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The DDS WAN, a private frame relay network, is used solely by DDS clients to access DDS applications. Our clients connect to the DDS WAN via the nearest node. Each node has multiple high-speed trunks to the mainframe in New York City. This redundancy protects you if one or more of the WAN trunk lines go down. If you can connect successfully to the node, your data will be transmitted between there and the mainframe, whether or not the main trunk remains up.

Most connection problems arise as the result of the office-to-node connection, a.k.a. “the last mile,” as these lines tend to go down more frequently than major trunk lines.

In order for our Business Continuity Plan to be effective against communication line failures between your offices and the local DDS communications node or our backup site, we suggest that each client location install either an ISDN backup line or have an alternate backup plan in place.

ISDN Backup
This inexpensive backup solution can mean the difference between being out of service for an entire day and being able to resume work almost immediately after your main line fails. By installing an ISDN line at your site, your people can continue to be productive while the phone company fixes your circuit.

Alternative Solutions to ISDN
In certain cases, clients maintain their own nationwide network and connect to the DDS mainframe at two or three central points. For these clients, we can work with their IT staff to put together a disaster recovery plan that will allow traffic to be re-routed over their own network and regain access to the DDS WAN via another location. This has proven to be a very reliable backup method and should be tested periodically to ensure reliability.

The key is to plan ahead for daily outages or disasters. If properly prepared, you will be able to maintain business as usual in almost any situation which involves the loss of telecommunications lines.