Differences
This shows you the differences between two versions of the page.
Both sides previous revisionPrevious revisionNext revision | Previous revision | ||
en:services:mobile_working:videoconferencing_tools:start [2020/04/06 12:37] – [Commercial, external platforms] sheider1 | en:services:mobile_working:videoconferencing_tools:start [2020/09/30 13:51] (current) – removed WebEx sheider1 | ||
---|---|---|---|
Line 1: | Line 1: | ||
+ | ====== Videoconferencing ====== | ||
+ | |||
+ | The general GWDG offer for videoconferencing is the DFNconf service. It is operated by the DFN-Verein, of which the GWDG, MPG, and the University of Göttingen are members. | ||
+ | |||
+ | Currently, however, there are performance bottlenecks due to the strongly increased usage, so that the DFNconf service is not available in the usual stable manner. More information, | ||
+ | |||
+ | The GWDG has therefore decided to include alternative offers in its portfolio in order to bridge this phase for customers and provide suitable solutions. These are commercial, payed cloud offers where the information leaves our own jurisdiction. We can therefore not guarantee data protection and these services are not permitted for sensitive and/or personal data. We ask you to take this into account when using them. | ||
+ | |||
+ | =====Community solutions operated by the GWDG===== | ||
+ | * [[en: | ||
+ | * [[en: | ||
+ | * < | ||
+ | |||
+ | =====Commercial, | ||
+ | **Attention the trial license for WebEx has expired. Therefore please use one of the other solutions we offer.** | ||
+ | * [[en: | ||
+ | * Cloud-based, | ||
+ | * In the USA also used at universities for teaching at larger lectures. | ||
+ | * Currently free of charge with limited scope (40min, no telephone dial-up) individually usable. | ||
+ | * GWDG has procured a campus agreement for University and UMG. | ||
+ | * < | ||
+ | * Cloud-based, | ||
+ | * Conditionally suitable for teaching. | ||
+ | * Currently free of charge with limited functionality; | ||
+ | * [[en: | ||
+ | * Cloud-based, | ||
+ | * In Australia and Canada used at universities for teaching purposes. | ||
+ | * Currently free of charge, a license agreement will be required later. | ||
+ | |||
+ | For the commercial platforms, please note that these are not operated by the GWDG in Göttingen and are therefore problematic in terms of data protection. According to the current state of the art, they are not suitable for particularly sensitive and personal data. The solutions are not free of charge, even though there are currently free offers for a transitional period. However, the GWDG offers access to these solutions and can provide licenses in some cases. | ||
+ | |||
+ | =====Evaluation and recommendations especially for the University of Göttingen===== | ||
+ | Currently, the Conference of Ministers of Education and Cultural Affairs [[https:// | ||
+ | |||
+ | The GWDG works closely with the Department of Studies and Teaching and the Digital Learning and Teaching Team[[https:// | ||
+ | |||
+ | Nevertheless, | ||
+ | * **DFNconf** with Pexip is well established for years. However, the service was not designed for a large increase in the number of users, so its use is currently limited. It will probably not be suitable for broad-based courses in the summer semester. It is also to be expected that the DFN service **Adobe Connect**, which is frequently used for teaching, will reach its limits at the beginning of the summer semester and will not be available in a stable manner. | ||
+ | * **BigBlueButton**: | ||
+ | * **Jitsi**: Jitsi: The system was also newly installed and evaluated at the GWDG at short notice. However, it showed qualitative weaknesses for groups of 10 or more participants and was therefore put on the back burner compared to BigBlueButton. It is not recommended to use it for teaching. | ||
+ | * **Zoom**:It is a commercial, externally hosted cloud platform. Thus it is to be viewed critically with regard to data protection and personnel law. The platform has been used for teaching at large universities in the USA for some time. It is known that the platform scales well and is also suitable for events with over 1000 participants. A contract for Zoom would still have to be negotiated and concluded. An overarching contract by DFN-Verein has been provisionally rejected by the company. | ||
+ | * **Cisco WebEx**: This is a commercial, externally hosted cloud platform. It is therefore to be viewed critically with regard to data protection and personnel law. The platform works well for videoconferencing, | ||
