One broadband line isn't enough anymore

Some ViewQwest customers recently reported a protracted outage. Here's why I went with a dual ISP setup for many years.

Broadband provider ViewQwest is under probe by the IMDA after some customers complained of being unable to access the Internet for over a week, says The Straits Times.

Protracted outage

According to the report on Thursday, the IMDA has instructed ViewQwest to address customer concerns.

• Problems started on April 29.
• Server-related issue was resolved on May 1.
• Some customers may still experience problems.
• Support teams actively reaching out, says ViewQwest.

Some customers complained they could not access the Internet for more than a week.

My experience: Down for a few hours

The report jolted my memory as I experienced the outage sometime around midnight. It took a while to get through, but the helpline was friendly.

I quickly figured the team was struggling and switched to a mobile hotspot before turning in. The Internet was up again in the morning.

Based on my chat with helpline staff and the technician who called to follow-up, here's what I think happened.

• Critical failure of an Optical Line Terminal (OLT).
• Each OLT can scale to tens of thousands of users.
• Team had to migrate affected users to backup OLT.
• Configuration must be restored, and this took time.

In my view, this is a rare, one-time event.

No Internet

What caught my attention were accounts of some affected users from the report by Osmond Chia. Mobile hotspots proved inadequate.

• Business consultant: Disruption affected online workshops conducted from home
• Freelance writer: Connection to work apps like Google Docs, WhatsApp kept dropping.

Internet access has grown steadily in importance over the year. Today, most work require fast, speedy Internet access, which we take for granted - until it goes down.

Go dual-Internet

That's why I recommend users who rely on the Internet for work to sign up for more than one Internet provider, or ISP.

• Basic 1Gbps service is cheap.
• Singapore homes have 2 or more ports.

I first tried a dual-Internet setup in 2011 with ASDSL and Cable Internet. I stopped when I moved to a rented place for a couple of years.

When Covid hit, I set it up again (see photo) with a Peplink router. It's pricey, but there are other Internet routers that can work with more than one Internet provider.

To be clear, I'm now back to a single Internet provider after my recent switch to 10Gbps. I think it's time to start hunting for a good dual-10Gbps router.