Cross-connect: how to connect your own carrier to your server in the data center

The data center’s internet covers most needs. But sometimes you need your own carrier: a direct link to the office, a dedicated line to a bank, a second provider for redundancy. That’s what a cross-connect is for.

What it is

A cross-connect is a physical cable connection (fiber or copper) between your equipment in the rack and a carrier’s point of presence in the data center. The data center lays and maintains the line, the carrier delivers its circuit over it, and you get a port in your rack.

When you need one

• A direct link to the office or warehouse. An L2 circuit from a carrier: servers in the data center and the office form one network, with no VPN and no internet in between.
• A dedicated line to a bank, payment system or government system. Many integrations require a physical circuit rather than the internet.
• A second provider. The data center uplink plus your own carrier gives you redundancy across different networks.
• A connection between your own racks or to a partner’s rack in the same data center.
• Your own IP block and BGP — announcing your own network through a carrier.

Which carriers are present

Uzbekistan’s major carriers are present in the MyCloud data center; ask your account manager for the full list, as it changes. If the carrier you need isn’t there, it can bring its cable into the building — this is arranged separately and takes a few weeks.

How to connect

1. You sign a contract with the carrier for the circuit and specify the data center address as the connection point.
2. You order a cross-connect from us: type (SM/MM fiber or copper), rack number, port.
3. We lay the line, label it, test it and hand it over to the carrier to activate the circuit. A cross-connect within the site usually takes one business day; the carrier activates its circuit on its own schedule, usually within 3–10 days.
4. After that, there’s a daily fee for the line.

Cost

Setting up a cross-connect costs 100 000 UZS one-time, and the line costs 10 000 UZS per day (about 300 000 UZS per month). The carrier’s circuit is paid to the carrier at its own rates. A private network between your servers inside MyCloud is free and needs no cross-connect.