The FastHub repeater had good port density, with 16 ports in the base unit and an expansion module of 16 ports for future use. Adding a management module in a second base unit slot would provide stack, unit, and port-level statistics. Eliminating bottlenecks was the final step. They created virtual LANs on every floor of the building, comprised of switched 100, switched 10, and shared fast 100 Mbps. The FastHub repeaters are aggregated by the switches, which are in turn connected directly to the UNIX and Novell servers with new ATM adaptor cards.
Users now have Fast Ethernet to the desktop and access servers via high-speed, switched uplinks.
MetroNet plans to integrate Alberta Energy's remote offices later in 1997 and migrate them from Token Ring to Fast Ethernet as well.