Multi-link Frame Relay OR Load Balancing

Fri Sep 17 02:55:29 UTC 2004

Scott McGrath wrote:

>In my experience the breakeven point for a Frame Relay DS3 is 6 DS1
>circuits.   DS3's tend to be more reliable than DS1's as the ILEC usually
>installs a MUX at your site instead of running to the nearest channel bank
>and running the T1's over copper with a few repeaters thrown in for
>good measure.
>  
>
I'll second that.  Our ILEC extended our existing SONET node (for the 
PBX in another building) to our machine room (couldn't push DS3 over 
copper that far).  Now, if they'd just terminate the old T1s at the new 
node and not push them over local copper from there to the machine room, 
we would be sitting pretty.

>Another nice thing about DS3's is that it is easy to scale bandwidth in
>the future by modifying the CIR on your link.   Another feature is that
>since the link is faster the serialization delay is lower which will give
>you better latency and last but not least PA3+ for Cisco 7[2|5]xx routers
>are inexpensive and give you one call for service not a separate call for
>the CSU/DSU's and the serial line card you need to support a multilink
>solution.
>  
>
Ditto.  We have one in a 7204 with a CIR of 30Mb.  Handles it quite 
nicely, replaced 5 T1s on load-sharing per-packet link.

Jeff