to a network and the Internet.  This "pipe" transports data back and forth between your computer and the Internet. You use bandwidth to view web pages and send data out from your computer (upload) or receive data into your computer (download). 

There are limitations to how much data can be exchanged depending on how much bandwidth is purchased. MODEMs have a much smaller bandwidth than Ethernet connections do. The residence hall traffic is combined with the rest of the university and together they are connected to the Internet. 

The residence halls use 10 Based-T ( 10mb ) Ethernet connections to communicate over the network and with the Internet. You can send a large picture over the network in seconds.  At home you probably use a MODEM, which communicates over a phone line and uses a very small pipe to the Internet.  The same picture using a MODEM could take several minutes.  

Compare communication speeds: 

OC3: 155,000,000 bits per second (very fast) 
Ethernet: 10,000,000 bits per second (network speed)
Modem: 53,000 bits per second (typical speeds seen at home) Goto Top

Question:  What does upload and download mean?

Answer:  Upload is defined as the process of sending data generated "from" your computer out to another computer. It can be sent to another computer on campus or over the Internet to another computer.

Download is defined as the process of receiving data sent "to" your computer from another computer. It can be sent from a computer on campus or from through the Internet. 

We are currently monitoring the total upload and download traffic for each residence hall student with a registered Ethernet connection. The traffic traveling "over the Internet" is what is currently being used to determine if a student is operating within the bandwidth restricitons. 

Normal Internet use such as web browsing, email, etc generates a very small amount of outbound traffic.  Computers that are acting as servers and running web cam's, ftp (file transfer protocol), Kazaa, Morpheus, Imesh, Audiogalaxy, and various game servers can generate a significant amount of outbound traffic since others are accessing files on your computer and transferring them via the Internet.  We are not looking at the content of data being sent—only counting the amount. 

Check your current bandwidth consumption.

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Question:  Why is Penn State restricting the use of my network connection?

Answer:  During the Spring of 2001 TNS (Telecommunications and Networking Services) notified Housing that residence hall students were consuming most of the "shared" bandwidth purchased for all of Penn State University. Housing and the Telecommunications and Networking Services worked together to implement individual bandwidth restrictions for the residence hall population. Analysis showed the residence hall population makes up ~12% of the total population at PSU. This 12% was regularly consuming ~65% of the bandwidth.  This was affecting Faculty, staff, administrative personnel, and other essential equipment used by departments around campus.  Analysis showed that a very small group of users accounted for a very large percentage of the bandwidth use.

The restrictions imposed started by restricting the amount a student could upload (send files from their computer) to the Internet. This resulted in a big success. The population learned how to adjust their habits to live within the limits. Music sharing with the world proved to be the major reason for students going over their limits. Other devices such as web cams or web phones can also put students over the limits. A student once emailed me  to tell me that he will no longer leave his web cam on for several days because he realized it put him over his limits.

Restrictions in the residence halls have been implemented because the enormous bandwidth consumption, caused by the popularity of music and video sharing. The demand for bandwidth has grown exponentially, so much that it can make it impossible to get email or do academic work over the network. Implementing the download restrictions in Spring 2002 has reduced the residence hall demand and restored the connection speed to a more reasonable level.  These restrictions have turned out to be extremely successful. Goto Top

Question:  Is Penn State connecting to my computer?

Answer: NO. This data is collected at the infrastructure (equipment) level. Bandwidth usage is automatically collected as your data is passed to and from the Internet. No connection is ever made directly to your computer to determine your bandwidth usage.

Question:  Will Penn State consider changing the limit?

Answer:  The initial limit was created as a short-term solution. Until hubs in the residence halls have been updated to switches and demand has been reduced, these restrictions will remain in place. These restrictions were imposed to deal with a problem that affected all students, faculty, and staff at Penn State.  Housing and Residence Life worked together on a formal policy to govern and monitor residence hall network bandwidth usage.  Staff from these units consulted with the Association of Residence Hall Students (ARHS) and the Commonwealth Council of Student Government (CCSG) in the development of this policy. Goto Top

Question:  How can I reduce my bandwidth consumption? 

Answer:  The biggest users of bandwidth have proven to be audio and video sharing programs. Programs like Morpheus, Kazaa, Gnutella, and Audiogalaxy, to name a few are bandwidth hogs. We suggest you limit the use of web cams and web phones. 

