PortMaster 3 Delivers Dependable, Scalable Performance for Australian ISP, Wantree Internet Background Wantree Internet is one of the leading Internet services providers (ISPs) in Western and South Australia. Based in Perth, Australia, Wantree has an additional unmanned point of presence (POP) in Adelaide. Having previously developed communications software for bulletin board services (BBS), Wantree was one of the pioneers in the Australian ISP marketplace when it began offering Internet access in early 1995. Today, Wantree provides a variety of Internet services. These include e-mail and Web hosting for government, educational, and commercial organizations as well as on-line gaming and news services for its dial-up subscribers. Thanks to its recent network-wide upgrade to Lucent Technologies PortMaster® 3 Integrated Access Concentrator, Wantree continues to enjoy a solid reputation for exceptional levels of service. In addition, because they have installed Lucent-based K56flex® modems in their PortMaster 3 units, Wantree can now offer the first 56K service in Western and South Australia. "When we were looking for a partner to deliver 56K to our customers, we turned to Lucent and their PortMaster 3 Integrated Access Server. It's an astonishing piece of technology, expertly engineered in every way. Deploying the PortMaster 3 throughout our network ensures that every one of our customers receives the best possible connection every time. So users playing games over the Internet are happy," notes Andrew Milner, General Manager of Wantree Internet. The Challenge As the demand for Wantree's services grew, space in the company's networking room became a major issue--they simply had no more room left to add more of the modem racks and PortMaster 2 InterNetworking Systems servers they had originally installed. "In addition to the space issue," Milner observed, "another concern was that someone literally had to crawl around our equipment room every day to make sure all our modems were still plugged in. We needed InterNetworking Systems equipment that would scale more effectively. Besides, as customer demand for ISDN and 56K support increased, we needed to find a solution that would provide us with a smooth upgrade path to this and other developing technologies." As part of its growth plan, Wantree needed to open a new facility in Adelaide, a full two time zones to the East and South of its central site in Perth, on the Western Coast of Australia. But having to staff such a remote facility with full- or even part-time technical personnel could prove cost-prohibitive. Wantree needed InterNetworking Systems servers that were not only failure-proof but also easy to manage across thousands of miles of telco lines. The Solution Wantree management was quick to see that the Lucent PortMaster 3 offered the best solution. Accordingly, the company completely upgraded its existing network, deploying eight PortMaster 3s at its central site in Perth and two PortMaster 3s at its remote location in Adelaide. These sites are directly linked to each other via a Frame Relay connection, provided by Optus, and both the Adelaide and Perth sites connect via E1 lines to Wantree's partner, Connect.com ISP. A third E1 ties Wantree's central site to Telstra, the government-owned Australian telephone company. Key benefits of Wantree's new network configuration included: Simplified Management and Dependability: The PortMaster 3 combines Lucent True Digital DSP-based modem technology, Primary Rate Interface (PRI) and T1/E1 support, communications server, a router, and WAN switching into a single space-saving chassis. The consolidation of these separate InterNetworking Systems functions delivers the simplified installation, administration and unsurpassed reliability that Wantree needs to support its widely distributed customer base. Smooth Migration Path to New Technologies: "Buying the PortMastern 3 was a direct result of our earlier positive experience with the Lucent PortMaster 2," explained Milner. "The PortMaster 3 has the same sound, basic technology as the PortMaster 2. Lucent's ComOS® is an elegant piece of code, and it remains stable while efficiently supporting all the advanced features of the PortMaster 3. We are very comfortable with Lucent Technologies engineering philosophy. It's similar to our own. That's why we trusted the PortMaster 3 to do the job for us." The Results "The bottom line is the PortMaster 3 saves us tons of money," said Milner. "We can now provision an ISDN port at one-fifth the price and an analog port at two-thirds the price of what we did previously. The PortMaster 3 gives Wantree more stats, which gives us incredible control." What's more, Wantree has realized significant cost-benefits from improved space utilization, systems integration, and improved performance. Where eleven PortMaster 2 units had been required at Wantree's central site to support its former smaller customer base, only eight PortMaster 3s now support a much larger number of customers and wider range of services. At Wantree's Adelaide location, two PortMaster 3s provide optimal Internet access services to an entirely new market while being completely managed and maintained by systems administrators at Wantree's central site. Wantree is also using Lucent's ChoiceNet® filter management server, an integral part of the company's RADIUS security software package, to offer two types of customized accounts -- one for e-mail only and one for WebTrack accounts designed to protect children from exposure to inappropriate Internet content. "Our success is based upon choosing the best people and the best technology," concludes Andrew Milner. "We are happy to say that we have never had a failure with the PortMaster 3. We don't have to baby sit. We can stop micro-managing technical glitches and start profit-building our business."