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Internet Backbone For Your WISP  Your wireless network is useless without an internet backbone (IB) providing your customers with broadband bandwidth. It is simply the high speed connection that "feeds" internet bandwidth to your network and in turn your users. It can be as basic as a DSL or cable service, all the way to leased T1s, T3s, fiber optics and even higher bandwidth connections. Planning and deciding on the right design to provide bandwidth to your network is a very important step in starting your wireless ISP. Each network architecture requires a different design and deployment approach in order to have the best results.
PtP and HotspotPoint to point and hotspot networks have the simplest IB designs to plan into a WISP. With only one location requiring a high speed connection they are both easy and cheap to deploy. Click here to learn about point-to-point networks >> There are several options for the right bandwidth delivery design: If you only require limited bandwidth and are not planning on having heavy use, the best option is to look into a DSL (digital subscriber line) connection or cable internet. Check around for prices-you would be surprised how many companies (that you have never heard of in your area) provide inexpensive high speed broadband internet. Cable internet is a great solution, it can be more expensive (depending on the service) but you will find that on average the bandwidth speeds are higher. If you are in an area where broadband is either extremely expensive or not currently available-satellite internet is your best and probably only option. Satellite high speed internet works very similarly to satellite TV, except that you receive a broadband signal and not a television signal. Satellite internet however, is generally more expensive than DSL or cable, less reliable and has slower speeds. We only recommend satellite in situations where there are no other viable broadband options. Point to MultiPointDepending on the planned scale of your proposed network, point to multipoint can also be a simple architecture to integrate an IB into. In point to multipoint networks the central point (base station) distributes bandwidth to the end users which are spread out around the central base station. Therefore, the IB needs only be connected to the base station. The wireless equipment then transmits the bandwidth to each end user. Click here to learn about point-to-multipoint network >> 
Initially you may only require a DSL or Cable IB to provide bandwidth to a few customers, but as demand grows (you will need to continually test the network to ensure your backbone is providing adequate bandwidth for its users) you will need to upgrade your IB to a leased copper or fiber line. The most commonly used dedicated line is a T-1 (DS1) connection. A T1 provides 1.544 Mbps download and 1.544 Mbps upload, and as with all dedicated connections-the company will issue guarantees on how reliable the service will be. Although, the speeds may seem lower than DSL or cable internet, a leased line is a dedicated connection, so you wont have to worry about bandwidth loss from other users on your DSL or cable ISP's network using the internet. You will have a guaranteed bandwidth allocation-that only your customers will access. The biggest drawback is that a dedicated line is much more expensive than a DSL or cable connection. T1's can go from several hundred dollars up. A standard T1 will service anywhere from 100-150 customers (based on overselling service, click here to learn more about overselling service) however, this will depend on the usage patterns of your users. As your network continues to grow you will need to continue to grow your bandwidth, this can be done by simply adding an additional T1 line (which also provides redundancy backup in the event the primary line goes down) or by scaling your service up to a DS1C (3.152 Mbps), DS2 (6.312 Mbps), T-3/DS3 (44.736 Mbps) and continuing up as demand is needed. Chances are you will never require anything more than a T1, DS2 or maybe a T3. Ethernet BackboneIf you are lucky enough, your wireless ISP network is within reach of an Ethernet backbone. Ethernet is, quite simply, plugging your network directly into a telecom provider's network. When you bypass the local phone company you cut out an expensive transport step and are able to purchase an extremely fast backbone (10-1000 Mbps) for a fraction of what it would cost through a telephone companies leased lines. However connectivity is very limited at this time and one would have to be in close proximity of the source to gain access (usually larger cities). Check below to see if there is Ethernet connectivity in your area. MeshMesh networks are the most difficult to integrate IB into. Within every mesh network there are nodes and gateways, the gateways feed the network bandwidth as they are connected to IB's, then the nodes repeat the signal to other nodes. A medium to large mesh network will require many gateways to provide adequate bandwidth to each user and to avoid the loss of signal as it "hops" from node to node. Click here to learn about mesh networks >> Without the use of extremely sophisticated and expensive equipment ($1000+ a unit) you are limited to only a few "hops" (depending on equipment) before you will need an additional gateway and backbone deployed in your network. Therefore you will require several backbones in various locations for a reliable WISP. We recommend more gateways with lower bandwidth IBs then fewer gateways connected to higher bandwidth backbones. This is a result of the problems with node "hops" mentioned above. Solutions:There are a few solutions to the problem of multiple IBs with mesh networking. 1. Use DSL or cable internet connections for each gateway's backbone. These are both cheap (comparatively) and can be installed quickly by your chosen ISP. The problem however, is that you will need these internet connections to be installed in a third parties location or residence. Some good marketing should be enough to overcome this problem (i.e create incentives for users willing to install a gateway at their location). 2. If you only need to deploy a few gateways and don't wish to impose on your customers to install broadband internet at their location, you could use a point-to-point bridge to wirelessly send bandwidth to the other one or two gateways. Click here to compare wireless bridge PtP equipment >> 3. If your mesh network is large enough, you may be interested in deploying a point-to-multipoint network to backhaul your several gateways throughout your mesh network. A single main backbone (T1 etc.) could be installed at your central site (e.g your home) and bandwidth could be sent to each gateway using the wireless PtMP equipment. This eliminates the need for several independent backbones and also can cut bandwidth costs-as you can purchase bulk bandwidth (i.e T1, T3) and spread the cost amongst your entire network. The downsides to a centralized PtMP backhaul are: cost of equipment, redundancy (what if your main backbone goes down?), additional equipment failures. Despite the disadvantages, using a PtMP network to backhaul your mesh network can be very advantageous for medium to large WISPs and can significantly reduce costs for very large WISPs. If you decide to use a PtMP backhaul-we recommend purchasing equipment with a differing frequency then the mesh equipment. 5 GHz PtMP equipment is an excellent choice for backhaul, with 2.4 GHz equipment for the mesh nodes and gateways. We have seen lots of individuals utilize ubiquiti nanostation5 units to backhaul meraki mesh networks as well as the newly adapted mesh-nanostations (we will give you more information on these as we research and review the product).
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