Understanding Technology
What is a Tier 1 Internet Provider Anyway?
The Internet has grown significantly since I wrote my first Understanding
Technology column,
well over 10 years ago. But this growth has brought with it many different interpretations and
mis-interpretations of definitions that have been with us since the beginning. Today's article is
offered up to help you understand what is meant by the classification: Tier 1 Provider.
First, the Internet runs over many, many different technologies these days, including: telephone lines,
satellites, public and private wireless networks, regional or local fiber networks, and even cellular
telephone-based networks. But at the top of the Internet there are 3 backbone providers, the folks that
carry most of the Internet's traffic (in no particular order): AT&T, Sprint, and UUNet.
While backbone providers are important, most experienced Internet folk define Tier 1 Providers
as organizations who have a network presence at the two biggest Internet network access points:
MAE East and MAE West. These points are where most of the Internet's
traffic (some say over 90%) is aggregated and exchanged. So the list of Tier 1 Providers is much greater
than 3, but there are no more than fifty companies who have networks that aggregate at both of these
locations. The list of true Tier 1 Providers easily includes, but is certainly not limited to: Qwest,
InterNap, Cogent, Earthlink, and XO.
Tier 2 Providers are typically regional service providers (that do not have a coast-to-coast presence),
that: (1) are multi-homed, and (2) have Internet Protocol (IP) addresses directly assigned to them.
Multi-homing is when a network is connected to the Internet thru 2 or more Tier 1 Providers using a
technology called BGP (Border Gateway Protocol), having an "AS" number which is assigned by the
American Registry of Internet Numbers (ARIN). For
example, The Information Age, Inc. has been a member of ARIN since 2000 and has
AS17013. The Information
Age, Inc. also has their own, directly assigned IP addresses (i.e.
204.14.80.0 thru
204.14.83.255). Other Tier 2 Providers include: BellSouth, ITC^Com, and Newnan Utilities.
One company that is neither a Tier 1 nor a Tier 2 provider is Bremen-based SynchroNet. A quick search at
ARIN shows us that as of today, SynchroNet does not have an "AS" number (so technically they are not
multi-homed as a member of ARIN), and they do not have directly assigned IP addresses. Now SynchroNet
is a great company building a strong fiber-based network for our region, but based upon the
information provided
by ARIN, it appears that they are simply reselling ITC^Com's Internet services.
Why is it important to choose an Internet service provider that is multi-homed and has their own directly
assigned IP addresses? Well, in the event that a single upstream Internet service provider has a
technical issue (i.e. an interruption in service delivery), all traffic is automatically routed thru the
remaining routes for a company that is multi-homed. When a company is relying on a single entity for
their services, they are in jeopardy of experiencing a total loss of Internet service.
When your organization is in discussion(s) with your prospective business Internet service provider,
whether it is for access, web, email, or Voice Over IP (VOIP), remember to ask them for their "AS"
number and for their directly assigned IP addresses ("AS" numbers and IP address allocations are publicly
available by visiting ARIN). If they are unable to
provide these two pieces of information, it would make very good sense to just continue shopping.
Until next time, we’ll see you in The Village!
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