Contributed by BEC Technologies
It comes as no surprise that the internet has revolutionized the way companies conduct business. Internet connectivity is such an integral part of business operations today that any amount of downtime is devastating impacting everything from revenues, reputation and ultimately business viability. As the reliance on internet connectivity grows so does the cost of downtime and the importance of a business continuity solution for unexpected network connection outages.
“According to industry surveys, the average cost of downtime cost is $5,600 per minute, which extrapolates to well over $300K per hour. These figures are shocking, yet many businesses do not have a business continuity solution in place to protect their operations for loss and disruption when it happens.”
No business is safe from network failure, whether it’s point-of-sale transactions and credit-card processing, cloud-based SaaS, productivity applications or branch-office connections, always-on connectivity is crucial for business operations. The goal of a business continuity solution is to minimize potential network disruptions and keep the business running. Simply stated, a business continuity solution should sense when a primary WAN connection has failed and seamlessly “failover” to a backup internet connection. When the primary connection is restored, the solution should “failback” to the primary connection. Traditional business continuity solutions were just a secondary wired connection matching that of the primary or older wired technologies such as analog, ISDN, T1/T3. Secondary wired connections were never effective, because the wires were typically apart of the same bundle from the central office or point of presence (PoP) as the primary connection.
No wired connection can deliver 100% uptime. Wireless WAN, in particular 4G/LTE has become the technology of choice for business continuity. It’s convenient, cost-effective and robust enough to be used for the primary connection. 4G/LTE service is available virtually everywhere and offers wireless speeds faster than most home wired broadband services, which is more than adequate to keep a business running when disruptions occur. The advantages of 4G/LTE extend to support mobile, pop-up stores, temporary locations and other events that need connectivity.
“Every managed service provider wants a competitive edge. As competition increases, the ability to create value has become an absolute requirement”
Managed Wireless WAN Failover is a unique opportunity for MSPs to create value, differentiate service offering and accelerate profitable growth for their business. This of course assumes that the MSP selects the right vendor’s solution. Successfully implementing a Managed Wireless WAN Business Continuity solution requires a purpose-built fully integrated platform that’s rapidly deployable, cost effective and remotely manageable. The right solution will not only address the clients’ need but also benefit the MSPs’ bottom line and lower the total cost of ownership (TCO).
Key Attributes of a Managed WWAN Failover Solution
- Multi-Carrier 4G/LTE support: Certified devices across all major carriers
- Multi-WAN Interface Connectivity: EWAN, 4G/LTE or Dual Radio/Carrier 4G/LTE; Select the best platform for the application
- Flexible Network Configuration: Business continuity is not one size fits all, the solution should support various scenarios, such as IP-Pass Through, VPN failover, OOBM, VRRP
- Proactive Alerts with Notifications: Multi-level responses configurable by function, type and thresholds
- Cloud Managed: Enabling rapid deployment, remote provisioning, real-time device monitoring, troubleshooting and maintenance from a single centralized location.
