The Joint Information Systems Committee funded Birmingham University to investige and report on the network infrastructure implications of students bringing their own portable computers (Student Portable Computers - SPCs) to University, and the final report was delivered in November last year. This talk will present the key elements of the findings.

Current network technology was designed around a model of computers that remained attached to a network, at a particular location, for substantial periods of time. Over the years there have been attempts to provide some support for itinerancy, with the Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol being one example, but such solutions bring with them problems of network manageability.

Recent developments in networking promise greater scope for building networks that support itinerant and truly mobile computing, but the new technologies pose serious challenges for those who design and manage networks.

There is no single solution to building SPC-friendly networks, but some solutions, tailored to HEIs of various sizes, will be suggested.