Many of today’s technology trends put stress on business networks. Companies are moving to voice over internet protocol (VoIP) for telecommunication, allowing them to leverage unified communications (UC). Most organizations have adopted cloud and cloud-based services. The internet of things (IoT) is also gaining widespread usage.
All these technologies require a high-speed, low latency fiber-based network to operate optimally. Transmitting and processing data generated by these technologies requires increased bandwidth.
Companies that use a service provider for their network solutions may question the value in enlisting a managed router service from that provider. Organizations may be concerned about the expense of hiring a third party to manage their routers, and they may feel that this function is best provided internally. IT leaders may further worry that the managed service provider will displace their internal team.
On the contrary, managed router service is a cost-effective way to augment your IT staff while gaining visibility into your network and optimizing performance.
Easing the Burden
Building, managing, and monitoring your network are tasks that take your IT staff away from the core business. Instead of working on innovative projects, your talented team is relegated to watching for anomalous activity or troubleshooting bottlenecks.
With managed router service, you can leverage experts at the service provider to ease the burden on your staff. Networking specialists can take over the time-consuming process of provisioning network hardware and software.
A managed service provider can deliver 24/7 support and monitoring through a network operations center (NOC). Around-the-clock monitoring is essential because hackers never stop trying to infect routers with malware. If successful, these infected routers can then be weaponized or used to mine cryptocurrency.
Finding the Balance
Working with a managed router service provider helps your company achieve the desired balance of control over the network. The managed service provider can take over mundane tasks while still allowing your company to gain full visibility into your network and maintain control over how your workloads and data are managed.
With a fully supported managed router solution, you reduce capital expenditures and eliminate the cost of constantly having to keep the managed router security and settings up to date. You also get a predictable monthly cost for a complete, end-to-end solution.
In a Gigamon survey, 67% of respondents identified lack of visibility into their network as an obstacle to data protection. Without visibility into the network, hackers can infiltrate your systems and lurk there for a long time, avoiding detection.
Blind spots in the network can also allow bottlenecks to develop, which slow traffic and frustrate end users. A network operations center can provide monitoring for your network. Managed router service can also establish the right protocols for directing traffic and prioritizing workloads.
The right managed service provider will work closely with your company to determine which workloads and applications are mission-critical. This way, workloads can be prioritized and managed through load balancing and resource allocation.
Ramping Up Performance
Keeping your network working at a high level of performance is essential. Today’s advanced applications can tax your network. Networks need to move huge volumes of data at full speed so actionable decisions can be made using real-time information.
When you work with a managed router service provider, you can hold it accountable for your level of network performance. A service provider can help you set a baseline for network performance so you can determine when more capacity is needed. Your service level agreement (SLA) should specify the level of performance you can expect.
With managed router service, your provider ensures you receive router upgrades so your network performs optimally. Your provider can also choose routing protocols that best manage and accelerate your network traffic.
Making the Best Connection
A managed router service provider can help your company with the entire life cycle of your network, from design and implementation, through scaling and upgrades. The right service provider should give your company peace of mind by offering redundancy to protect against router failure.
FirstLight offers a range of managed router services to ensure companies in the Northeast are making the most of their networks. We deliver network performance optimization services to ensure information is flowing smoothly and quickly through the network.
Considering adopting managed router service? Reach out to FirstLight today.
