Border Gateway Protocol (BGP) is a standardized exterior gateway protocol designed to exchange routing and reachability information among autonomous systems (AS) on the Internet. BGP is classified as a path-vector routing protocol, and it makes routing decisions based on paths, network policies, or rule-sets configured by a network administrator.
A metropolitan area network (MAN) is a computer network that interconnects users with computer resources in a geographic region of the size of a metropolitan area. The term MAN is applied to the interconnection of local area networks (LANs) in a city into a single larger network which may then also offer efficient connection to a wide area network. The term is also used to describe the interconnection of several local area networks in a metropolitan area through the use of point-to-point connections between them.
In computer networking, peering is a voluntary interconnection of administratively separate Internet networks for the purpose of exchanging traffic between the "down-stream" users of each network. Peering is settlement-free, also known as "bill-and-keep," or "sender keeps all," meaning that neither party pays the other in association with the exchange of traffic; instead, each derives and retains revenue from its own customers.
The London Internet Exchange ("LINX") is a mutually governed Internet exchange point (IXP) that provides peering services and public policy representation to network operators. LINX operates IXPs in London, Manchester, Scotland and Wales in the United Kingdom and Northern Virginia in the USA.
An Internet service provider (ISP) is an organization that provides services for accessing, using, or participating in the Internet. ISPs can be organized in various forms, such as commercial, community-owned, non-profit, or otherwise privately owned.
An autonomous system (AS) is a collection of connected Internet Protocol (IP) routing prefixes under the control of one or more network operators on behalf of a single administrative entity or domain, that presents a common and clearly defined routing policy to the Internet. Each AS is assigned an autonomous system number (ASN), for use in Border Gateway Protocol (BGP) routing. Autonomous System Numbers are assigned to Local Internet Registries (LIRs) and end user organizations by their respective Regional Internet Registries (RIRs), which in turn receive blocks of ASNs for reassignment from the Internet Assigned Numbers Authority (IANA). The IANA also maintains a registry of ASNs which are reserved for private use.
Internet exchange points are common grounds of IP networking, allowing participant Internet service providers (ISPs) to exchange data destined for their respective networks. IXPs are generally located at places with preexisting connections to multiple distinct networks, i.e., datacenters, and operate physical infrastructure (switches) to connect their participants. Organizationally, most IXPs are each independent not-for-profit associations of their constituent participating networks. The primary alternative to IXPs is private peering, where ISPs directly connect their networks to each other.
The MAE was the first Internet Exchange Point (IXP). It began in 1992 with four locations in Washington, D.C., quickly extended to Vienna, Reston, and Ashburn, Virginia; and then subsequently to New York and Miami. Its name stood for "Metropolitan Area Ethernet," and was subsequently backronymed to "Metropolitan Area Exchange, East" upon the establishment of MAE-West in 1994. The MAE predated the National Information Infrastructure plan, which called for the establishment of IXPs throughout the United States. Although it initially had no single central nexus, one eventually formed in the underground parking garage of an office building in Vienna, VA.
The Toronto Internet Exchange Community (TorIX) is a not-for-profit Internet Exchange Point (IXP) located in a carrier hotel at 151 Front Street West, Equinix's TR2 data centre at 45 Parliament Street and 905 King Street West in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. As of March 2021, TorIX has 259 unique autonomous systems representing 285 peer connections and peak traffic rates of 1.344 Tbps, making it the largest IXP in Canada. According to Wikipedia's List of Internet Exchange Points by Size, TorIX is the 16th largest IXP in the world in numbers of peers, and 17th in the world in traffic averages. The Exchange is organized and run by industry professionals in voluntary capacity.
In Internet routing, the default-free zone (DFZ) is the collection of all Internet autonomous systems (AS) that do not require a default route to route a packet to any destination. Conceptually, DFZ routers have a "complete" Border Gateway Protocol table, sometimes referred to as the Internet routing table, global routing table or global BGP table. However, internet routing changes rapidly and the widespread use of route filtering ensures that no router has a complete view of all routes. Any routing table created would look different from the perspective of different routers, even if a stable view could be achieved.
Average Per-Bit Delivery Cost, or APBDC, is the cost accounting method by which Internet Service Providers (ISPs) calculate their cost of goods sold.
MSK-IX is an Internet eXchange Point (IXP) with headquarters in Moscow, Russia. With over 549 connected networks and 3,37Tbps of peak traffic, MSK-IX is one of the world's largest IXPs. According to the Internet Exchange Report by Hurricane Electric Internet Services, MSK-IX is the second in Russia and is one of the seven largest in the world by the numbers of members.
PacketExchange is a British multinational network services provider based in London. Founded in 2002 by Jason Velody and Kieron O'Brien who were supported by Nigel Titley, Giles Heron, and Katie Snowball as the founder team, its network connected 45 points of presence across Europe, Asia and the United States over a private backbone consisting primarily of multiple 10 Gigabit Ethernet links over dedicated wavelengths on a fiber-optic mesh.
The Seattle Internet Exchange (SIX) is an Internet exchange point in Seattle, USA. Its switch fabric is centered at the Westin Building and extended to KOMO Plaza, Sabey Intergate, and other locations. The SIX is one of the most successful examples of neutral and independent peering points, created as a free exchange point originally sponsored only by donations. The SIX is the most frequently cited model upon which other neutral Internet exchanges are based, and its financial and governance models are often cited as inspiration for other exchanges. It continues to run without any recurring charges to the participants and current major funding comes from one-time 10, 100, and 400 Gbit/s port fees, as well as from voluntary contributions from stakeholders. The SIX is a 501(c)(6) tax-exempt non-profit corporation.
Hurricane Electric is a global Internet service provider offering internet transit, tools, and network applications, as well as data center colocation and hosting services at 2 locations in Fremont, California, where the company is based.
The YYCIX Internet Exchange Community Ltd (YYCIX) in Calgary, Canada is the first Internet exchange point (IXP) in Alberta. It allows the local exchange of Internet traffic between members, staying within Canadian jurisdiction, optimizing the performance and economy of traffic flows, and limiting the potential for extra-legal surveillance. The YYCIX follows IXP best-practices, in that it is neutral and independent, has no mandatory fees, and is supported entirely through voluntary donations. The YYCIX is incorporated as a Canadian tax-exempt non-profit corporation.
Cologix, a network neutral interconnection and data center company, provides data center solutions from 40+ interconnection locations across 11 North American markets. The edge markets that Cologix operates in are: Columbus, Ohio; Dallas, Texas; Jacksonville, Florida; Lakeland, Florida; Minneapolis, Minnesota; Montreal, Silicon Valley, California; Quebec; Toronto, Ontario; Northern New Jersey; and Vancouver, British Columbia. The company supports five Internet exchanges.
Grenoble Internet eXchange or GrenoblIX is the Internet eXchange point (IXP) of Grenoble in Isère and Auvergne – Rhône-Alpes region. GrenoblIX allows to the connected members to exchange the traffic in order to avoid passing by faraway infrastructures. This Internet eXchange point is managed by the non-profit organization Rezopole, founded in 2001.
Mumbai Internet Exchange is a Mumbai-based Internet exchange point (IXP) founded on 15 August 2014 as Mumbai Convergence Hub is an Open Carrier Neutral Internet Exchange & Peering Hub. As of 30 March 2021 it interconnects more than 375 members, making it the largest IXP in India and surrounding region.
United States, Minneapolis, MN