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Data Networking: Frame Relay

Sprintbiz.com | Products and Services | Data Networking | Frame Relay | Details

Frame Relay: Details

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Whether you're looking to bridge the gap between multiple LANs or integrate communications between legacy systems, you need a flexible, powerful connectivity you can count on. Sprint, Network Magazine's choice for Frame Relay Carrier of the Year1, can give you the performance, reliability, and manageability you need to leverage powerful, dependable connectivity enterprise-wide.

Sprint Frame Relay can deliver:

  • High performance (high throughput/low delay/high efficiency)
  • Simple network management
  • Increased reliability via our SONET-based network architecture
  • Integration of traffic from multiple applications over the same physical network

1 Source: Network Magazine, 8/02

Cost-effective connectivity

Beyond reliability, Sprint Frame Relay can deliver unsurpassed value. Unlike some providers, we allow our customer's applications to capture bandwidth at the full access channel speed at no additional cost.

  • Data delivery rate – Sprint is committed to delivering 100% of customers with service level agreements associated with discard eligible packets (DE = 1) sent within prescribed EIR. Sprint commits to a 99.9% DDR SLA on the entire PVC bandwidth, CIR and EIR.
  • One of the industry's best values – A customer purchasing a 128K PVC with 50% CIR from Sprint will receive 128K bandwidth with a 99.9% DDR SLA.
  • The throughput you need, when you need it most – Sprint uses a "fast forward" bandwidth management technique that can instantaneously allocate bandwidth to support data bursts and "fast forwards" all user frames across the network as rapidly as possible.
  • Engineered to support your access demands – The Sprint backbone was designed to provide sufficient backbone capacity to handle these data bursts. The advantage of this technique is higher throughput and lower network delay for all users.
  • A better alternative – The competing approach supports instantaneous bursting but uses undeterministic routing and “best effort” delivery of data. Under this approach, frames can be routed along different paths, which increase the risk of data loss since frames can easily get out of sequence. As a result, performance is unpredictable and, therefore, not suitable for business-critical applications.

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PVC Class of Service

Sprint has taken the complexity out of buying frame relay by offering frame relay Classes of Service (COS). Each class of service Frame Relay for SNA, LAN, Voice, and IP Express is tailored to the performance requirements of the specific application it supports. A customer can use 1 or any combination of these services at any of their sites.

SNA class of service is given a "High" priority setting along the Sprint network, while LAN class of service is given a "Normal" priority setting.

To learn about PVC Classes of Services, click here.

Access options

Dedicated access is available at speeds from 56 Kbps to DS3 and you can integrate access to multiple Sprint services over the same local access loop line to reduce costs.

Sprint Frame Relay over DSL (FRoDSL) access can provide high-speed, dedicated access to Sprint Frame Relay Services, providing customers with:

  • An affordable alternative to standard frame relay service
  • Lower access costs
  • Secure backup connectivity

DSL access speeds:

  • IDSL = 144k
  • SDSL = 192k, 384k, 768k, 1.1M, 1.5M

Dial access is available at 56 Kbps via ISDN (BRI and PRI) and switched 56 Kbps circuits.

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Customer Network Management tools

Sprint offers multiple CNM tools to help you manage your network. Sprint offers these systems featuring a tightly integrated suite of management and support applications supplied and installed by Sprint. In real time, you can isolate problems and monitor Permanent Virtual Circuit (PVC) usage and connections to assure your configuration is performing optimally.

Managed Network Services

Sprint Managed Network Services can be used in combination with Sprint Frame Relay Service. A managed solution can give your staff more time to focus on your core business, because Sprint designs, installs, manages, and maintains your network. All this, plus detailed reporting and industry-leading service level agreements (SLAs).

Hardware expertise

Sprint can recommend and install networking equipment at your sites – including routers, channel banks, frame relay access devices (FRADs), and multiplexers from leading manufacturers. To assure reliability, Sprint can put all endpoint devices through almost 100 rigorous tests before certifying them for use with the Sprint Frame Relay Network.

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Voice over Frame Relay

With Frame Relay for voice, Sprint customer's can reduce their billing for long distance voice traffic compared to switched toll calls. Customers who have a large volume of toll voice traffic between company sites or existing frame relay service can experience the most savings using the voice class of service.

  • Gateway to integrate your network – Sprint Frame Relay-Internet Gateway service can provide you access to the Sprint Internet Network and the greater Internet without investing in additional equipment or technology. Gateway Service is geared to meet the bandwidth needs for email and small file-transfer applications.

    PVC bandwidths of 56 Kbps, 256 Kbps, and 512 Kbps are available on the gateways.
  • Gateway service configuration – Gateways are located in Washington, D.C., and Stockton, CA. Having a gateway on each coast enables customers to avoid transporting Internet -destined traffic across the country.

    Ask your Sprint sales representative about specific gateway service requirements.

Service Interworking ATM

As your network grows, Sprint can give you the ability to connect your network to the Sprint ATM backbone using a frame relay to ATM gateway. FRF .8-compliant, the Sprint gateway is standards-based, allowing your business network scalability above DS3 without a full migration to the ATM network.

Recovery options

Sprint offers 4 back-up options to help protect your business from downtime:

  • Host disaster recovery routes traffic to a remote back-up host should the primary host fail
  • Switch diversity routes traffic to different frame relay switch sites
  • Local access diversity gives you a back-up path to Sprint through an alternative access vendor
  • Digital Dial Access via ISDN (BRI, PRI) or switched 56 Kbps gives you alternative paths to the Sprint network should the regional access fail

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