What is IP Transit?
What is Cybersecurity?
Cyber Security refers to the practice of protecting users, devices, networks, and programs from digital attacks. These cyberattacks are usually aimed at accessing, changing, or destroying sensitive information, extorting money from users, or interrupting normal business operations. Implementing effective cybersecurity measures is particularly challenging today because there are more devices than people, and attackers are becoming more innovative.
What is IP Transit?
IP Transit is a service that allows an Internet Service Provider (ISP) or any organisation with a large network to connect to the broader internet through another ISP’s network. It serves as the gateway for data to travel to and from the internet, ensuring connectivity and access to global networks. Essentially, it allows an organisation to send and receive internet traffic to the rest of the internet.
How does IP Transit work?
- Connection Establishment: An ISP or enterprise establishes a connection with an IP Transit provider by leasing network capacity or purchasing internet transit services.
- BGP Routing: IP Transit providers use the Border Gateway Protocol (BGP) to manage and route internet traffic between different networks, ensuring data is efficiently directed to its destination. Once connected, the transit provider routes the customer's traffic through its network towards its destination on the internet.
- Transit Service: The transit provider acts as an intermediary, facilitating the exchange of traffic between its customer and other networks on the internet.
- Data Exchange: Data packets from the customer's network are handed over to the transit provider, which uses its network infrastructure and peering agreements to deliver the packets to their intended destinations.
- Peering: IP Transit providers engage in peering agreements with other networks to exchange traffic directly, reducing the need to route traffic through third-party networks. Peering helps improve performance and reduce latency for traffic exchange between networks
Benefits of IP Transit
Enhanced Network Performance
IP Transit offers direct and high-speed routes to major internet exchanges, which significantly reduces latency and improves the speed of data transmission. This ensures faster loading times for websites, quicker downloads, and a better overall user experience. Enhanced network performance is especially critical for businesses that rely on real-time data transmission, such as financial services, gaming, and streaming services.
Scalability
As businesses grow, their internet needs inevitably increase. IP Transit services are highly scalable, allowing for easy adjustment of bandwidth requirements without significant infrastructure changes. This flexibility means that businesses can increase their bandwidth as needed to accommodate more users, higher traffic volumes, or more data-intensive applications, without facing major disruptions or the need for new installations.
Reliability and Redundancy
Top-tier IP Transit providers offer robust networks with multiple redundant paths. Redundancy means that if one path fails due to an outage or congestion, traffic can be rerouted through another path, ensuring continuous connectivity and minimizing downtime. This reliability is essential for maintaining business operations, particularly for services that require constant internet access such as cloud services, e-commerce platforms, and remote work solutions.
What factors to consider before selecting an IP transit provider?
When selecting an IP Transit provider, it’s important to evaluate several factors to ensure you choose the best option for your needs.
Geographic Coverage
Consider the provider’s network reach and whether they can offer robust connectivity in the regions where you operate. Providers with extensive geographic coverage can offer better performance and redundancy, ensuring that your data can travel efficiently regardless of where it originates or terminates. A provider with a global presence can also facilitate smoother international operations and expansion.
Cost
Evaluate the pricing models offered by the provider. Cost considerations include not just the price per megabit per second (Mbps) but also any additional fees for setup, overages, or support. Orixcom, for instance, offers flexible and competitive pricing models tailored to different business needs. This includes options for different levels of service and bandwidth requirements, ensuring that you can find a cost-effective solution that matches your budget. For a comprehensive overview of Orixcom’s pricing, refer to this blog.
Network Performance and Reliability
Look into the provider’s network performance metrics, including latency, packet loss, and uptime. Reliable providers will offer Service Level Agreements (SLAs) that guarantee specific performance levels, ensuring dependable service. High network performance and reliability are crucial for maintaining the quality of service for your users and avoiding disruptions in your operations. It's also beneficial to review customer testimonials or case studies to gauge real-world performance.
SLAs (Service Level Agreements)
Assess the SLAs offered by the provider, which outline the guaranteed levels of service performance, including uptime, latency, and support response times. A strong SLA is crucial for ensuring reliable and predictable service. SLAs should provide clear compensation mechanisms in case of service failures or breaches, offering a measure of security and accountability.
