Private IP Networks vs The Internet

By: John Shepler

Private vs Public. This is a big dividing line between business connectivity services. Let’s take a closer look at what the differences are and how you go about picking the right solution.

Private lines have been a staple of business operations since they were first offered by the telephone companies. They are renowned for their high reliability, excellent consistent performance, desirable specs… and high prices.

The Internet is the new kid on the block, relatively speaking. Remember the dial-up days? Long gone. Now just about everyone who wants a broadband connection and can pony up $40 to $60 a month can hook into a universal worldwide network from just about anywhere. In fact, if you have a business and want to connect with consumers you WILL be on the Internet.

That suggests an interesting approach. If you have to be connected to the Internet to do business with your customers and, often, suppliers, why not use the Internet for everything? If it would work, you could save a bundle of money and only have to worry about your last-mile access connection instead of an entire wide area network. Somebody else will take care of making sure the Internet core will be available 24/7.

The actual Internet core network is highly reliable. The issues that business users have generally break down into performance, security and reliability of that last mile connection.

Let’s take the last mile first. You know that you can connect to the Internet using a business version of the same DSL, cable and wireless broadband services that are popular with consumers. The price is right, but you will be dealing with variable performance due to the bandwidth being shared among many users, asymmetrical (much higher download than upload speeds), and no service level agreements to give you the priority you need when things occasionally go wrong.

The solution to these limitations is DIA or Dedicated Internet Access. This is a last mile connection using a T1 line, DS3, Ethernet over Copper or Fiber or SONET fiber optic service. Now your last mile is every bit the quality of a private line. So, does that also make the Internet the ideal business network?

Not necessarily. The Internet is designed for universal access and is self-healing to maintain connectivity even if one path is cut or routing equipment fails. That’s good, right? It sure is if you want to make sure your packets get from one place to another. Not so good if you need consistency in bandwidth, latency, jitter and packet loss. Remember, you are sharing the Internet with millions of other eager users. That can result in things backing up, like the congestion you get on a public highway. Nobody guarantees performance, so you get what you get. For nearly all consumers and many businesses it’s a good tradeoff.

Security is another matter. There is no security on the Internet. It’s open to anyone and everyone. However, you can create your own security by using data encryption to build a private tunnel through the public network. SSL (Secure Socket Layer) encryption is the standard for ecommerce and can be used for private business communications, too.

It the Internet won’t cut it for your critical internal operations, you can construct your own private IP network using point to point dedicated lines and your own switches and routers. The PTP lines simply extend your network around town, cross country or internationally. This is the ultimate in performance and security, but it costs a pretty penny. Is there anything else that will work?

MPLS networks are becoming the new gold standard for private business communications. This means connections between multiple business locations, remote data centers or cloud services. Only paying customers get on this network and the Multi-Protocol Label Switching technology is proprietary to the network. This is why they’ll often be referred to as MPLS VPN or virtual private networks. The network operator ensures that each user has the connectivity they need with committed bandwidth and guaranteed levels of low latency, jitter and packet loss. From your perspective, you are the only one on the network. In actuality, there are likely thousands of other customers using the same core network. There is no interaction between them.

MPLS networks are considerably less expensive than building your own private network but more expensive than using the Internet. So, how do you decide? In many cases, the answer is to use both. The Internet is perfect for connecting prospects and customers to your public-facing servers. The private network connections are perfect for sensitive internal communications, VoIP telephony, video conferencing, and efficient cloud connections.

Does your business need solutions for internal connections, public communications or both? Check out the different options for Internet and private IP connections available for your business locations.

When Asymmetrical Bandwidth Works Just Fine

Asymmetrical bandwidth has been pooh-poohed for business applications in favor of symmetrical bandwidth options. In some cases, you can wind up spending too much for the service you really need. In other cases, picking the wrong option will leave you frustrated and unproductive.

How do these symmetries work? Symmetrical bandwidth means that the upload and download speeds are exactly the same. You’ll see this identified as 3 x 3 Mbps Ethernet or 100 x 100 Mbps Fast Ethernet. The classic example of symmetrical bandwidth is the venerable T1 line. It offers a fixed 1.5 Mbps in the upload or transmit direction and 1.5 Mbps in the download or receive direction.