1. Disable all music sharing and shut down file shares. By default, most music programs allow unlimited users to connect to your computer to copy your music. Every file they copy from or through your computer counts against your bandwidth limits. There is often more than one place to disable sharing features. Some music and video sharing programs does not allow you to disable the "super node" type of feature. The only answer in this case is to uninstall that program so it does not continue to use bandwidth without your knowledge.

2. Turn off the super node capability in Kazaa. Go to the options of the program and put in a check where it says "Do not use my computer as a super node".  The new Morpheus uses the same engine as Gnutella, Bearshare and Limewire. These programs do not allow you to turn off the super node feature and will consume bandwidth while your computer is on the network. Even when you close the application the program is still available to others on the network until you turn off that feature. If you see the programs icon on the bottom right hand corner, right click on it and turn it off.

3. Turn off your computer when you are not in the room with your computer and when you are sleeping. Remember, you are responsible for all traffic going in and out of your computer. Before loading programs on your computer ask ResCom if that program has bandwidth considerations and how you can configure it properly.

4. Choose not to send files through AOL Instant Messenger. Any file you send through AOL IM uses Internet bandwidth even if you are sending a file to your room mate or person down the hall. Network Neighborhood and file sharing is not supported in the residence halls because it spreads viruses and allows students to exchange copy written materials.

5. Make sure your computer is not infected by a virus that allows others remote access to your computer without your knowledge. Viruses also email itself out to others and if you are using a non-PSU email account, it will also count against your bandwidth limits. PSU has FREE Norton anti-virus software available for all PSU students. It does not expire and is set to automatically update its definition files on a weekly basis. This helps to keep your computer free from viruses. 

6. Do not run any type of Web Server (e.q. Microsoft's Internet Information Service/Personal Web Server) or FTP server, which would allow other people to download files from your computer.

7. Consider installing a firewall.  A firewall is basically what it sounds like - it acts as a filter for information coming in and out of your computer.  It is a tool that gives you control over what programs are allowed to use the Internet.

8. Use the PSU email servers to send and receive your email. If you do not use a PSU email server, all email traffic will count against your bandwidth limits. Popular programs like AOL, Hotmail and Yahoo all require you to communicate over the Internet. We recommend you use PSU email or PSU Web mail because they do not effect your bandwidth limits. The PSU WebMail address  is: webmail.psu.edu. You can use this from any browser connected to the Internet.

9. AOL, Hotmail and Yahoo users should forward their email (if possible) to their PSU email account and avoid the bandwidth restrictions. If you listen to radio stations over the Internet it will count against your limits.

10. Uninstall unnecessary protocols that might be loaded in your network neighborhood. Remove the IPX/SPX or NETBOUI protocols. The only protocol you should be using is TCP/IP. Network Neighborhood is not supported in the residence halls.

 Windows 98 or ME:  

A) Right click "network neighborhood" on the desktop, click properties
B) About 1/3 of the way down, you will see a list of network components.
C) This list may contain various components, but should not contain anything called IPX/SPX.

If it does:

a) Click the IPX/SPX item
b) Click the "Remove" button below this.

         In Windows 2000:

A) Right click "network neighborhood" on the desktop, click properties
B) Right click "Local Area Connection".  click properties
C) About 1/2 of the way down, you'll see a list of network components
D) This list may contain various components, but should not contain anything called IPX/SPX.

If it does:

a) Click the IPX/SPX item
b) Click the "Remove" button below this.

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Question:  There is no way I used 4 Gigabytes. I can't be downloading or uploading that much. There must be something wrong with your system.   Why am I getting the emails?

Answer:  The equipment that monitors and reports your totals is extremely accurate. 

Check your current bandwidth consumption.

The traffic is totaled at the point your traffic is put onto or received from the Internet. It commonly maintains totals for almost 16,000 students during a typical semester. If you received a warning or violation notice then it is because you have indeed gone over the limits.

There are many reasons this can happen. Most of the time it is because a student has "chosen" to install a music / video sharing program and did not find all the places to disable sharing. There are programs that you can not turn off super node type of sharing and simply need to be uninstalled. This responsibility is solely on the residence hall student.

Another common reason this can happen is a resident hall student will allow or "not" allow another student to use or configure their computer. Allowing another student to use your computer is your "choice", however it needs to be understood that you are 100% responsible for all traffic generated through your port. There are no exceptions.

Some students have reported that a room mate has used their computer without their knowledge. It is the students responsibility to secure their computer from unauthorized use. Loading a secure operating system like Windows NT or XP is recommended. It is university policy that you do not share your passwords with others.

