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Net backbone outage fixed, for now
CNet News ^ | October 7, 2005 | John Borland

Posted on 10/08/2005 7:17:54 PM PDT by MissouriConservative

A three-day dispute between large Internet network backbone companies came to a quiet end on Friday, restoring normal Net service to thousands of customers who had Web sites and e-mails sporadically blocked.

Level 3 Communications, which had cut off a direct connection between its network and that of rival Cogent Communications on Wednesday morning, restored normal service late Friday afternoon.

But the decision was temporary, made to let Cogent and customers find alternative arrangements, Level 3 said. The link between the two networks will be cut again at 6 a.m. EST, Nov. 9, unless Cogent agrees to pay for the connection.

"As has always been the case, we are willing to work with Cogent to reach a contractual arrangement that is equitable to both parties," Level 3 Executive Vice President Sureel Choksi said in a statement. "If this is not possible, we expect that Cogent will make arrangements with one of the numerous alternative carriers currently offering such services."

The situation stems from the breakdown in a so-called peering arrangement, in which companies of similar sizes agree to exchange data traffic across their networks without compensation.

Level 3 contends that it is larger than Cogent, and so a free peering relationship is no longer appropriate. It has asked Cogent to start paying for the connection, but Cogent has so far refused, saying that it is of comparable size to Level 3.

Because both companies rely heavily on direct connections, there was no alternate route for data to travel between the networks when the link was cut. That meant that customers on Level 3's network could not visit Web sites or send e-mail to people on Cogent's network. Thousands of people, including Time Warner's Road Runner cable modem customer base, were affected.

Cogent released a terse statement Friday, saying that it had only had time for short technical dialogue with the other company.

"We are pleased that Level 3 has taken the necessary actions to restore the full Internet to their customers and ours," a Cogent spokesman said. "We welcome this move, and hope and expect the peering connections will be maintained."


TOPICS: Business/Economy; Culture/Society; Front Page News; News/Current Events; Technical
KEYWORDS: backbone; internet
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To: DMinus

the hell...

we used MCI and their DISN NOC for 99% of our stuff and THEN they made us use Level3.

I HATE Level3 with a passion, at least their idiot techs. They wouldn't even test whereas MCI would test with us head to head.


21 posted on 10/09/2005 8:29:49 AM PDT by MikefromOhio (Just confirm Miers so that FR can have a REAL meltdown. Yes I have popcorn ready.)
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To: DMinus
the irony there is that i have worked with DISA in a similar capacity before, and it almost always WAS DITCO/DISA's fault, or their failure to select anyone other than Verizon as a local carrier.

Everyone ALWAYS blamed DISA. Even this one time where a a drunk took out a substation which powered a LEC which carried a few big circuits we ran on the NIPR. But it was DISA'S fault this one guy kept screaming from Battlecreek, MI. I swear talking to that moron was hilarious....
22 posted on 10/09/2005 8:31:43 AM PDT by MikefromOhio (Just confirm Miers so that FR can have a REAL meltdown. Yes I have popcorn ready.)
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To: MikeinIraq

"I HATE Level3 with a passion, at least their idiot techs. They wouldn't even test whereas MCI would test with us head to head."

ahh, so you have a dog in the fight. fair enough. i never had anything but good experiences with them.

regardless of them, however, look for this happening a lot more. the situation has become untenable for many carriers; even the big dogs. and cogent, wiltel, and others are bottom feeders driving the industry into the ground, even after the telecom crash. the big carriers saw the ballsy move level 3 made, and won't forget it soon. cogent is almost guaranteed to negotiate at this point, with a non-disclosure so they don't lose face. AT&T, sprint, UUNET, and others will get in on it next, because they are victims of cogent's BS every bit as much as L3. AOL did it to cogent awhile back too, and cogent's press releases and silly rhetoric were exactly the same this time around; pretending they had no idea and that they were a "Tier 1 network" (and when you have to say that in the first sentence of every release, its a clue that its not accurate or no one believes you). but in the end they realized they were in the wrong, so they shut their mouths and made the smart business play: they came groveling back to the internet.

but if i were drudge, photobucket, and the numerous porn sites that count on cheap cogent prices, i would be looking elsewhere right now.


23 posted on 10/09/2005 11:01:47 AM PDT by DMinus
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To: GovGirl

Considering that the UN wants us to give up control of the Internet, this kind of stunt just gives them more ammo.

People need to start thinking instead of reacting like children.


24 posted on 10/09/2005 12:55:36 PM PDT by MissouriConservative (I would love to change the world, but they won't give me the source code)
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