IP Transit v/s Peering
FEATURE |
IP Transit |
Peering |
Scope of Connectivity |
Provides access to the entire internet via an ISP | Direct interconnection between specific networks |
Network Size |
Involves an ISP or larger network providing global access | Usually between networks of similar size or significance |
Performance | Dependent on the ISP’s network and routing | Often improves performance by reducing latency and hop count |
Cost Model | Paid service based on bandwidth or usage | Usually settlement-free |
Use Case | Best for comprehensive internet access | Optimises traffic efficiency between high-volume networks |
Key Takeaway | A full-service solution to connect your network to the internet | A strategic feature to boost speed and efficiency between partners |
Peering as a Feature vs. IP Transit as a Solution
Peering is a feature that enhances network efficiency by enabling direct traffic exchange, while IP transit is a solution for broader internet access via upstream providers. Organisations often combine both: using peering for high-priority traffic and transit for global reach.
Orixcom’s Peering Advantage
Orixcom offers cost-efficient peering through UAE-IX, allowing customers with lower traffic volumes (e.g., 100Mbps) to bypass costly 1GE/10GE port commitments. Their extensive peering network in the Middle East improves performance and reduces latency for direct connections. For global coverage, Orixcom also provides scalable IP Transit with redundant upstream links.
This hybrid approach lets businesses optimise costs and performance based on regional needs and traffic patterns.
Orixcom's Global IP Transit Services
Orixcom offers comprehensive global IP Transit services designed to meet the diverse needs of businesses. With extensive geographic coverage, competitive pricing models, and robust SLAs, Orixcom ensures high performance, scalability, and reliability for your network.
Key Features of Orixcom’s IP Transit Services:
Extensive Geographic Coverage
Orixcom’s network spans multiple continents, providing robust connectivity across key regions. Our extensive reach ensures that businesses can maintain high-performance internet connectivity whether they are operating locally or internationally. With our presence in major internet exchanges around the world, data travels the shortest and fastest routes, reducing latency and improving overall network efficiency.
Flexible Pricing Models
- Flat-Rate Pricing: Our customers pay a fixed monthly fee for specified bandwidth, offering predictability. This model suits those with consistent bandwidth needs but may result in underutilization or overage charges if usage varies.
- 95th Percentile Billing: Common in data centers, we measure bandwidth at regular intervals, discard the top 5% of peaks, and bill based on the 95th percentile. This balances occasional spikes with more predictable costs.
For detailed information on our pricing, refer to this blog.
High Network Performance
With low latency and minimal packet loss, Orixcom guarantees top-tier network performance. Our network is engineered to handle high volumes of traffic efficiently, ensuring that data travels quickly and reliably. This high performance is critical for applications that require real-time data transmission, such as video conferencing, online gaming, and financial transactions.
Reliable SLAs
Orixcom provides strong SLAs that guarantee uptime and performance metrics, ensuring dependable service. Our SLAs include specific commitments to network availability, latency, and packet delivery, offering businesses peace of mind that their internet connectivity will be reliable and consistent. In the event of any service issues, our SLAs outline clear compensation mechanisms, providing an added layer of security.
Low Latency
Latency, the time it takes for data packets to travel between two points, is critical for applications requiring real-time communication or fast response times. Our well-optimized network infrastructure ensures minimal latency to key destinations, ensuring a smooth and responsive user experience.
IPv6 Support
With the exhaustion of IPv4 addresses, IPv6 adoption is essential for future-proofing your network and ensuring continued connectivity as IPv4 addresses become scarce. Orixcom offers robust IPv6 support, including native dual-stack connectivity and seamless transition mechanisms.
DDoS Protection
Distributed Denial of Service (DDoS) attacks pose a significant threat to network availability and performance. Orixcom offers comprehensive DDoS protection services, including detection, mitigation, and traffic scrubbing capabilities. Our effective DDoS protection helps safeguard your network infrastructure and ensures uninterrupted service delivery during attack incidents.
Global Presence
Orixcom boasts a global network footprint with a presence in key geographic regions. Our widespread network infrastructure offers low-latency connectivity to diverse destinations worldwide, enabling seamless communication and collaboration across international borders.
For more detailed information on Orixcom’s IP Transit services, you can explore their global IP transit offerings and pricing models.
Contributors:

Anthony Grower
Topic Specialist

Kelly Brighton
Topic Specialist

Richard Peace
Topic Specialist
Sources:
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