Acceptable Uses of the AARNet Network
A full description of AARNet Access Policy can be found on the AARNet Web Site. The intent of this "Acceptable Access Policy" is to clarify by example the guidelines that apply to determining whether a given use is acceptable or not.
These guidelines are not intended to be exhaustive. The final authority for determining whether or not a use is acceptable is the AARNet Management Committee.
Members are responsible for raising any questionable use with the committee. Until any use referred to the committee is determined to be acceptable, it should be considered as unacceptable.
Uses that fall under one of the following descriptions are, in general, acceptable:
Uses consistent with the purposes of AARNet;
Uses related to instruction, research, development and technology transfer at not-for-profit organizations;
Uses by for-profit organizations in support of research, development and technology transfer.
Uses related to the administrative and other support of activities considered consistent with the purposes of AARNet;
Uses relating to billable services, such as the sale of machine time, provided that the use of the service in question is itself related to activities consistent with the purposes of the AARNet network.
Uses relating to the investigation and support of vendors' products, such as the distribution of information or technical support material on request or the discussion of products' relative advantages and disadvantages.
Uses that fall under one of the following descriptions are, in general, not acceptable:
Uses that unduly interfere with the work of other users of the network or with their host systems, or that seriously disrupt the network, or that result in the loss of a user's work or system;
Uses related to commercial activities such as the unsolicited distribution of advertising material;
Uses that are considered by the AARNet Management Committee to be malicious or unethical;
Uses that violate federal or provincial laws;
Uses related to "chain letters" or broadcasting to lists of individuals in such a manner that might cause congestion of the network;
Uses of the AARNet network that result in traffic to any connected network which violates published acceptable use specifications for that network.