About AWS Direct Connect

If you are familiar with Amazon Web Services (AWS) and Direct Connect and would like to start with your request, please skip directly to the Direct Connect Request Instructions.

What is AWS Direct Connect service?

In AWS’s own words:

AWS Direct Connect makes it easy to establish a dedicated network connection from your premise to AWS. Using AWS Direct Connect, you can establish private connectivity between AWS and your datacenter, office, or collocation environment, which in many cases can reduce your network costs, increase bandwidth throughput, and provide a more consistent network experience than Internet-based connections.

AWS Direct Connect lets you establish a dedicated network connection between your network and one of the AWS Direct Connect locations. Using industry standard 802.1q VLANs, this dedicated connection can be partitioned into multiple virtual interfaces. This allows you to use the same connection to access public resources such as objects stored in Amazon S3 using public IP address space, and private resources such as Amazon EC2 instances running within an Amazon Virtual Private Cloud (VPC) using private IP space, while maintaining network separation between the public and private environments. Virtual interfaces can be reconfigured at any time to meet your changing needs. Read more …

In MAX’s words:

AWS Direct Connect is a service provided by AWS. It is a dedicated peering point with Amazon and AWS with some added benefits. Unlike other truly virtual services provided by AWS, such as EC2 or S3, Direct Connect requires physical infrastructure in order to provision this service. MAX has acquired this service and is offering it to its current and future participants. Users of this service will reap the following benefits:

  1. dedicated path to AWS and Amazon
  2. discounted pricing on data transfers out of AWS (inbound transfers are free for all)
  3. possibility to peer on private address spaces in connection with the AWS Virtual Private Cloud service

Possible Arrangements

MAX offers two types of arrangements: static which is he traditional AWS model, and dynamic, which is the new mode of the service developed at MAX. The static arrangement [Figure 1] is fairly straightforward but requires a configuration change at Participant’s router and possibly at the Layer 2 infrastructure. After the service request is received, MAX will provision a new Virtual Interface (VLAN) at the Direct Connect connection and extend the VLAN all the way through MAX’s Layer 2 to Participant’s infrastructure. Participant will be responsible for mapping the [provisioned VLAN to its infrastructure and configuring BGP peering with AWS on their router.

Static Service Architecture
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Dynamic Service Architecture Small
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Unless you are very familiar with the service we encourage you to contact MAX’s Services department by email or by phone, (301) 314-4125, to discuss the requirements and details of the possible arrangements.

Direct Connect Request Instructions

In order to utilize this service you must:

1. Be a MAX participant.  If you are not already a participant, please click here to submit a participant information request. You may also contact MAX’s Finance and Administration department directly via e-mail or by phone at (301) 314-4128 to get additional information on becoming a participant.

2. Establish an account on this portal. To do so please contact MAX Services.