OTDI manages several network roles that are assigned to devices to support the underlying infrastructure for Ohio State. Use cases include building automation systems, secure keycard control, public safety cameras, water and electric meters, and the campus-wide Wi-Fi network. These wired-only roles are not widely available for use by colleges and units and are simply documented here for awareness.
- Building Automation network role (osu-bas) supports the Ohio State Building Automation team devices that monitor and control the heating, cooling, lighting and other building management functions for the university
- Keycard control network role (osu-keycontrol) supports the Ohio State Lock & Key Services team and their devices that manage physical access for the university
- Camera network role (osu-camera) supports the Department of Public Safety and their campus-wide video surveillance deployment
- Meter network role (osu-meter) supports Facilities Operations and Design (FOD) and Engie’s electric meters and water meters on campus
- Access point, or “AP”, network role (osu-ap) supports the OTDI’s campus-wide Wi-Fi network and deployment of Wi-Fi access points
This role is assigned to low-risk devices that only require outbound Internet access. These devices are generally well-managed by Ohio State IT (Information Technology) or require little to no management. Devices include but are not limited to scientific instruments, digital signage, AR/VR headsets, and micro-computers.
Network role at a glance:
- Wired connectivity only. No Wi-Fi option available
- Private IP addressing without network address translation (NAT)
- Predictable IP addressing support through DHCP reservations or static IP addressing depending on network role
- Inbound and bound traffic limited to a restricted set.
Network Role Characteristics
Aliases for this role include
- Building automation: osu-bas; BASNET
- Keycard control: osu-keycard; KCCNET
- Camera: osu-camera; DPS
- Meter: osu-meter; Engie
- AP: osu-ap; Aruba APs
Network Traffic Permissions
Traffic permissions and limitations disclosed to partner business units only.
How to connect
Each authorized partner leverages the device registration access for IT administrators to register a device’s wired MAC address at the My Devices registration system and assign it to one of these applicable network roles.
Not all partnered business units will have these options:
- OSU Building Automation
- OSU Key Control
- OSU Camera
- OSU Meter Engie
Once registered, connect the device to a wired port on OTDI’s Managed Network Service.
Access points are not registered and are auto discovered on the network and placed into the appropriate network role automatically.
IP (Internet Protocol) Addressing
Devices placed in the Device role are assigned private IPv4 address space dynamically assigned through DHCP, and IP address reservations are supported on the wired network only.
For meters, after receiving an IP address, the campus DHCP service will dynamically create a DNS A record for the endpoint in the DNS zone meter.role.it.osu.edu. For example, an endpoint with hostname “thing123456” would have a DNS record of thing123456.meter.role.it.osu.edu. In the event the endpoint has no configured hostname, the mac address of the device will be used instead. The same occurs for cameras but in the camera.role.it.osu.edu DNS zone.
Additional Information for IT Teams
This network role is made available to only specific IT administrators with access to My Devices.
Staff can fulfill their self-service request by completing the following:
- Log in to MyDevices with your administrative account (name.#a)
- Choose the network role when registering the MAC address of the device applicable to which infrastructure item needs registered. (See the “How to connect” section above.)
Registrations will need to be renewed annually, which can be performed by simply editing the record and selecting Update to extend the expiration timestamp by one year.
Because of the high number of infrastructure endpoints needing registered, OTDI has an option for bulk registrations as well.