T1, DS3 and SONET are all symmetrical bandwidth services. The reason for this is historical. These are standards developed by the telephone companies to transport phone calls in bulk. The same bandwidth is needed for talk as well as listen on both ends. Ethernet over Fiber and Copper also tends to be symmetrical. It’s because these services were designed as replacements for T1, DS3 and SONET when used in business.

Asymmetrical bandwidth is characterized by differences in the upload and download speeds. This can be as much as an order of magnitude or 10x. You might order a service with 20 Mbps download and 2 Mbps upload or 100 Mbps download and 10 Mbps upload.

Asymmetrical bandwidth is dominant in consumer broadband services. These include DSL, Cable, 3G and 4G wireless, two-way satellite, WiFi hotspots and WiMAX. Why? It’s the nature of the Internet.

Most people browse the Web or download software and video while they are online. When you are doing these things, you are sending commands via your keyboard to the remotely located Web server. These commands are inherently low bandwidth and are based on text you type or links you click on. Neither of these has very many bytes of data involved. Downloads are another matter. Web pages, video clips and streams, music and other audio, software updates and large files are all bandwidth intensive because of their large file sizes. You want the maximum bandwidth available for downloads to minimize load times. You don’t need much bandwidth at all in the upload direction for the usual Web browsing.

What changes this picture? Any process that results in sending out large files as well as receiving them. Examples are remote backups, video conferencing, posting photos and movies online, and making large updates to Web servers. Most consumers do some of these things some of the time. Businesses are far more likely to be sending as much as they receive. But... not all.

If you are heavily involved in big data, cloud computing, enterprise VoIP, video production and distribution, medical image transmission or similar large file operations, you’ll want to opt for symmetrical bandwidth. Fast download speeds may not be so valuable when you wait forever to upload something or try to conduct an HD video conference.

Why pick asymmetrical bandwidth options? The primary reason is to save money. The asymmetrical services like Cable, DSL and 3G wireless are usually priced at a fraction of the cost for symmetrical services. This is generally due to more than symmetry. Asymmetrical services are most often shared rather than dedicated bandwidth. This reduces costs dramatically but means that your bandwidth will vary depending on what other users are doing. There are generally no service level agreements or performance guarantees on asymmetrical bandwidth services. That may be changing as business service providers begin offering dedicated asymmetrical bandwidth options.

What is the best bandwidth option for your business? Find out by comparing prices and features for a wide variety of asymmetrical and symmetrical bandwidth options on carriers serving your business location. Free consulting is also available to help you make the appropriate choice.

High Speed Internet For Business

Not many years ago high speed Internet access was hard to come by, even for businesses. Prices were high and service options were few. That’s all changed dramatically. Now there are multiple broadband options for your business even if you are located out in the boonies. Let’s take a look at a range of high speed Internet connections divvied up by low, medium and high bandwidth.

Most businesses don’t need a gazillion bits per second, even though they might fancy carrier level bandwidth services. One thing that’s always been true and is likely to stay that way is that the higher the bandwidth, the higher the price. It’s true that within bandwidth categories there can be quite a price differential. You can also get a lot more bandwidth if you elect for shared vs dedicated service. However, that shared bandwidth varies all over the place while dedicated services are rock solid.

The low end of the bandwidth range is dominated by wireline and wireless services. Twisted pair copper is a popular delivery medium because it is almost always available in the form of multi-pair wiring installed by the telephone company. Any copper pairs not being used to carry telephone calls are available for data.

T1 is the traditional data connection for business locations. It is a dedicated bandwidth solution with symmetrical 1.5 Mbps x 1.5 Mbps available at all times. There are generally Service Level Agreements (SLAs) that guarantee uptime, bandwidth and other parameters like jitter and latency. Pricing starts at around $300 per month, sometimes less for a multi-year lease. Out of the way locations may find that pricing is higher for T1 lines.

Ethernet over Copper (EoC) is fast moving in as a direct competitor to T1. It uses the same multiple copper telco pairs but a different modulation scheme that is more efficient. T1 can be run just about any distance. EoC bandwidth is highly dependent on how close you are to the central office. Bandwidths from 2 to 30 Mbps are common, with 3 Mbps around the same price as a T1 line. A very popular EoC service upgrade is 10 x 10 Mbps for businesses that find T1 lines too restrictive and bonded T1 lines too expensive.

