How much does a T1 or a T3 line cost?

[MrYogi]

I have a question for System admins and others.

A company that has about 40 computers (basic emails, internet browsing, etc.,) needs internet connection. Should they be thinking interms of T1/T3 lines?

How much does it cost?

 

[deadseasquirrel]

For basic email and web browsing a T3 (45Mbps) would be complete overkill. I could see a T1 working for you, though. The cost depends on several things. 1. How far you are located from the local POP-- this would be your local loop price. I have seen these very from $150 to $1000 to being included in the price of the T1 port. 2. The T1 port charge. It could be a full T1 (1.5Mbps) or it could be fractional (like 512k or 768k, which may work better if your budget demands it). 3. Then you'll need to ask the provider if they charge for IP addresses-- how many do you need? As well as if they have an metered requirements (such as only being able to pass 4gigs of traffic per month, and any overage would cost extra). See if they include the router as well.

As you can see, it will vary greatly depending on who you talk to.

Then, of course, there's DSL (which has ADSL and SDSL flavors) and cable lines that try to compare to T1s. They're sufficient for some, but not for others.


Where are you located?

 

[cmetz]

MrYogi, as to need: it depends on how heavy the usage is, and how important the Internet is. One of me can bring a T1 to capacity, no problem 40 folks just doing occasional emails and web searches would be find on DSL.

T1s are *typically* more reliable than SDSL which is *typically* more reliable than ADSL. Local conditions are more of a factor than anything else - I've seen dud T1s and I've seen DSL lines that won't quit.

In the T1 space, the quality of the ISP is very important and varies a lot. UUNet costs more than Crazy Bob's Live Bait & Internet. One of those is going to give you a lot better performance and service. A SDSL line from Covad.net might be better quality service than a T1 from a nobody ISP.

Just some food for thought. T1 lines are bread and butter business service and as a default answer not knowing enough to give you a specific answer, a T1 from an ISP you've heard of shouldn't do you wrong.

 

[cleverhandle]

Originally posted by: cmetz
A SDSL line from Covad.net might be better quality service than a T1 from a nobody ISP.

I'll just pipe in here that I've seen a total of less than 2 hours downtime in over a year on a Covad business ADSL line. And their SDSL service, while probably no more reliable, would likely get you a faster and better response in case of a problem. If network connectivity is not critical to the business (and I mean really critical, not we-call-it-critical-because-we-want-everything), that option could save you hundreds of dollars a month over a T1 line.

 

[tallman45]

You have a load of options, some cable companies sell business services, there are Frame Relay T1's. Check in with Worlcom (UUnet), AT&T, Savvis,etc or some of the other service providers. You will get other services as well, such as DOS (denial of service) protection.

Your costs will likely need to include access equipment, routers, firewalls, etc. You can buy all of this as a complete solution and not worry about it, but that will add to the costs. Check into diverse/ redundant access as well.

 

[tallman45]

While you are at it you may also want to check into apps that will track employee usage. The company will liable for the employees actions. Providing unmonitored access these days is a huge oversight.