Requests for web content from any user or any device are typically treated on a ‘first come, first served’ basis without concern for which request is most important.
Traffic Shaping puts authorities or individual schools in control of how internet connections are used so that content that matters most to students, teachers and administrators can be prioritised.
Specific classroom content may need to be given priority over YouTube videos, for example. Or, to guarantee submission of registration data to authority headquarters, a portion of bandwidth may need to be reserved for an administrator.
With EDUGATEBOX’s simplified traffic shaping interface, local or group policies can quickly and easily be defined to:
- Prioritise specific traffic by type/source, and limit others; for example, give precedence to traffic from Khan Academy over YouTube
- Guarantee bandwidth availability for a specific user or type of content; reserve a portion of bandwidth for high priority traffic, such as administration staff email
- Reduce peak time congestion by applying blocks of restriction at a school’s core times; for example, limit Windows Update downloads to 5% of traffic during the school day but remove the restriction at night
- Limit users to a specific number of connections or percentage of bandwidth to stop any one student from causing congestion