+ | * **Microsoft Teams**: This is a commercial, externally hosted cloud platform. This means that it must be viewed critically with regard to data protection and personnel law. The platform works well for video conferencing and includes other collaboration tools. It is also used abroad, e.g. in Australia and Canada, at universities for teaching with larger events. Microsoft Teams is also temporarily free of charge due to the Corona crisis. The exact follow-up costs are also to be determined here. | ||
+ | |||
+ | =====Assessment for courses===== | ||
+ | Overall, the videoconferencing services present a picture with various potential solutions. The expectation is high that with BigBlueButton we now have a functioning web conferencing solution on campus that is also suitable for teaching. However, it will probably only be usable for group sizes of up to 80-120 people. The GWDG upgraded its hardware for April 20, so that about 2000 parallel participants* are possible. However, there is no empirical data on how many participants there will be at the same time during the summer semester. A further expansion of capacities by the GWDG is possible. | ||
+ | |||
+ | The stability of BigBlueButton cannot yet be finally evaluated. The system was introduced at short notice in March and will be migrated to a larger hardware infrastructure in April. The GWDG is making every effort to ensure secure operation, but there is no longer any experience or history of this. Therefore, it cannot be excluded that unexpected restrictions may occur during the summer semester. | ||
+ | |||
+ | **BigBlueButton is therefore currently the preferred and recommended solution for the Göttingen Campus with a maximum of 80-120 participants* (currently without telephone support).** | ||
+ | |||
+ | |||
+ | ====Alternatives==== | ||
+ | In the current situation, it seems sensible to continue to have a commercial platform in the portfolio in addition to the preferred in-house solution BigBlueButton, | ||
+ | |||
+ | **Based on the positive experiences, | ||
+ | |||
+ | Alternatively, | ||
+ | University of Göttingen (uni-goettingen.zoom.us). These two environments are currently in test operation. If you would like to participate in this test, please send an email to support@gwdg.de, | ||
+ | |||
+ | |||
+ | In principle, Zoom also offers the option that the servers used are in Germany or are operated on-premise at the customer' | ||
+ | |||
+ | ===Microsoft Teams=== | ||
+ | The preference when using a commercial solution is with Zoom. However, it is not clear how the contract negotiations and the costs called for will develop. It therefore makes sense to continue to pursue alternatives for scenarios that BigBlueButtom cannot meet. | ||
+ | |||
+ | The GWDG has therefore created the technical basis for Microsoft teams to be used. Here, too, most of the statements made for Zoom are correct. It is an external cloud platform from Microsoft outside our direct control. In terms of data protection law, the use of Microsoft' | ||
+ | |||
+ | =====Limitations and challenges===== | ||
+ | It should be noted that the following questions and problems remain open and need to be clarified: | ||
+ | * Data protection law assessment of the use of a commercial solution as well as the need for a contract for commissioned data processing and the examination of the legal basis for the transfer of data. | ||
+ | * Security evaluation of the use of a commercial solution by the Information Security Officer. | ||
+ | * Evaluation under personnel law, with the involvement of the Staff Council, of whether employees are allowed or required to use an external cloud solution. | ||
+ | *Legal anchoring or examination under which conditions students can be obliged to use an external offer. | ||
+ | |||
+ | These points can hardly be conclusively clarified for the summer semester. Nevertheless, | ||
+ | |||
+ | Furthermore, | ||
+ | |||
+ | =====Media server of the GWDG===== | ||
+ | The media server of the GWDG is suitable for delivering recorded videos and has been in use for many years. However, it is not clear whether the GWDG's media server is sufficiently dimensioned for increased use. We are currently analysing whether it can be extended or whether an alternative service should be introduced at short notice. | ||
+ | |||
+ | |||
+ | |||
+ | |||
+ | |||
+ | |||
+ | |||
+ | |||
+ | |||
+ | |||
+ | |||
+ | |||