Metro Ethernet – What is it?

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Metro Ethernet : An Explanation

Metro Ethernet is the use of carrier Ethernet technology in metropolitan area networks (MANs). Because it is typically a collective venture with a number of financial contributors, it can offer more cost-effectiveness,reliable and scalable bandwidth management that other networks.

Metro Ethernet can connect business local area networks (LANs) and individual end users to a wide area network (WAN) or to the internet. Businesses, academic institutions and government agencies in large cities can use Metro Ethernet to connect branch campuses or offices to an intranet. A typical system has a star network or mesh network topology.Individual routers or servers that connect through cable or fibre optic media.

“Pure” Ethernet technology in the MAN environment is relatively inexpensive compared with Synchronous Digital Hierarchy (SDH) or Multi-protocol Label Switching (MPLS) systems . However, the latter technologies can be applied to Metro Ethernet in urban areas willing to devote the necessary financial resources to the task.

Benefits

There are a number of reasons that companies need Metro Ethernet. These include:

  • Flexibility – Because Metro Ethernet supports many different services and transports it offers a flexible business solution that can support various systems and technology your business may already have in place.
  • Cost Effective – Metro Ethernet networks are cheaper and less complicated than a traditional WAN (wide area network)
  • Quality of Service (QoS) – supports QoS applications such as classification, marking, queuing and scheduling.
  • Reliability – It can detect and report connection failures and measure performance, ensuring a reliable network performance.

Metro Ethernet Availability

We could go into more detail about it and explain all the great points about one of these networks, however we are a English based company and most users of our site are UK  based so we feel its important to keep it brief.

While Metro Ethernet has taken off across the pond and is doing well in America. The UK hasn’t quite embraced it yet so its unlikely you will find any options. However, there are Metro Ethernet alternatives in the UK that are worth looking into.

Its not too different to Ethernet point to point networks we have in the UK, so if you are looking for an alternative they are a great way to start. Different businesses will naturally require different networks. Alot will depend on how many sites you have, your requirements and your budget.

Understanding this will enable you to select the right network that offers the right features & help your business thrive.