Subnets are no longer restricted by physical location, and a work group split over several buildings can still be on the same subnet. There are many more subnets available in Network '98. This increased subdivision has a further advantage, as a subnet is the unit for traffic measurement and billing. Thus Internet bills are accurately targeted to a work unit instead of a whole building. The new network is inherently more reliable as it provides degrees of redundancy in the design and there are less single points of failure.
Failures also affect fewer people as less equipment and cabling is shared by users.
The network also includes equipment which has the ability to be operated and monitored remotely, allowing a central network management system to identify and monitor many faults from a single location. By standardising on only few types of network equipment it is easy to hold spares and train support staff to a high level. The Network '98 project has built a high quality UWN which will last well into the twenty-first century. The network is built in a hierarchical way, like a tree. It consists of equipment in four locations within Kensington campus and separate equipment at other major campuses.