AWS Direct Connect

The fact that all network traffic between AWS and non-AWS resources travels over the public Internet poses a significant problem: the bandwidth and latency levels available to end users are highly variable and can be unacceptable.           

 

Amazon addresses the issue of traffic flowing across the public Internet with Direct Connect: It lets a user put a private circuit between his data center and AWS to enable traffic to flow across a dedicated network connection, with no use of the public Internet.

Direct Connect dedicated network connections can be made from AWS to either a company’s own data center or to a public carrier, like Equinix. The company requesting the Direct Connect network connection may have its servers located at the public carrier’s site or have a second network connection from the public carrier to the company’s own data center.                                

 

Amazon offers two levels of Direct Connect bandwidth: 1 Gbps and 10 Gbps.The former should be sufficient for most connectivity needs; the latter is sufficient for all but the most demanding high-performance computing, and i tmatches the highest throughput level available within AWS itself.

 

Direct Connect comes with an AWS-like financial arrangement: You use DirectConnect only when you need it, and you pay for it only while you use it.