Broadband ADSL FAQ

What is ADSL?
ADSL(Asymmetric Digital Subscriber Line) allows digital data to be transferred over the copper wires currently used by the telephone system. Unlike when using a modem, which needs to convert data from analogue signalling to digital and vice-versa when transferring data, ADSL uses digital signalling therefore allowing much higher speeds of data transfer.

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How does ADSL work?
ADSL allows you to use both your phone and internet connection simultaneously on the same telephone line. It does this because ADSL uses different frequencies (the broadband frequency) than those used by phone calls and fax calls (narrowband frequencies). In fact, normal telephone usage only uses a very small part of the total frequencies available on the copper wire so the rest can be used for data transfer using ADSL.

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How can my business benefit from ADSL?
That depends on how you use the internet. If you browse the web and collect email more than a few times a day, you should seriously think about getting ADSL. Why? Its simple, it's a matter of time and money:

Time

Your time is precious. Would another 1/2 hour a day help you get more done? What about your employees - could they get more done with extra time on their hands? Here is a simple equation for modem users:

Money

So you can do the maths. Multiply the above by the number of employees you have and how much they get paid and then work out how much that's costing you per day/week/month/year. If ADSL costs less than that the case is clear!

With ADSL, your mail just arrives while you and your employees get on with your business. And you pay a flat rate monthly charge which allows you to budget your internet connectivity ..no nasty surprises on your phone bill.

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Can anyone get ADSL?
In order for you to be able to get ADSL your phone line needs to be connected to a BT exchange which has been upgraded to allow ADSL. Currently around 70% of exchanges in the UK have been upgraded, primarily in and around large cities. As well as this your home or business needs to be within a certain range from the exchange. If it is too far away the quality of transmission may suffer and it will not be suitable. We can carry out checks on your behalf to see if your home or business is able to get ADSL.

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Can I connect my business network on one ADSL line?
Yes. To do this you will need to either share the modem connection on the PC that has the modem attached or upgrade to a router/modem from the standard ADSL USB modem and plug the router straight into your network.

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What equipment do I need?
When you purchase any of Host365's broadband access products, we can provide you with a free USB modem. This is suitable for a single machine to connect over broadband. To broadband enable your existing network, the easiest route is to upgrade to a router which plugs straight into your network and enables all PC's on the network to use broadband.

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Contention Ratio - whats that?
From your office, ADSL connects to the local BT exchange. Then there is the connection from the BT exchange to the internet. Contention Ratio is the maximum amount of other users that can use the connection from the BT exchange to the internet at any one time.

For instance, if you have a 2MB Network connection it has a contention ratio of 20:1 This means that up to 20 other people could be using that 2MB connection from exchange to internet. Effectively this means that the higher the contention ratio, the more people are sharing the same connection from exchange to the internet and consequently, as maximum contention is reached, ADSL starts to slow down. It is very rare for all users to be using the connection at once so you can be sure that your download speed will still always be much higher that when using a modem or ISDN, which also have contention ratios.

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What sort of phone line do I need?
You must have a standard BT phone line. You could use any BT line including your fax line if you have a separate line for that. And remember that it doesn't tie up the line so you can still use the phone while you are using ADSL at the same time. When you order your ADSL, a line test is done which will highlight any incompatibilities. However, the following sort of lines will not work:

ISDN lines Lines with multiple lines off them (eg: on a switchboard or PABX system) Lines with Redcare or Red ABC alarm service Lines with the Caller Display CD50 service

We would advise you to use a spare line or fax line that has as few devices (phones, fax machines, modems, PDQ machines) connected as possible. BT sets a REN value for standard phone lines of 4 with each device typically being 1 to 1.5 REN and going over the recommended REN on a line can lead to quality issues for both telecoms equipment and broadband.

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Do I still pay for my BT line rental?
Yes

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Do I still pay for outbound telephone calls on this line?
Yes. Any phone calls, modem calls or fax calls made are subject to standard BT call charges. Broadband connections are excluded though and there are no call charges to use broadband.

