Ethernet First Mile As An Affordable Option For Multisite SME Businesses
Copyright (c) 2011 Ian Roberts
Established in 2001, Ethernet First Mile, or IEEE 802.3ah, is quick becoming the preferred technology for businesses with internet and broadband access requirements. It has been growing rapidly and is the method by which Ethernet penetrates existing access networks.
As it becomes more widespread in its movement outward from core networks, EFM is poised to replace leased lines for nearly all small and medium sized business internet applications. Leased lines are expensive to maintain, a fact that has led to lower take up in multisite small and medium businesses that require a VPN or internet access for operation.
The ability of EFM to use existing infrastructure is one of the reasons it has grown so fast and with such little impact over the past few years. Over 80% of businesses in the United Kingdom now have access to fibre based EFM, and that will be supplemented by copper EFM shortly. Typically any business that is centered in an urban area is now able to make the switch to allow higher capabilities for their business internet and broadband requirements.
A huge benefit to small businesses will be the need to train fewer technicians to maintain and install interfaces. Unlike E1, E3, and STM-1, Ethernet requires only one interface to operate.
This rapid leased line replacement that we will soon be seeing will give small businesses the opportunity to really compete once they're able to bypass the prohibitive costs and fees of subscribing to leased lines and lower the cost for Internet access.
In theory, it is possible to reach 100Mbit/s with Ethernet First Mile copper pairing; in practice single and bonded copper pairs will support 4-8Mb of symmetrical connectivity which will suffice for most small business Internet and broadband needs. Medium sized companies will require higher speeds with service level agreements (SLAs), or higher VPN capabilities in which case fibre will be the EFM medium of choice.
Video Conferencing and VoIP (Voice over Internet Protocol) are just two out of the many services that suffered historically from bad connection quality and leased lines. EFM reduces lag for these services with up to 99.9% availability of SLAs.
Essentially, what Ethernet First Mile does is place high quality business broadband and business internet within the grasp of small businesses, allowing them to leverage into the market more than was previously possible.
Nearly 400,000 lease lines are scheduled for replacement by Ethernet First Mile in the next few years, although the UK has already completed the process in many areas. As Ethernet First Mile is still relatively young, it's possible that you may not have heard about it or put much consideration into using it for your business internet and broadband. It has stayed off the radar for several years as the technology grows. Now is the time to take advantage of it and steal a march on your competitors before they do it to you.
About the Author
Ian Roberts: Article Author Managing Director: On-Communications http://www.on-communications.com
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