I am sure that everyone was expecting the rest of that line to be, “without really trying.” Well, we all know that won’t happen. However, it is true that as we look at our options for deploying a high quality, broadband network that satisfies the national or international scope of our business, we are faced with certain dilemmas. How do we find a single vendor to satisfy our entire network needs? Is there a single technology out there today that fits all of our locations and is where we need it to be? Can we get the bandwidth we need and still stay within our budgets? And finally, can we find a way to keep it simple, easy to manage and quick to deploy? The answers to these questions have been the cause of more than a few migraines over the past couple of decades.

With the passage of time, and the improvements in technology, it still comes down to the one basic premise, “Can I get what I need, where I need it, when I need it?” The answer to that all to often has been a resounding “NO!” So what are your options? Fundamentally, the fact is that no technology is the 100% best solution for everyone, everywhere. As we progress, it is more obvious that a hybrid solution is probably the best solution for most network environments. We are all aware of the vast deployment of Frame Relay and DSL as a high-speed solution to our networking needs. But, even at their best, they fall short of providing a full service solution. Today, there are still many, many gaps in the national availability of these products. That is where an old friend, a proven technology that has been more in the background and not as prominent as those other technologies comes into play. We have all seen it, we probably have all used it in one form or another yet, it has always been the Cinderella, or unwanted stepchild of the technology spectrum.

If we recall the story of Cinderella, she was the hardest working and most abused, yet, at the end of the day, she was the true winner. That is how I view satellite communications. For years it has provided the highest levels of reliability and availability as compared to most competitive technologies. It has always worked hardest, providing high quality digital communications to the remotest of our corporate outposts. Yet for some reason, the technology has yet to reach the prominence of a DSL or Frame Relay. In many cases, I have seen organizations look for ISDN solutions before they considered satellite networking.

The reality is that satellite communications, or as we have learned to refer to it as VSAT (very small aperture terminal) communications, is now a major solution source to many Fortune 1000 organizations. And it has not stopped there. With the advent of the many consumer and small business products for both Internet access and business applications this technology is now enjoying more of the limelight that it has deserved for so many years. Why is this all happening now? Many IT professionals are looking for simple ubiquitous solutions and VSAT gives them what they are looking for. Historically, satellite communications has always been there when you needed it. So, what makes this “Old” technology “New” to us today?

New technology, and improvements in the launch and deployment of the satellites themselves has helped to make us all more confident that this is a long-term solution. The newer satellites are still geosynchronous (stationary) and equatorial (located above the equator) but they have larger transponder capacity, longer life expectancy and are much more powerful than their previous generation counterparts. Add to this the fact that this is the single technology that can be either a full network solution, a backup solution to other technologies, or just used to fill the gaps between where your existing technology and your remote locations are really located. You will find in research and vendor discussions that VSAT availability is measured in the range of five 9’s and the cost, in most cases, is competitive with or below what you would pay for DSL or Frame Relay.

So, why doesn’t everyone use this technology? Good question. Fact is, as with all technologies, it is not the solution for all situations. It is great for broadcasts such as video for TV or distance education, but it not the best solution for implementation in major inner city metro areas. This is because it requires direct line of sight from the ground antenna to the satellite. In the concrete corridors of major downtown areas, the line of sight often is into the building across the street. Another pitfall has always been the latency or delay associated with the distance that your information must travel to get from source to destination. This issue has been lessened, but not eliminated. Through numerous software developments and technology migrations, we see high-speed data transfer using protocols such as TCP/IP at speeds comparable to that of either DSL or Frame Relay. High speed Internet access has come to the masses in rural America through the implementation of this medium. It is not uncommon to see Internet download speed in excess of 600Kbps on a consistent basis. Furthermore, satellite technology offers the best of many worlds to the IT professional looking to migrate from legacy to current technology protocols. VSAT is capable of concurrently processing both legacy and Ethernet or Token Ring protocols. This provides a simple migration path with a built in fall back capability that negates the need to flash cut any changes in the networking environment.

Has Cinderella finally made it to the ball? Time will tell. But one thing is sure -satellite technology is a technology of today. It can help you solve problems in your networking environment and has the potential of reducing the cost and wait associated with deploying a full service wide area network. One final thing:you will also minimize the migraines and add a lot more “peace-of-mind” to your already stressful environment.