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How long does it take from when I place an order?
When you place your order, we have BT do a line test within 24 hours. This will usually come back fine but just sometimes, the line quality isn't up to scratch and your order cannot be proceed. Assuming you get past this line test (and most do) it then takes between 5 and 10 working days for BT to enable your line. Once they have done this you are live and ready to go.

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Security - is ADSL less secure?
ADSL works in much the same way as a modem connection in terms of security. With both USB and Ethernet versions, you are assigned an IP address at connection time. This is a "real" IP address which can in theory be reached by people with malicious intent. Therefore, you should take the same precautions you would with your modem connection. For security, you may wish to consider a personal firewall such as that sold by Norton which blocks any unwanted intruders. Customers choosing to have additional static or fixed IP addresses supplied for use with mail and web servers should almost certainly introduce security measures.

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IP Address - what's that?
Every computer on the net (including the one you are browsing now) has a number called an IP address. When you type in our web address www.host365.com some software translates that into a number to find our web site. The computer you are sitting at also has a number so that our two computers can talk to each other. Most people have a dynamic IP address which is given to you by your ISP every time you go online. When you log off, and connect next time, you will probably have a different IP address. A static IP address is one which never changes every time you connect to the net. Having a static IP address is useful if you want to run your own servers in your office and if you do, we can support you with that and additional IP addresses.

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NAT - Network Address Translation?
This only applies to users of routers and not the standard USB modems. NAT is a means by which you can connect your network to the internet using ADSL without having to use "real" IP addresses (a "real" IP address being one which can be resolved by other machines on the Internet). Essentially it means that your internal network has a set range of IP addresses which are not "real". This non "real" network then connects through a router which contains a means of translating the requests from non "real" IP addresses for real ones on the internet. This only affects those wishing to use an Ethernet based connection for their network and is all plain sailing anyway as the router has an easy setup menu.

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Why isn't it available where I am?
BT has to specially enable each telephone exchange with ADSL equipment. Until it has done this, not everyone will be able to receive ADSL. Increasing pressure from government and lobbying groups is now accelerating this process. In addition, if you are more than 5Km from the BT exchange you will be unable to receive ADSL as distance is a major factor in the loss of data over the traditional phone wires that ADSL runs over.

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Do you offer an engineer installed product?
Yes. All our products can be purchased for self-install. While it may seem daunting, ADSL is little different to installing a standard modem and you should have few problems. If you do have any problems, our support team is on hand to help.

We can also offer engineer installation at your premises including configuration of any PC's and network devices necessary to connect your entire office via broadband. Please call to discuss your requirements.

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Can I use a wireless network with ADSL?
Yes. You simply connect your wireless gateway to your ADSL router. You will need to ensure that your wireless hardware is compatible and configured correctly.

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What guarantee is there that it will work 24/7 365?
The whole truth and nothing but! BT, who provide the backbone for all ADSL traffic, will not offer any guarantee or Service Level Agreement (SLA) on ADSL provision. This is believed to be related to the relative newness of ADSL and the consequential lack of widespread engineering resource with specific ADSL skill sets within BT. So, if it goes down, there is no set time in which it will be rectified, nor any compensation procedure available for loss of service.

Our experience of ADSL is that it may stop working from time to time (at most probably 6 times a year) and that the downtime is likely to be from a few minutes to a few hours except in exceptional circumstances. During this time, you can use a backup dial up service to connect to the net and download email.

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What speed will I need?
As a rule of thumb, if one or two computers are attached and you use the connection infrequently then you probably only need the standard USB 512K package unless you crave additional speed. If you are a heavy user or you need to connect more than a few PC's then you should consider using the Host365 512K Ethernet package at a minimum because of the lower contention ratio. Here's a quick diagram showing our suggested minimum packages to allow you to fully take advantage of ADSL:

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