By: John Shepler
Let’s say you need a secure connection with decent bandwidth between two business sites. Should you use the internet, or is there a better option?
The Benefits of Private Lines
The internet has two main advantages: global reach and affordability. However, it also has two significant drawbacks: inconsistent performance and security vulnerabilities.
A superior alternative is private lines, specifically dedicated point-to-point connections. These are genuinely private.
Security is greatly enhanced because accessing a network you’re not connected to is incredibly difficult. It’s like the old spy movies where someone physically taps into a phone line. That’s the level of effort required to breach a private line – physical access to the connection itself. There’s no opportunity for the data packet snooping that plagues internet connections, especially WiFi.
To make your network even more secure, consider fiber optic cables instead of copper wires and encrypt your data. This adds an extra layer of protection, forcing intruders to physically access your connection and crack your encryption before being detected. Not an easy feat.
Great Security, But What About Performance?
Unless you own the entire network end-to-end, it’s hard to beat the performance of private lines. While possible, owning your own network is usually limited to a building or campus. Leasing dark fiber might be feasible for connecting locations across a city, giving you significant control over the entire link if you install your own equipment.
Most businesses don’t require this level of control. Leasing point-to-point private lines at various bandwidths is usually sufficient. With enough bandwidth, network congestion is a non-issue, and dedicated private lines minimize packet loss, jitter, and latency since your traffic is the only traffic on the connection.
The internet doesn’t offer this consistent performance. Its strength lies in routing around outages and failures, but this means your data might take different routes between two points. While TCP/IP ensures data delivery, real-time applications like VoIP and video conferencing perform much better on private lines.
What Private Line Services Are Available?
The main contenders are SONET and Carrier Ethernet over Fiber. While T1 lines are still functional, their bandwidth is limited to 1.5 Mbps. You can achieve 10-12 Mbps by bonding T1 lines, but fiber offers better value at that point. Fiber bandwidth typically starts at 10 Mbps and can go up to 10 Gbps or higher in most regions. MPLS networks are a great option for connecting multiple locations or international connections.
About SONET Fiber Optic Bandwidth
SONET is the original technology for switched circuits over fiber optic cables, using a ring topology with two fibers for redundancy. If one fiber is cut, the other takes over within 50 milliseconds, ensuring continuous connectivity.
Many networks, especially legacy telecom networks, rely on SONET. OC-3 at 155 Mbps is the most basic service, with OC-12 (622 Mbps) and OC-48 (2.4 Gbps) being other popular options. Even DS3 service at 45 Mbps, delivered over coaxial cables, typically travels over OC-3 fiber.
SONET is reliable and established; it’s how many businesses transitioned to fiber optics when copper lines fell short. Prices have decreased significantly, but a more cost-effective and adaptable solution exists today: Carrier Ethernet.
Benefits of Ethernet over Fiber Bandwidth
Ethernet is the dominant protocol in local area networks. Just as digital data has overtaken analog phone calls, IP video now dominates digital traffic. Carrier Ethernet (Ethernet over Fiber or EoF) extends LAN standards for long-distance connections on carrier networks.
Ethernet’s advantage is its direct compatibility with LANs, eliminating the need for protocol conversion. Unlike SONET, Ethernet is designed for scalability, allowing you to easily adjust bandwidth as needed.
Generally, Ethernet is more affordable per Mbps than SONET or lower-speed wired services. 10 Mbps EoF is within reach for most businesses, with 100 Mbps Fast Ethernet being a common choice. GigE and 10 GigE are popular for larger enterprises and demanding applications.
How MPLS Networks Provide Private Lines
MPLS (Multi-Protocol Label Switching) networks are wide-area networks that utilize a specialized routing technique called label switching, which is unique to these networks and difficult to hack. This is why MPLS is also referred to as MPLS VPN or virtually private networking.
While not strictly private lines, MPLS networks serve a select group of paying clients and are meticulously managed to guarantee resource availability. You can often exceed your committed resources if extra capacity is available, thanks to “burst” capabilities.
The cost-effectiveness of connecting numerous sites through a large private network makes MPLS an attractive option, often surpassing the cost of using multiple private lines, even for two internationally located sites.
Choosing the Best Bandwidth Solution for Your Business
Before selecting a bandwidth solution, compare the performance guarantees and costs of SONET, Ethernet over Fiber, and MPLS private line solutions
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