There are two other copper-based high speed Internet technologies. One is DSL, a shared bandwidth service that uses twisted pair copper and is relatively inexpensive. The other is Cable broadband, with bandwidths as high as 100 Mbps download and 10 Mbps upload for about what you pay for a T1 line. Both DSL and Cable are asymmetrical bandwidth (higher download than upload speeds) and are offered without SLAs. The big attraction is lower costs, especially for businesses like quick serve restaurants that want to offer free WiFi and have email and Web access for the office. Availability is limited. Cable is pretty much only in-town where the main cable has already been run.

The other way to go is wireless. Many franchise operations use VSAT or Very Small Aperture Terminal satellite antennas. These are a bit larger than the ones used to pick up satellite TV and are set up for two-way data transmission. Recently, 3G and 4G fixed wireless broadband has become a strong competitor for both VSAT and copper wireline solutions. The cost is about half the price of T1 for similar performance, with rural service often available. VSAT can be installed anywhere that you have power and a clear view of the southern sky.

The middle portion of the bandwidth spectrum, say from 10 Mbps to 100 mbps is dominated by bonded T1 lines at the low end, Ethernet over Copper throughout the range, and fiber optic services at the high end. DS3 or T3 lines running at 45 Mbps are the legacy service and are still very popular. In downtown metro areas, you may be able to get high speed fixed wireless in this bandwidth range. Cable is becoming a competitor with 50 Mbps and 100 Mbps services displacing both copper and fiber when symmetrical and dedicated bandwidth aren’t mandatory and you can live without service level agreements.

High bandwidth Internet access over 100 Mbps is now a battle between SONET and Ethernet fiber optic services. SONET is the incumbent, but tends to be higher cost. Ethernet is the newer service, often lower in price but not as generally available. Ethernet is also more granular in its bandwidth and easier scaled up for businesses that are on a fast growth path. Both SONET and Ethernet can give you as much bandwidth as you need and can afford, up to 10 Gbps and higher.

What Internet service option is best for your business? Get high speed Internet prices and availability for a wide range of options, with complementary consulting to help you pick the right solution for your needs.

Ethernet Internet Service Access For Business

Internet access has become key to doing business, both on the Web and for bricks and mortar operations. The Internet has become ubiquitous in connecting to customers, suppliers, remote workers and even between company locations. So, is business Internet the same as what consumers use or are there differences?

There are various characteristics of Internet service access you can choose, including dedicated or shared, symmetrical or asymmetrical, wired or wireless, copper or fiber, bandwidth level and cost. One of the newest and most cost effective services that meets the needs of many business locations is Ethernet Internet service. Can it be what you are looking for? Why not get an instant online price quote and compare with what you have now?



These Ethernet Internet service access quotes are for business locations only, not residences. At the low end of the price spectrum are business Cable broadband connections which are shared bandwidth and asymmetrical. They give you a high maximum download speed, but that speed varies all over the place since the bandwidth is shared among many users. Download speeds are 10x or so upload speeds, specifically intended for Web surfing, email, and watching online video.

Ethernet over Copper and Ethernet over Fiber Internet Service works more like traditional telecom lines. The bandwidth is symmetrical so that upload and download speeds are the same. You also get the bandwidth you order since it is dedicated to your use only and doesn’t depend on what other users are doing.

Ethernet over Copper uses the same twisted pair copper telco wiring that you use now for multi-line telephone and T1 lines. That’s makes construction costs negligible in many cases. Line speeds are available from 1 Mbps on up to 100 Mbps or more, depending on how far you are from the central office where your wiring connects. Up to 8 copper pair may be used to deliver the higher bandwidths.

Ethernet over Fiber requires a fiber optic line, but it delivers much higher bandwidths. With EoF, you can easily get Fast Ethernet at 100 Mbps and Gigabit Ethernet at 1000 Mbps. In some cases 10GigE is also available for large enterprise applications.

Can you get twice the bandwidth for the same money as you pay now by switching to Ethernet Internet Service for business? Check the speeds, prices and availability and compare with your current Internet service.