The unique challenges of campus networks

By Terry Burton, Director of Security 

Table of contents 
What is a campus area network? 

7 characteristics of campus networks

1. Universities function as their own ISPs 
2. Massive user community with constant turnover 
3. BYOD on an unprecedented scale 
4. Hundreds of apps requiring different security models 
5. Balancing security with academic freedom 
6. Sophisticated targeted attacks 
7. Networks have global scale 

Technical challenges in campus network management

1. Delivering authentication at scale 
2. RADIUS protocol limitations 
3. Network segmentation complexity 
4. Wireless density challenges 
5. Global connectivity requirements 

Emerging technologies reshaping campus networks 

1. Enhanced authentication protocols 
2. Zero Trust architecture 
3. Advanced network segmentation 
4. Cloud integration 

Best practices for campus network design 

1. Implement layered authentication 
2. Design for scale and growth 
3. Balance security with usability 
4. Implement comprehensive monitoring 
5. Build security into DNS infrastructure 

Unlike corporate networks designed primarily for employee productivity, campus area networks (CANs) must balance open academic culture with robust protection for sensitive research, personal data, and critical infrastructure. As universities continue to serve as both educational institutions and technology hubs, their IT teams face challenges rarely seen in other sectors. 

With over two decades of experience securing campus networks across educational institutions worldwide, we've developed a deep understanding of their unique characteristics and challenges. In this article, we'll explore what makes campus networks different, the specific challenges they face, and approaches that have proven effective in addressing these challenges.  

What is a campus area network? 

A campus area network (CAN) is a network infrastructure that spans a limited geographic area, typically encompassing multiple buildings within an educational or corporate campus. Unlike metropolitan area networks (MANs) or wide area networks (WANs), CANs are usually owned and operated entirely by the institution, giving IT teams greater control over infrastructure and security policies. 

In educational environments, campus networks typically connect: 

• Academic buildings 
• Research facilities 
• Administrative offices 
• Residential halls 
• Athletic facilities 
• Outdoor spaces 
• Data centres 

These networks provide connectivity for tens of thousands of users simultaneously, often with varying access privileges based on roles, departments, and security requirements. 

7 characteristics of campus networks 

What makes campus networks fundamentally different from enterprise or commercial networks? Through our work with universities worldwide, we've identified several key distinguishing factors. 

1. Universities function as their own ISPs 

Educational institutions effectively operate as their own internet service providers, maintaining vast network infrastructures serving thousands of users across multiple buildings and outdoor spaces. This ISP-like role creates several distinct challenges: 

• Multi-tenant infrastructure: Campus networks must segment traffic between academic departments, research labs, administrative offices, and residential areas. 
• Bandwidth management: Networks must handle everything from routine email to massive research data transfers. 
• Physical infrastructure complexity: Underground cabling, wireless coverage for outdoor spaces, and building-to-building connections all require specialised expertise. 

The scale and diversity of this infrastructure create management challenges that don't exist in traditional enterprise environments. Network segmentation becomes crucial but increasingly difficult to implement effectively. 

2. Massive user community with constant turnover 

Perhaps the most significant challenge for campus networks is managing a user population characterised by: 

• High turnover (25-30% of users replaced annually) 
• Diverse technical capabilities 
• Varying security awareness levels 
• Multiple identity roles (students may also be employees or researchers) 
• International user base with different cultural approaches to technology 

Every fall, educational institutions onboard thousands of new users who bring diverse devices and varying levels of technical knowledge. Maintaining reliable authentication systems that can handle this influx without creating bottlenecks is a perennial challenge for campus IT teams. 

3. BYOD on an unprecedented scale 

While many enterprises grapple with BYOD policies, campus networks take this challenge to another level: 

• Average students bring 5-7 network-connected devices to campus. 
• Devices range from laptops and phones to gaming consoles, smart TVs, and IoT devices. 
• Many devices run outdated operating systems or have poor security controls. 
• Personal devices routinely access sensitive institutional data. 

The sheer volume and diversity of devices connecting to campus networks create management and security challenges far beyond what most corporate IT teams face. 

4. Hundreds of apps requiring different security models

The diversity of applications used across campus creates another layer of complexity: 

• Learning management systems housing grades and academic work 
• Research platforms containing valuable intellectual property 
• Administrative systems with financial and personal data 
• Cloud services adopted by individual departments without central IT oversight 
• Legacy systems that cannot be easily updated or replaced 

Each application requires its own security model. The days of one-size-fits-all authentication are long gone in the higher education space, requiring campus networks to support multiple authentication methods, access policies, and security controls. 

