If you’ve ever wondered how Metanet manages to keep everything online all the time—seriously, all the time—the secret sauce is something called BGP, short for Border Gateway Protocol.
Don’t worry, you don’t need a networking degree to follow along. Here’s the simple version of how it works and why it matters to anyone hosting or colocating servers with us.
The Internet’s Map App
Think of the internet as a giant collection of highways that connect thousands of cities. Each “city” is a separate network—big players like Verizon, Arelion, or Hurricane Electric all run their own.
To move your data from one network to another, routers need a constantly updated “map.” BGP is the map app that keeps everyone on course. It’s the protocol that says, “Hey, I know a good way to get there,” and helps routers pick the best path every second of every day.
A Quick Analogy
Here’s an easy way to picture it:
“Imagine our data center as a central train station connected to four different rail companies—Verizon, Megaport, Arelion, and Hurricane Electric. Trains (your data) can leave through any company’s tracks. If one track is blocked or delayed, the station master (BGP) instantly routes trains onto the next best line so passengers reach their destination on time.”
That’s basically what happens thousands of times a second inside Metanet’s routers.
Why It’s a Big Deal for Uptime
Because BGP is always watching and re-calculating, it can route around problems in real time:
- Traffic jams: If one network is clogged, BGP sends your data down a faster lane.
- Outages: If a fiber line gets cut, BGP just picks a different path—no drama, no downtime.
For you and your customers, that means no interruptions. Everything just…works.
Our Internet Heavyweights
We don’t rely on just one provider. We plug straight into Tier 1 Internet backbones—the companies that literally make up the core of the global internet:
- Verizon – massive reach across North America and beyond.
- XO Communications – Verizon owned domestic national backbone
- Arelion (formerly Telia Carrier) – a top global backbone with huge European capacity.
- Hurricane Electric – famous for lightning-fast IPv6 and worldwide fiber.
- Megaport – diverse SDN network can connect to AWS and Azure
These Tier 1s trade traffic directly with every other major network, so your data isn’t hopping through middlemen.
Megaport for Extra Variety
We also connect to Megaport, which is technically Tier 2—and that’s a good thing. Why? Because Megaport links into lots of other networks, giving BGP even more routes to choose from. More paths = more reliability.
Here are some of the networks Megaport peers with:
GTT Communications, NTT America, Superloop, Cogent, Arelion Sweden, Transtelco, Level 3 (Lumen), Telstra, AAPT, and GSL Networks.
All that extra connectivity means BGP can always find a speedy detour when the internet gets messy.
Double Redundancy: Physical + Routing
We protect uptime on two fronts:
- Physical paths: Multiple fiber entrances feed the building. Even if a backhoe slices a cable, traffic keeps flowing through the other lines.
- Routing smarts: BGP constantly measures which path is healthiest and instantly shifts traffic if something goes sideways.
Together, those layers make our network incredibly tough to knock offline.
What This Means for You
Here’s the bottom line if you’re hosting with Metanet:
- Fast, steady connections: Visitors around the world get low latency and quick page loads.
- Automatic failover: If something breaks, your users never know—it just reroutes.
- Global reach: With four Tier 1 carriers plus Megaport’s huge peer list, your data finds the fastest road anywhere.
Extra Love for Colocation Customers
Running your own servers in our facility? You benefit even more:
- Carrier-neutral flexibility: Use your own circuits or ours—you still get our multi-carrier redundancy.
- Multiple fiber entrances: A single cut cable won’t isolate your gear.
- Global performance: BGP taps into Megaport’s many peers, so your traffic always finds the best route.
- The same 100% SLA: Our Service Level Agreement covers colocation too, so you can promise your customers nonstop service.
In short, you get the kind of connectivity big enterprises pay fortunes to build, without the headache of managing it yourself.
Our 100% Uptime Promise SLA (Service Level Agreement)
We back all of this with a Service Level Agreement that guarantees 100% network uptime.
If we ever fall short—which is rare—you get credited automatically. We put our money where our mouth is.
The Takeaway
BGP is the quiet hero of our New York data center. By combining three Tier 1 carriers—Verizon, Arelion, Hurricane Electric—with Megaport’s super-diverse network, we make sure your data always has a clear path.
Whether you’re running a busy e-commerce site, a SaaS platform, or colocating your own gear, our network design—and our 100% uptime SLA—keeps your business online when it matters most.
