What we do

Running the networks is the foundation — but not the whole story. Part of what we do is explicitly open to all RWTH students, not just to the residents of the two houses.

Network operations

We plan, build and operate the data networks of Lousbergstraße 44 and 46: routers and switches, VLAN separation of the two houses, Wi-Fi, DHCP and DNS, IPv4 and IPv6, monitoring and fault clearing. The uplink to the RWTH university network is provided by the IT Center, whose subdomain, DNS, DHCP and mail services we use.

Open to everyone

• Workshops

  Hands-on networking basics (VLANs, DHCP, DNS, IPv6) on real equipment, self-hosting for students, everyday network security. Around three hours each.

• Talks

  “Internet in the hall of residence” at the start of each semester, plus a series on how the internet actually works — routing, BGP, DNS.

• Open IT clinic

  Every two weeks, for networking, Linux and self-hosting questions. No registration, no membership required.

• Free licences

  We publish our routing and monitoring configuration and our technical documentation under free licences on a public Git server.

Aachen network groups meet-up

Once a semester the student network groups of the Aachen halls of residence meet for a technical exchange — the “Tag der Aachener NetzAGs”. Our group has taken part for years; in the medium term we would like to host the meeting ourselves.