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Changing WAN carriers

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by ttate 1 view

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We are coming to the end of our contract with our current WAN carrier. We have had issues (none that you really shouldn't expect with a carrier) with our provider, but don't think it would be any better "on the other side of the fence."

Is there anyone out there who: Is international and made the switch from one carrier to another? If so, what were the compelling reasons for the switch, What obstacles did you face during the transition, How many companies felt that they achieved the benefitsafter the move, Would they do it again, etc.

Your advice or any direction to this information is greatly appreciated.

7 replies

by barry hensley

I have consulted to several companies with world wide operations and I can sum up my experience very quickly.

The most reliable and best performing global networks on which I have had the pleasure to work have been those that are facilitated by a single carrier. Working with one large router manufacturer in San Jose, CA, I was able to see the results of selecting a single carrier provide <10ms round trip from the US to both EMEA and AsiaPac. In this particular case, a single carrier was chosen to carry traffic from the US to Asia and another single carrier was chosen to carry the traffic from the US to Europe. The bridge between the carriers was NOT left to the carriers but was accomplished by directing traffic from both carriers to a very high speed core router within the corporate data center.

I have found that, when selecting a carrier, you cannot rely on the claims that the carrier will route all of the traffic on their own network. Often times, global carriers will offer to make all of your global connections for you but are actually purchasing bandwidth from several smaller carriers to deliver service to areas in which the carrier does not have facilities. This is where you can run into problems. Make sure that the carrier actually owns and manages the facilities to which you are connecting.

Next, work with local providers to reduce the number of hops to the carrier's backbone to a minimum. That may involve purchasing a clear channel circuit for a longer distance than you had anticipated but the results are worth it.

I will not make specific carrier recommendations because I don't know your geographical needs. I can only recommend that you be very very thorough in your evaluation of the carrier's facilities. Ask to see detailed network diagrams that show pipe sizes and utilization. Carriers will resist this but, insist on it. They have the data, make them show it to you.

by ttate

Thanks for the comments. However, I was looking for more information on CHANGING carriers and reasons for doing so, or at least a case study where someone made the switch and what they encountered during the transition.

by kevin m. hirahara

Part I of II

Hello,

Changing WAN carriers is becoming more and more of a commonplace in today?s competitive markets. I?ve been through one so far, and will undergo another in the next month or two. ?not in just one facility, but over the entire enterprise.

A.) The Primary reasons for change, have been:

1.) Frequent downtime or performance issues due to problems in the carrier?s network.
2.) Not being price competitive as fluctuations in price points occur throughout the carriermarket (and the current carrier is unwilling to accommodate a price reduction).

Depending upon the size of your company, you should attempt to negotiate enterprise-wide contracts with various carriers such as MCI/Worldcom, ATT, etc., which can bring your total contractual costs down by BUNDLING your Data Services (Frame, T1, xDSL, Internet Provider, etc.) along with Long Distance Service and even with Local Carrier Service in some instances.

B.) The Primary Obstacles:

1.) The actual coordination and timing for the cutover. In a smaller business where budgeting has strictly controlled the implementation of datacomm equipment at various sites, the cutover typically becomes a Hot Cutover rather than a Transitional Cutover.

A Hot Cutover means that over a weekend, the old circuit is shutdown and the new circuit is brought online ? keeping your fingers crossed that all parties did their part and everything actually syncs up. This is because you are required to use existing equipment rather than spare equipment.

(continued on Part II)...

by kevin m. hirahara

(continued from Part I)...

A Transitional Cutover means that you have the ability to maintain your existing carrier circuit while bringing up the new circuit using your spare equipment. Then once the new circuit is truly up without any issues, you can safely perform the Cutover. This is the safest means and the one that will have the least impact on your business routines in the event of some failure during the Cutover.

2.) The DNS registrations need to be coordinated as well, to accommodate the new Carrier?s IP block. This only becomes a major issue if you are maintaining your own, internal webservers or providing e-commerce type services and have negotiated ISP services into your WAN contract.

3.) Unforeseen problems can occur. For instance, the carrier for your local loop may not junction correctly, or wire in appropriately, causing errors and slips on the line. This will require the Local guys to be dispatched to rework their portion of your install. Most carriers will require coordination with your local loops in order to meet the task ? let their project managers do this.

4.) Include an Exit or Renegotiation Clause ? This is IMPORTANT. Some of these carriers require a 1-year, 2-year, or even more in order to bring costs down in the contract ? sounds fair enough. BUT, look out! Work in an Exit or Renegotiaion Clause into the contract in the event

a.) Technology has evolved over the life of the contract such that fair market pricing (for carrier service) has come down drastically in the market or

(Ooops, ran out of space - Continued on Part III)...

by kevin m. hirahara

(continued from Part II)...

b.) Your business takes a downturn due to either corporate economic events or National/International economic events (recession), which are outside of your control ? meaning, if your business takes a downturn, you can Exit or Renegotiate your carrier contracts. Don?t ever be locked into a minimum price point over the life of the contract.

C.) The Benefits:

The main reason that justifies the transition from one carrier to another is to increase ROI - Whether that means to eliminate or reduce downtime, or to reduce carrier charges.

D.) Would I do it Again? Sure.

E.) What the Future Holds: With the advent of Ipv6, carrier independence in terms of Internet IP addressing is just around the corner. This will allow us to circumvent problem obstacle number 2 listed above. If you'd like more information on IPv6, I have created a paper on my personal website at "http://hirahara.ourfamily.com/custom3.html", if you'd like to take a closer look.

Good luck in your transition. I hope this information helps.

Regards,

Kevin.

by ttate

Outstanding! Thanks for your words of wisdom and experience. You are truly a scholar and a gentleman.

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