Many students have gone over their limits because they use AOL IM to transfer files. This requires you to go out of the PSU network and communicate over the Internet. We do not recommend that you regularly use AOL IM to transfer files. Use it at your own risk because your traffic is being totaled and reported every 8 hours. 

Please do not assume you know why you received a violation or warning notice. Ask questions right away to prevent other violations. These violations can not be reversed. You may have downloaded a lot, however you may also have installed a program that needs to be configured properly. You may not know about it till your next violation occurs and it may be too late. ResCom or your local Residential Computing office will be happy to review any questions you have about the subject.

Please read the answers to the question "How can I reduce my bandwidth consumption". This will help every residence hall student.

Question:  Everyone copies music and movies.  Why should I be concerned?  What happens if I get caught having or possessing copy written movies or music on my computer?

Answer:  There are Federal and State laws that prohibit uploading and downloading of copy written music and especially movies. Students take all the risk for this practice on PSU networks. It is against University policy to transfer copy written material over PSU networks without express written permission of the materials owners.  If you are interested in more information about the;

Digital Millennium Act of 1998

Copyright Law

NetPD and Internet Piracy

Question:  How can I monitor my network usage?

Answer:  There are several personal firewall products and other utility programs on the market that can help you measure total bandwidth used but there are no programs that just distinguish your Internet traffic. Your Internet traffic totals is what determines if you violate the restrictions. Housing is working to produce an automated web based process to show usage totals to the residence hall students after each process is run. This data will be updated every 8 hours. This will be released as soon as it is possible.

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Question:  Why didn't I receive a warning before receiving a violation notice?

Answer:  It is possible that you used more than the bandwidth limit within an 8 hour period. When the process runs it will see that you have passed the limits and will send you a violation notice. You will only receive a warning notice only if you were determined to be within 60 and 99.9% of the limits when the program compares your totals. It does not send you a warning as soon as you reach 60%, the program determines if email needs to be sent when the program compares your totals. If you were close to the limits when the program checked your totals you could already be over your limits when you check your email. The best thing to do is turn off your computer when you are not using it.

The system now allows the students to check their current bandwidth consumption.

Question:  Why doesn't ResCom backup MP3's and movies on student machines?

Answer:  ResCom has taken the stand that we will not illegally copy any copy written materials such as music and movies. Odds are the music and movie clips ARE copy written so ResCom will not backup music or movies files. All backup of data is the responsibility of the student. In some cases we will backup student data during a reformat but will always exclude music and movies. We prefer the student to backup their own data because we are not responsible for loosing any student data.

Question:  Is there any way to appeal the bandwidth limits?

Answer:  ResCom employees do not make policy or deal with appeals. There are no appeals for any violation except the 4th violation. Violations are not reversed for any reason so please be careful not to go over the limits. You can check your current bandwidth consumption (as of the last program count which happens once about every 8 hours) HERE.  ResLife will forward 4th time violators on to management. Only extreme circumstances will be considered. Not knowing the policies or what programs consume bandwidth on your computer is not grounds for appeal. Students need to realize there are consequences to their behavior. Our recommendation is to do a little homework to learn what you need to know. ResCom will be glad to answer questions for any student wanting to try and stay within the limits. Please remember you own the computer and you are in charge of your computer.

Question:  What is the difference between Megabits and Megabytes?  What do I need to look for?

Answer:  Megabits can be looked at like the letters of the alphabet. Megabytes can be looked at like words made up of the letters of the alphabet. Megabytes are made up of megabits. There is a formula to convert bits to bytes. People need to know what they are looking at, bits or bytes. Letters or words. 

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Question: Does downloading Morpheus Preview Edition, the latest edition of Morpheus, have anything to do with the email violations I have been receiving?  

Answer:  Yes!  Morpheus Preview Edition works using a Supernode concept.  This means that the program allows other computer users to upload files off of your computer while using your share of bandwidth.  Because of  the large number of files that can be uploaded at one time, it is possible to exceed the bandwidth limits within an 8 hour period, and be restricted to 56 kbs even though you are not actually downloading anything. 

The previous edition of Morpheus allowed users to change their settings so that their computer would not be used as a Supernode.  This edition of Morpheus has no such settings, and will automatically operate as one.  

We recommend that you close this program whenever you are not using it (this includes making sure the program is not present in the system tray beside the clock.  By allowing it to remain there will allow other users to use your share of bandwidth).  

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For information about The Pennsylvania State University Ethernet Request Form,
please contact: rescom@psu.edu.