Business Connectivity Guide

From understanding broadband speeds to the essential extras, we assess your options in this guide

A fast internet connection is something we all need nowadays, especially businesses. However, there are now so many broadband providers who offer so many different services with different features, it’s difficult to know which one is right for your company.

Business broadband is no different from consumer broadband. Both of them give you access to the same internet. However, the considerations for business broadband go deeper than price and speed. You need to know what would happen if your internet went down and what support you would get from your provider. You will also need to know that your security will be looked after, and whether it will provide you with any extra services.

Here are some essentials that you should look out for when choosing which connectivity service to go with:

Business Connectivity Guide 1

Faster SpeedsThe speeds you get for a business broadband service depend on the type of broadband you want to pay for. If you’re on a budget, speeds will be the same as you get for consumer broadband which is typically around 15-18Mb download.

If you are in a fibre enabled area (FTTC, BT Superfast broadband), it promises super fast speeds for all of your internet needs and it doesn’t matter greatly how far you are from the street cabinet or telephone exchange. Although if you don’t have fibre, then the speeds you get will depend on a number of factors, such as where your business is located and the far you are situated from the local street cabinet or telephone exchange — the further you are from these, the slower your speeds, especially if you’re on a standard ADSL (asymmetric digital subscriber line) connection.

SecuritySecurity is something you will definitely need when thinking about which broadband company to choose.

Phishing, scams, hackers and even infected USB drives are a big threat to a business. Therefore, security is absolutely crucial. Business broadband providers protect against this by offering far superior security solutions than you get offered on a consumer deal. Sometimes these can be included in the price, and sometimes it may require an additional subscription or hardware solution, you need to invest in security as it could help you out in the long run. It is better to be safe than sorry.

SupportEvery business wants fast and reliable broadband at all times. If something goes wrong, it can be very costly to a business, especially if your business uses cloud based services like Microsoft Office 365 or VoIP. Therefore, a business broadband has to give more reliable and quicker support as there can be a lot at stake.

Unlike consumer broadband, where the support is more basic and usually classed as best endeavours and support often confined to office hours, a business provider will give you access to a specialist support centre and engineers, available 24/7. Business broadband/connectivity solutions should also come with a published Service Level Agreement (SLA).

Contention RatioThe contention ratio is the number of users sharing the same data capacity. The lower the contention ratio the higher the quality of service.

The contention ratio is much lower for business broadband, depending on how much you’re paying. The only problems could be if you are around other businesses running on the same network, more people means reduced quality of service. If an internet connection is critical to the running of your business then a dedicated connection such as a leased line is highly recommended.

Business Connectivity Guide 2

Fibre to the Premises

Fibre to premises (FTTP) takes the fibre optic connection directly from your local exchange into your building offering download speeds of up to 330Mbps and upload speeds up to 50Mbps. This may cost slightly more but it’s well worth the money if you are lucky enough to be in an FTTP enabled area. Be careful though some companies only offer this type of connection to consumers.

Leased Lines

Leased Lines are a dedicated connection for your business, as you don’t share your connection you benefit from exceptional speeds backed up by an SLA. You choose the connection speed that your business needs and have the flexibility to upgrade your leased line should your needs change. Speeds on a leased line are available from 10Mb right up to 10GB and as they are symmetrical your upload and download speeds are the same.

FTTC

Fibre to the cabinet is a connectivity technology that is based on a combination of fibre optic cable and copper cable. The fibre optic cable is in place from the local telephone exchange to a distribution point (commonly called a roadside cabinet), hence the name fibre to the cabinet. From this distribution point a standard telephone line based on copper is then used to deliver the broadband connectivity.

Static IP

An IP address is a fixed number which is given to your computer by your internet provider. The IP identifies your computer when it has access to the internet. Static IP addresses will stay the same and cannot be moved between ISP’s.

VPN

A VPN (virtual private network) pretty much connects your PC, tablet or smartphone to another computer (essentially a server) somewhere on the internet and allows you to browse the internet by using that computer’s internet connection. It also allows you to access the same network which then allows you to share files and applications and it’s no different than if you were physically connected to a network.

When you’re in a business you really do want the best internet speeds possible. Although set up costs can be slightly more expensive, there are a few ways of getting faster speeds with your broadband;

Business Connectivity Guide 3

EoFTTC

Ethernet over Fibre to the Cabinet (EoFTTC) is provided by copper from your business premises over the short distance to the green cabinets in the street. Unlike standard broadband where the copper then continues all the way to the exchange, Ethernet over Fibre to the Cabinet traffic travels across a shared fibre optic circuit to the exchange. The extra distance doesn’t lead to ongoing degradation of performance, which allows access to up to 20Mbps symmetrical speed with the additional boost downstream making a total of 76Mbps downstream bandwidth.

This provides an Ethernet service, without the cost, whilst offering great UK wide coverage that’s more often available in residential areas. Ethernet over Fibre is ideal for both Cloud-ready Internet Access and Private Network. Often chosen for its speedy transfers of large data files as well as running simultaneous applications like SIP, video conferencing and real-time business applications.

SD-WAN

Software-Defined Wide Area Networking (SD-WAN) is a transformational approach to simplify branch office networking and assure optimal application performance. Unlike traditional WANs, SD-WAN delivers increased network agility and cost reduction.

Software-Defined WAN has its roots in Software-Defined Networking (SDN), the underlying principle of which is to abstract the network hardware and transport characteristics from the applications that use the network.

Andy MurphyPescado Technical Director

"Having the right connectivity solution can open up a world of technology solutions for your business. It is well worth taking the time to explore your options. If you aren’t sure what you need, the team and I are on hand to offer advice based on what your business does and needs.”

For more information on how we can help you choose the right connectivity for your business, please contact:

enquiries@pescado.co.uk 033 000 22 021

MPLS IP VPN

An IP-VPN service builds a private, MPLS based WAN for businesses with Multiple Offices (National or International). It provides a secure, reliable, high-performance and scalable network connecting all your business locations whilst intelligently optimising business communications and applications.