Kentucky Air Guard migrating to Air Force Network

KENTUCKY AIR NATIONAL GUARD BASE, LOUISVILLE, Ky. -- The Air Force has been working diligently for several years to consolidate and better manage its network infrastructure while improving interconnectivity and communication between Air Force leadership and personnel.

The Kentucky Air National Guard will soon being doing its part by completing the migration of computer users from the Air National Guard domain to the Air Force Network, according to Staff Sgt. Robert J. Thomas, network administrator for the 123rd Communications Flight.

One benefit of that move, scheduled to begin April 13, is that Guard members on temporary assignment to active-duty units or other guard bases will be able to seamlessly access email and network accounts without the delays typically associated with transferring accounts from home units to gaining units.  

The best way to ensure a successful transition is for users to practice good information management, Thomas said. That means moving old emails to a locally stored personal folder, or .pst file; deleting unneeded files; and routinely backing-up vital files.

The transition is expected to be transparent, Thomas added, and most users will not notice any difference until they visit another base and are able to access their email and personal accounts immediately, rather than days or weeks later. 

In addition to the enhanced interoperability of AFNet, the migration will aid Air Force leadership in their communication efforts with the Total Force, Thomas said. Members of the Air National Guard, Air Force Reserve and active-duty Air Force will be equally accessible and can now receive higher-headquarters communications simultaneously.

The migration will be implemented automatically April 13 for all computers that are powered on and connected to the network, Thomas said. No other action is required of end users.

Any questions regarding the migration should be directed to the Comm Focal Point at (502) 413-4357.