Internet Service Provider

Belpak

BelPak network - the state network for public data transmission, which has the status of a national network and operates under license N 34, issued July 24, 1994 by the Ministry of Communications and Informatics of the Republic of Belarus.

A brief overview of the network creation and development.

The BelPak network began to develop in 1992 from a single switching point in Minsk, which had the functions of an experimental area to study the needs in data transmission services from enterprises, organizations and institutions. The development of the services progressed in two main directions: the actual transport data transfer services via X25 protocol and UUCP e-mail. The Minsk node was equipped with one X25 switchboard and an e-mail post office. Due to the outrunning growth of e-mail users, in 1993 five post offices were organized in regional cities to expand the scope of this type of service.

In order to expand the range of services provided and expand the data transmission network to the scale of the whole republic, an international tender for the construction of the expanded BelPak network was held in 1995. The tender was won by the American company Sprint Int, In mid-1996 the network was put into operation.

The main characteristics of the network.

At present the network consists of 18 switch nodes. The equipment is TR49XX series switches (Minsk and 5 regional nodes) and TR8010 series switches (12 regional nodes). The subscribers are connected in synchronous and asynchronous modes with the speed of 9600 bps to 64000 bps. The data transfer protocols are X28, X25 and Frame Relay. Total port capacity of the network is about 1000 ports. Communication between the switches in Minsk and the regions is performed via digital streams of 2.048 Mbit/s (E1 standard), which are organized via fiber-optic communication lines.

The network has direct links via X75 protocol with the networks of Russia and Poland. Subscribers have access to almost all global X25 data networks via these networks. The extended BelPak network performs two main functions: subscriber access and backbone network to provide transport services for creation of corporate networks. The network control center and protection system ensure efficient network controllability and protection of its subscribers from unauthorized access.

Apart from the X25 network itself, nodes of access to the Internet were deployed in Minsk and all regional nodes in 1996. The equipment was Cisco routers and access servers. The total port capacity of these nodes for the beginning of 2001 was 485 ports (without taking into account the system of passwordless dial-up access).

In 1999 a nationwide system of password-less dial-up access to the Internet was organized. The system was built centrally on the basis of AS5200 and AS5300 access servers with a total port capacity of 420 ports.

Services provided.

Data transmission services via X.28, X.25 and Frame Relay protocols (frame relay). Special attention deserves the last protocol, providing the ability to effectively connect the user local networks with each other and process heterogeneous traffic. These services are focused on the implementation primarily for business applications.

E-mail services of UUCP and POP3 protocols. Services are cheap and designed for all users, from large companies to individuals. Due to the development of the Internet and the computerization of the population, the demand for e-mail services will continue.

The most popular service is, of course, access to the Internet in interactive (online) mode. The basic strategy of development in this direction in 'Beltelecom' was accepted the constant increase of channels of external access to the Internet and the maximum use of the opportunities of already constructed telecommunication networks - ISDN, BelPac and SDH for organization of subscriber access. The main directions in the development of services were chosen as the development of dial-up access, ISP connections and non-switched Internet connection on the republican scale.

Dial-up access to the Internet is provided in two ways: Traditional access with subscriber identification and so-called passwordless access. The latter is based on the use of Beltelecom's existing billing systems. This makes it possible to maximally simplify the organization of access to the network on the scale of the republic with minimum costs on the part of potential users.

In the first half of 1999 the connection of the providers to the subsystem of the provision of the guaranteed bandwidth of the external channel was realized. At present practically all Internet providers are connected.