Keeping your business connected

Not only do our business rely on its Internet connections, keeping your business connected and for life in general is vital.   As Internet connectivity becomes more essential for our lives at home, in business (often the same thing right now!), losing it, even for a brief period can be a real problem. No Internet means no email, no web browsing and in many cases, no work.  With more and more software solutions and packages going to the cloud, connectivity is king.

What happens in your business when the Internet is down

No email, no incoming orders, no web browsing, no news or market feeds. At home, this could be the same as your business or the family gaming, food shopping, streaming films from Netflix or YouTube – our lives are connected.

Getting smart about how these are all connected can help you stay safe, online and connected at home, at work and on the move.

Internet Service Providers (who supply your connection, ISP’s) don’t offer an ‘SLA’ (reliability agreement/guarantee) on connections and lines and even if yours does, that can’t actually guarantee that your line will always work, and can’t always be fixed immediately.  Sometimes it can be days before a fix if found.

Taking an unwanted detox from the world can be healthy sometimes but when we need it, we just need to be online.

Being Smart with Failover options

DrayTek routers not only provide a vast array of security and connectivity features, they have secondary connections for an alternative (backup) Internet connection. For example, with a Vigor 2862Ln VDSL Router/Firewall, your primary feed would be VDSL.

In the event of that failing, the Vigor2862Ln will automatically switch over to one of these where available:

• * A second ADSL or VDSL line, using a separate DSL modem and different ISP
• * 3G /4G / LTE Mobile Data using a built-in LTE modem (e.g. EE, Vodafone, O2, Three etc.)
• *  There are even options where the router can utilise a neighbours wifi connection, when properly approved of course, to help you out if the outage isn’t just yours!

Once your primary (main) broadband service is restored, the router again automatically switches back to that. As well as failover mode, when both connections are available, the router can use both at the same time to provide more total Internet bandwidth to your network.

Most DrayTek routers support failover to a second Internet connection; the exact model will depend on your line type and the number of feeds required. Some DrayTek routers also support VPN trunking, whereby the second WAN connection can be used for VPN backup and to increase the total VPN tunnel bandwidth.

Keeping costs in control

Whilst out and about, at emergency premises or events, for those not using satellite, most of us can divert to our phones for short times, tariffs allowing.

Luckily, ISP’s and phone providers have latched onto the need for big data.  Mobile SIMs for the DrayTek can either be bought as a pay-as-you-go rate or flat rate for packages of data.  Personally, I go for unlimited data and EE are leading the way as I write for coverage.

The DrayTek range currently work on 3 and 4G options and 5G is on the way.  While mobile internet connections on 4G networks are quick enough for most average users, 5G, the next evolution of wireless networks, has already arrived and is expected to take off this year in a big way.  Having sold more smartphones in the last three months of 2020 than any company ever before in a single quarter, Apple’s 5G debut definitely provided a major boost to the new technology and improved speeds whilst on the go.

Smart options are available and I’ll be happy to chat over your business or home needs to help you identify the best router and package.  Get in touch on the number above or email me and I’ll be happy to help.