SingAREN Enhances its Network Security and Reliability with a SOE-1 Router Upgrade
22 March 2024 – SingAREN Open Exchange (SOE) is a neutral Internet Exchange point that is hosted by SingAREN. The SOE-1 MLXe8 router was commissioned in 2017 at Global Switch Tai Seng data centre to facilitate an open Internet Exchange in Singapore to benefit the domestic and international research and education communities. On 18 March 2024, SOE-1 had a major upgrade with the replacement of the MLXe8 with the compact and more powerful Extreme Network SLX9640.
The compact 1RU Extreme Networks SLX9640 router
Newly installed Extreme Networks SLX9640 router at Global Switch data center
New patch panel for the new SLX9640 router
With this new router upgrade, SingAREN is expected to offer a higher degree of network security and reliability with added benefits:
- High-performance routing capabilities as the new router is now capable of processing full Internet routes; the entire IPv4 and IPv6 address space can be managed without any limitations. This would ensure a balance in the Internet access with SOE-2 (Equinix) internet access.
- More High Speed ports to support users. It has a total of 12 x 100G and 24 x10G port.
- The new router has significantly improved rack space efficiency by up to 80%: The SLX9640 is a compact 1RU device as opposed to 8RU occupied by MLXe8. It is also more environment friendly due to reduced heat and power dissipation.
- The SLX9640 supports RPKI for route validation, ensuring that the SingAREN network is effectively protected against malicious attacks and route hijacking.
With this hardware upgrade, SingAREN network is now more resilient against cyber attacks and provides enhanced service to all its REN partners and communities.