Internet Access
The majority of firms will have some form of Internet access. In most areas of the UK, this will now be in the form of a broadband connection.The range of choice of broadband providers is large and bewildering. Not only that, but anecdotal evidence is bound to suggest that some Internet Service Providers (ISPs) have a poor record, others better.
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Key Points
For business -as opposed to home- use, a broadband connection needs to meet several criteria:
Fixed IP Address:
Probably the most important consideration is that a fixed IP address must be provided. (or at least, this must be an option) Without a fixed IP address, the range of facilities which can be provided in terms of roving-access and remote techsupport will be somewhat limited.Connection by Router:
The service must also allow for connection via a router. The type of service provided by way of a 'USB Modem' is not suitable for business use. Routers provide a good degree of security, and a distributed Internet service to several computers. A USB Modem feeds a single computer, and has no inherent security.No Portblocks:
The service should not operate any kind of port-blocking that would prevent, for example, SMTP delivery of email to your own mailserver. Many home accounts do have this kind of restriction, so beware.Which ISP, what features?
Connection Speed:
The telephone system will typically support up to 8-Megabit (8Mbps) download
speeds for users close to the exchange, and most home users are provided
with this capability. Some of the more modern exchanges can now support up to 20Mbps, although to achieve this requires an ADSL2+ router at the client end. But- despite the capability for at least several Mbps being available in most locations, many
'commercial' ISPs still restrict business users to as little as 0.5
Mbps. This goes-on mainly because their clients are none-the-wiser. Therefore,
look for a provider who will give you the full speed which your line is
capable of.
Download Quotas:
Almost all ISPs will set some kind of limit on the amount of data you are
allowed to download per month. This is only reasonable, as ISPs are charged
per megabyte by the data-carriers, therefore it would not make financial
sense for them to allow totally unlimited traffic, whereby a few very heavy
users would incur the majority of their data costs. Here again the
important thing is to see if you're being given a fair deal; a typical
small business might need, say, 5-10GB data per month, so an ISP that sets
unreasonably-low limits will not be a good choice. There are often a
number of payment-schemes available, either a fixed price for a relatively large
allowance, ideal for heavy Internet users, or a pay-as-you-use agreement
for data throughput, which may be more suitable for light users. An
ISP which allows you to upgrade your account as need arises is obviously preferable
to one which does not.
On this subject, beware of claims for 'Unlimited' service. They are seldom
genuine. Check the small print, as there will almost always be some form of
word-mincing involved, and in fact you can bet that there will be a limit,
even if it's not immediately obvious.
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Online Portal:
Where changes to the setup are needed, it is generally far better if these
can be made via an online portal. Those ISPs who have to be telephoned
for every minor change to settings create a huge additional workload for the
engineer, and endless opportunities for verbal mistakes. Likewise it
is preferable if a ticket-system exists for reporting faults.
The Lowdown:
We've seen sites using a wide range of ISP services, and performance does vary considerably. So does price. What's more, while the most expensive is not necessarily the best, the very cheap offerings are often of very poor quality. It is, after all, of no use being given a 100GBpcm download allowance if, at the best speed you can achieve, it would take literally months to download that amount of data.Of the ISPs giving satisfactory performance at a sensible price, we would suggest:
- Plusnet Offer a good all-round package with good reliability and prompt support. The online portal is one of the best of its kind, allowing most settings to be adjusted directly without the need to phone their techsupport staff. If you do need to call for help, the callcentre is in Sheffield so you'll be answered by a native English-speaker. Over the years we've built-up a working relationship with Plusnet, and know many of their support guys by name. On the rare occasions when problems have arisen, they've been dealt-with efficiently. Overall we'd suggest Plusnet as the best option for either home of business broadband.
- BT Have a number of sites using BT Business broadband, and in general the reliability has been good, and the download-speeds acceptable. Where problemns do arise with BT is due to the large size of the operation; finding the right person to speak-to can be a real challenge.
- Demon The original and first UK Internet provider, and one of the better, faster connections, but lacks the sophisticated portal of Plusnet. Therefore, management of a Demon accouint involves a lot more phoning than a Plusnet account.
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