Bandwidth: are you getting what you paid for?

You've signed a contract with an ISP for a 10 mb data service with an SLA at 99.999 uptime, but is it really a 10 mb service? Perhaps over time it seems to slow down, and you only hear about it when someone calls to complain. So how can you ensure SLA's and get what you are paying for?

To start, make sure that your ISP provides you with SLA reports on quarterly basis at minimum. However, as the old saying goes, "Trust but verify".

The following are several tools that can assist you with metrics and historical reports about bandwidth usage.

Free tools to historically report on bandwidth usage:
MRTG - Monitors SNMP network devices (in this case your router)and paints a picture of the traffic usage on the device.

PRTG - Monitors and Classifies bandwidth usage on SNMP network devices and paints several pictures of what is occuring.

ISP SLA Monitor - Uses Cisco's Netflow Data records to present usage information. (note: while this tool is standalone and free, it is used to upsell you to Solarwinds Network tools).

Free tools to measure bandwidth:
DSLReports - Test your bandwidth speed, perform a through line test with this free service.

MLAB - While this set of watchdog tools has been created to look out for number 1, once again Google has created a service that is certainly going to keep the ISP's on their toes. Measure bandwidth, troubleshoot a connection, check to see if BitTorrent is being blocked, etc....

As well, if you utilize a multi-homing device i.e. XRoads, Elfiq, Fatpipe, etc, check if they have any SLA tools built in to their products (I know XRoads does....).

Bottom line, there are several options to help you ensure that you get what you pay for.....