5. Balancing security with academic freedom 

Educational institutions face a fundamental tension between security and their core mission: 

• Academic freedom requires open networks for research and collaboration 
• Global partnerships necessitate cross-border data sharing 
• Academic culture often resists restrictions on information access 
• Research activities may require exceptions to standard security policies 

This balancing act means campus IT teams must implement protection without impeding legitimate academic work—a challenge rarely faced in corporate environments. The tension between security and openness defines much of the complexity in campus network design. 

6. Sophisticated targeted attacks 

Educational institutions regularly experience sophisticated cyberattacks and attempted espionage, some of which may be nation-state sponsored. Campus networks are high-value targets for several reasons: 

• Intellectual property: Research partnerships with industry and government generate valuable IP. 
• Personal data: Student and staff records contain extensive personal information. 
• Infrastructure access: University systems can serve as gateways to partner networks. 
• Political targets: Institutions with political research or connections to government may face ideologically motivated attacks. 

These threats require advanced detection and response capabilities more commonly associated with government agencies than educational institutions. Yet campus networks typically operate with smaller security teams and tighter budgets than their corporate counterparts. 

7. Networks have global scale 

For many educational institutions, authentication requirements extend far beyond the physical campus, creating unique challenges for campus networks: 

• Visiting scholars need secure network access while on campus 
• Students studying abroad require home institution resource access 
• Research partnerships demand secure cross-institutional authentication 
• Faculty traveling internationally need consistent, secure connectivity 

Networks like eduroam help address these challenges, but they introduce additional complexity. When authentication requests must traverse multiple countries and jurisdictions, ensuring security while maintaining usability becomes extraordinarily difficult. 

Technical challenges in campus network management 

The unique characteristics of educational institutions create specific technical challenges for campus network administrators. 

Delivering authentication at scale 

Campus networks must authenticate tens of thousands of users daily, often during intense peak periods like class registration. The scale of this authentication creates technical problems rarely seen in other environments: 

• During peak periods, large universities may handle 30,000+ authentication requests per hour. 
• Authentication servers must validate credentials against multiple identity stores. 
• Multi-factor authentication must be implemented without creating usability issues. 
• Authentication failures can cascade quickly, affecting thousands of users. 

The RADIUS protocol, which underpins most campus authentication systems, was designed in an era when networks were smaller and more predictable. When authentication requests must travel through multiple proxies—often across international boundaries—reliability becomes a significant concern. 

RADIUS protocol limitations 

Several limitations in the RADIUS protocol itself create challenges for campus networks: 

1. Silent failures: When a RADIUS server doesn't know how to handle a request, it simply drops packets without notification, creating troubleshooting nightmares 
2. Network congestion: During peak periods, network congestion can cause packet loss, leading to authentication failures 
3. Limited diagnostics: When authentication fails, it's often difficult to determine where in the chain the problem occurred 
4. Constrained request volume: Traditional implementations limit the number of simultaneous requests that can be processed 

These limitations become particularly problematic in federated environments like eduroam, where authentication requests may traverse multiple servers across organisational and national boundaries. 

Network segmentation complexity 

Campus networks require sophisticated segmentation to balance security with accessibility: 

• Research networks must be isolated from general campus traffic 
• Administrative systems must be protected without limiting academic resources 
• Residential networks must be separated from academic infrastructure 
• High-sensitivity research areas require additional security controls 

Implementing this segmentation while maintaining performance and usability presents significant technical challenges. Traditional VLAN approaches quickly become unmanageable at scale, leading many institutions to explore software-defined networking and microsegmentation technologies. 

Wireless density challenges 

The wireless component of campus networks faces unique challenges: 

• High-density environments like lecture halls may have hundreds of devices in a small area 
• Outdoor coverage requirements create design and infrastructure challenges 
• Building materials (especially in historic buildings) complicate signal propagation 
• Interference from student-owned wireless devices creates unpredictable conditions 

These challenges require specialised expertise in wireless network design and management, including advanced channel planning, dynamic power adjustment, and client load balancing techniques. 

Global connectivity requirements 

Many educational institutions maintain global partnerships and satellite campuses, creating connectivity challenges not typically seen in commercial environments: 

• Remote campuses must connect to core institutional resources. 
• Research collaborations require secure data exchange across international boundaries. 
• Students and faculty need consistent access while traveling. 
• Regulatory requirements vary by country, complicating security policies. 

These global requirements add layers of complexity to campus network design, requiring specialised expertise in international networking, compliance, and security. 

Emerging technologies reshaping campus networks 

Several emerging technologies are helping address the unique challenges of campus networks: 

Enhanced authentication protocols 

Traditional authentication protocols are evolving to better meet the needs of campus networks: 

• Protocol enhancements that provide explicit response signalling rather than silently dropping packets 
• Improved failover intelligence allowing authentication servers to make more informed decisions 
• Load distribution optimisations to handle authentication traffic spikes during peak periods 

These enhancements are particularly valuable in educational environments where authentication requests may traverse multiple systems across organisational and national boundaries. 

