Why Your Business Needs A Dual Internet Connection

Nowadays, a company is dependent on its internet connection for so much more than merely being able to browse the internet. Many software applications, programmes, communication networks and cloud server connectivity can only be accessed through the internet. If the connection goes down – the financial impact on a company can be tremendous.

Unfortunately, internet outages do happen, and companies need to plan accordingly. Westech, a provider of professional IT Services, offers a multi-link solution that provides dual internet connections.

Dual internet connections, multi-links, dual-WAN or redundant internet connections all refer to two interfaces that connect to the internet to create stability. Should a link go down with Supplier A, the substitute link with Supplier B kicks in to prevent connectivity downtime and prevent a total outage. The focus here is on obtaining connections from two separate suppliers.

The multi-link solution also actively controls network traffic to balance the overall load, thus ensuring better throughput. Too much network traffic, both inbound and outbound, can congest links and overload hardware devices.

Before a multi-link solution can be considered, it is essential to ensure that the primary link, or internet connection, is the correct type for the type of business activities it serves. There are three popular options on the market at this time:

• A broadband connection is generally used for home-based and small businesses, but the downside is that, due to sharing bandwidth with other users, the performance can fluctuate at peak times.
• A second option is a leased line with a Service Level Agreement. This is better for medium-sized and growing businesses as it guarantees consistent performance due to a dedicated and private internet connection.
• The third option currently available is 4G internet connectivity. This is a perfect solution for working from remote areas or where the signal is inadequate or non-existent. However, they are only suitable for larger businesses as a back-up if the wired connection fails.

The above choices will also depend on budgetary allowances for a second internet connection. An identical link may prove to be too costly, in which case a reduced capacity line may also be considered as a fourth option to purely allow critical services to run during an outage. Installing a multi-link will ensure that a business is not taken off-line completely, although it may experience some disruptions until the primary link is restored.

If a business needs to be accessible to its clients and cannot afford for its employees not to be able to do their work, or home-based businesses require increased speed and reliability, then Westech strongly advises a multi-link connection installation.

Westech now provides dedicated 1:1 Fibre, Microwave, Broadband, LTE and Multi-Links for Failover. Contact them to build tailored redundancy options for 10mb 20mb, 50mb, 100mb and 200mb, or for a full Disaster Recovery Plan.