Bitstream 3 Connectivity
Bitstream 3 connectivity, or ‘premium economy’ UFB fibre, has been developed for the business sector, with the aim of offering a mid-tier fibre solution that will give you a lot of the benefits of premium fibre but at a fraction of the cost, and it’s backed by excellent service levels too.
What is Bitstream 3?
Bitstream 3 is ideal for larger businesses (think between
20-50 users per office) with more advanced networking requirements, such as but
not limited to splitting different types of services over a single connection,
using what we call (in tech speak) ‘VLAN tagging’, as Bitstream 3 connectivity
is multi-VLAN capable, unlike Bitstream 2 services.
A ‘VLAN’, or Virtual Local Area Network, is a network
configuration that allows multiple users to access a service over one logical
network. This is often a highly secure way of delivering a service over your
connectivity that only you and your staff will have access to.
Going back to ‘VLAN tagging’, think of a VLAN Tag in a
similar vein to a transit lane for buses/taxis and so forth during peak times –
Essentially the transit lane is given it’s own clear path away from regular
traffic, allowing it to get through congested areas quicker.
In a real time business environment and using the above example,
voice data would likely go via the transit lane and regular internet data goes
via the normal road, as voice traffic generally needs to be prioritized to
ensure call quality and performance overall is optimised.
Bitstream 3 also supports up to 100Mbps of ‘high priority
traffic’ (which comes at an additional cost) where users can deliver a single
service, such as voice or video conferencing, over its own private path that no
other traffic can use – This is like it’s own barricaded highway for a single
user, if you like.
If your business has multiple offices, Bitstream 3 can help
create a high speed, lower cost WAN (Wide Area Network) compared to more
traditional premium alternatives, that can safely and securely support critical
business content between sites like voice, terminal server access, internet
breakouts + more using the multiple VLAN capability it has available.
Bitstream 3 fibre also offers priority support from the
circuit provider which your internet provider will use to your advantage in the
event a fault occurs, as faults/issues will be tended to more quickly than if
you were using Bitstream 2 fibre. This also means better, faster restoration of
services should the proverbial hit the fan.
Bitstream 3 fibre still has bandwidth contention (between
18:1 to 12:1, depending on the circuit provider delivering this service), so
like Bitstream 2, don’t expect to have the full circuit speeds available at all
times.
Is Bitstream 3 Fibre Right For My Business?
I believe in most cases it is, and at the very least needs
to be considered seriously when assessing your current and future connectivity
requirements with your technical support team or managed service provider.
There are a variety of lower and higher speed options
available that can fit in to most customers budgets too, and the back end
support that your internet provider will get from the circuit provider will
invariably mean you will get better, faster responses to any faults or issues
that may occur from time to time, which is so important in this day and age.
