[geeks] BGP on a Cisco Router

[David Cantrell]

On Thu, May 16, 2002 at 02:04:52PM -0400, Kurt Huhn wrote:

> Well, I think that's a matter of opinion really.  I won't disagree with
> the assessment, as everyone has their own set of rules that they design
> by - but in this case it's very cost effective.  Rack space at a colo is
> very expensive, and this way the web and database servers are here
> in-house.  I prefer it this way for small tech companies, so if
> something goes wrong, nobody has to drive to the colo to figure it out,
> and truck equipment back and forth.
> 
> That, and Exodus has soured me on the whole idea of colocation.  I can
> only take so much up the ass before I decide not to bend over anymore...

Rack space does not have to be expensive.  I know of several co-ops of
individuals and small businesses which have banded together to get an
entire rack of their own.  The cost per member is considerably less than
if they had all sourced their co-lo independently.  The co-op can also
be in a position to arrange its own peering and transit arrangements with
ISPs - especially if you manage to get networky people from a couple of
large ISPs as co-op members :-)

If a co-op doesn't want the hassle of arranging their rack's connectivity,
it's still cheap to rent a rack in some ISP's data centre and let them do
the hard work with networking.  Admittedly, you don't get quite the level
of control as you do with your own AS, and you do have a single point of
failure in the rack's connection to the ISP's network, but even so, it is
my experience that such arrangements are still more reliable than having
your servers hanging off the end of an E1 or two.

And when I put a small business in co-lo, I double up the machines, have
them both attached to the co-op's terminal server and remote power switch,
so if anything goes wrong, I can switch everything over to the spare
machine - which is kept as a mirror of the first - and repair the failed
box at my leisure.

-- 
David Cantrell | Benevolent Dictator | http://www.cantrell.org.uk/david

  emacs: for a brave GNU Word
             -- cdevers, in #london.pm