Linux for T1 bonding ???

[Bruno Wolff III]

On Tue, May 25, 2010 at 11:49:01 -0700,
  jack craig <jcraig at extraview.com> wrote:
> 
> the boss first said check into comcast cable (static ip's available),
> but then he was assuming it was a t1 serve that could be bonded
> with our current t1.

You don't get static IPs with your T1? Or do you just need more?
I modem I got from my provider allows you to plug in two T1 cables.
(I only have one though.)

> so far, t1 & cable modem are separate, discreet options.
> 
> i found mushroom networks and they offer a bonding appliance that says 
> its smart about load
> balancing, e.g. using all bonded lines.

Normally for bonding you need something at both ends. Otherwise it isn't
what I have normally seen referred to as bonding.

> mark pointed out vyatta, that looks interesting too.
> 
> The cable connection rates are real low compared to our t1, i am not 
> thinking
> we ought to get the cable connection and if its as fast as advertised, 
> ditch the t1 we have now.

The networking will be more complicated if you have two providers. If you
have easy to segregate uses for the bandwidth this might be easy to do.
If not, then it might be tricky.

Upgrading your T1 to a bonded T1 might be worth doing despite the higher
bandwidth costs (compared to cable) than having to deal multihomed networking
issues. I don't know that there are simple upgrades beyond a bonded T1, so
if you are going to eventually need more than 3 Mb/s that could be an issue.

Be careful about what you get with comcast. T1s are regulated and they let
you use the full bandwidth 24/7 both ways and there are some guarantees for
uptime. The comcast connection may be oversubscribed and there may be a
presumption that you won't be using the full bandwidth 24/7. Which may be
OK, just be sure you know what you're getting.

> 
> interesting quest! :)
> 
> thx for your comments, jackc...