Jo’burg Internet Exchange in big backbone upgrade

INX-ZA’s Johannesburg Internet Exchange (Jinx) is getting a major upgrade to its backbone after Dark Fibre Africa donated a high-speed fibre between the Isando and Parklands Internet exchange points.

“This will enable Jinx to make use of wavelength-division multiplexing (WDM) technologies, radically enhancing the exchange’s backbone capacity,” INX-ZA said in a statement on Thursday.

The agreement between DFA and JINX will see WDM technologies “essentially transforming” a single fibre link into “almost unlimited network capacity”. This means Jinx can now “easily and independently manage its own capacity between these sites”, it said.

According to INX-ZA committee member Prenesh Padayachee, the “substantial donation” by DFA will “thrust Jinx into the next technology bracket”.

“We look forward to other leading fibre providers also donating connectivity solutions to promote further enhancements at South Africa’s INXes,” Padayachee said.

INX-ZA describes itself as the operator of South Africa’s only community-run Internet exchanges in Johannesburg, Cape Town and Durban.

Internet exchange points enable Internet businesses to interconnect their networks so that domestic Internet users benefit from faster connections and more efficient access to online services.

Lower costs

Network operators benefit from lower costs, resulting in more stable and affordable bandwidth, which is crucial for the development of the Internet, it said.

“Infinite bandwidth means that there are infinite opportunities for Africa’s oldest Internet exchange. That’s incredible and a very good development for Africa’s digital future,” said Padayachee.  — (c) 2019 NewsCentral Media