CERF, the Cincinnati Education Research Fiber loop, is an approximately 60-mile pair of single mode fiber configured in a ring. See the route map, below, for the approximate fiber path.

In February 2003, P&G donated the use of this fiber optic cable to Cincinnati State Technical Community College (CSTCC). Later, CTSCC and UC formed a consortium to make use of the fiber, with UC designated to manage the facilities.

CISCO 15454 Dense Wave Division Multiplexing (DWDM) electronics is used on the fiber loop. It is currently configured with one OC-48 (2.5 Gbps) lambda throughout the fiber ring. Cincinnati State's main and Evendale campuses, UC's main campus and Genomics Research Institute (GRI), Xavier University and OARnet are online, routing all data traffic over the fiber loop. 

Click here to access the CERF Members Only Section.