Zero Trust architecture 

Zero Trust approaches are well-suited to campus environments, allowing security teams to: 

• Apply different security policies based on user role, device type, location, and behaviour 
• Continuously validate access rather than relying on periodic authentication 
• Implement least-privilege access control without disrupting legitimate academic work 
• Scale security measures to match the sensitivity of the resources being accessed 

For campus networks with their diverse user populations and complex access requirements, Zero Trust architectures provide a flexible framework for balancing security with accessibility. 

Advanced network segmentation 

Modern approaches to network segmentation help campus networks contain threats while allowing appropriate access: 

• Software-defined networking (SDN) simplifies management of complex segmentation policies. 
• Microsegmentation allows granular control without the limitations of traditional VLANs. 
• Intent-based networking automates policy implementation based on security requirements. 
• Network virtualisation creates isolated environments for high-security applications. 

These technologies enable campus networks to implement sophisticated security controls without the management complexity of traditional approaches. 

Cloud integration 

Campus networks increasingly integrate with cloud services, creating both challenges and opportunities: 

• Authentication systems must extend to cloud resources while maintaining security. 
• Hybrid architectures require consistent policy enforcement across on-premises and cloud environments. 
• Identity management becomes more complex but also more critical. 
• Security boundaries extend beyond the physical campus. 

Successful cloud integration requires careful planning and specialised expertise in identity management, secure access service edge (SASE), and cloud security posture management. 

Best practices for campus network design 

Through our work with educational institutions worldwide, we've identified several best practices for campus network design and management: 

1. Implement layered authentication 

Campus networks should implement authentication systems that: 

• Support multiple authentication methods to accommodate diverse use cases 
• Provide seamless user experience despite complex backend systems 
• Scale to handle peak loads during registration periods 
• Offer detailed diagnostics when authentication failures occur 
• Maintain high availability through redundant systems and intelligent failover 

Authentication represents the foundation of campus network security, making robust, scalable systems essential. 

2. Design for scale and growth 

Campus networks should be designed with future growth in mind: 

• Authentication infrastructure should have headroom for 200-300% growth. 
• Network segmentation should allow for addition of new security zones. 
• Core infrastructure should support anticipated bandwidth needs for 5+ years. 
• Management systems should scale to accommodate growing device populations. 

Educational institutions often struggle to secure funding for infrastructure upgrades, making scalable initial designs particularly important. 

3. Balance security with usability 

Effective campus networks strike a careful balance between security and usability: 

• Authentication should be strong but not burdensome 
• Security controls should be transparent to users where possible 
• Exceptions should be managed through documented processes rather than ad-hoc workarounds 
• Security awareness training should help users understand why controls exist 

When security measures interfere with academic activities, users will find workarounds that often create greater vulnerabilities.  

4. Implement comprehensive monitoring 

Campus networks require sophisticated monitoring to detect and address issues: 

• Network-wide monitoring that can detect anomalies specific to academic environments 
• Authentication system monitoring with detailed logging and alert capabilities 
• Performance monitoring to identify bottlenecks before they impact users 
• Security monitoring focused on protecting sensitive research and personal data 

Given the complexity of campus networks, comprehensive monitoring represents the only effective way to maintain visibility and control.  

5. Build security into DNS infrastructure 

DNS security is often overlooked in campus networks, yet it represents a critical control point: 

• Implement DNSSEC to prevent DNS spoofing and cache poisoning 
• Use DNS filtering to block malicious domains and command-and-control systems 
• Monitor DNS traffic for anomalies that might indicate compromise 
• Implement DNS security zones that align with network segmentation 

DNS security provides a powerful layer of protection for campus networks, often stopping attacks before they reach vulnerable systems. 

Meeting the challenge of campus networks  

Campus networks represent some of the most complex and challenging IT environments in existence. The unique combination of scale, diversity, security requirements, and academic mission creates challenges rarely seen in other sectors. Successfully addressing these challenges requires specialised expertise and technologies designed specifically for educational environments. 

For IT leaders in higher education, the key is finding solutions designed specifically for these unique environments—not simply adapting enterprise-focused technologies to academic settings. Authentication systems that can handle global scale, security tools that respect academic freedom, and network designs that balance accessibility with protection are essential components of any successful campus IT strategy. 

Need help? 

At InkBridge Networks, we've spent decades helping educational institutions build resilient, secure campus networks that balance academic freedom with robust protection. Our team includes engineers who have implemented AAA solutions for some of the world's largest university systems and contributed to the protocols that power global academic networks like eduroam. If your institution is facing network challenges or planning infrastructure updates, explore our so​l​u​tions for educational institut​ions or request a quote for your specific needs. 

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