Leased Line Monitoring: Challenges, Considerations and Use Cases

Leased lines, or dedicated telecommunication connections that link two points together, play a crucial role for both businesses and telecommunications providers by offering reliable, high-speed internet and data services. Keeping an eye on these leased lines is vital to ensure the quality of service, to spot and resolve issues before they escalate, and to maintain the security of the network. In this blog, we delve into the complexities and key factors to consider when monitoring leased lines, and we’ll share stories from two real-world scenarios where effective monitoring made a significant difference for telecommunications companies.

Within an organization, the responsibility for monitoring leased lines typically falls under the Information Technology (IT) Department. More specifically, individuals working in network operations or network engineering roles are often tasked with this important job. Having the experience and right network monitoring tools can make a substantial difference to trouble shooting network issues and protecting the network against threats. So what challenges are these network engineers facing when having to analyze leased lines. Let’s take a look:

Challenges in Leased Line Monitoring

1. Complexity of Networks: Modern networks are complex, integrating various technologies and spanning wide geographical areas. Monitoring such networks requires sophisticated tools capable of understanding and visualizing this complexity in real-time.

2. High Expectations for Uptime: Leased lines are often sold with SLAs (Service Level Agreements) promising near-perfect uptime. Monitoring solutions must be capable of detecting and addressing issues before they impact service, a non-trivial task given the myriad things that can go wrong.

3. Evolving Security Threats: As leased lines are critical infrastructure, they are attractive targets for cyberattacks. Monitoring systems must evolve continually to detect and mitigate these threats, necessitating ongoing investment in security technologies and expertise.

4. Cost Constraints: Despite the need for sophisticated monitoring solutions, there’s always pressure to keep costs down, both for the telecom operators and their customers. Balancing cost against the need for effective monitoring is a constant challenge.

Considerations for Effective Leased Line Monitoring

The challenges are not the only considerations for the effective monitoring of leased lines. The Network Engineers also need whatever tool they decide to use to have a range of functionalities that can fit both technical and operational needs for the business. We have listed some of these considerations below, starting with Comprehensive Coverage.

1. Comprehensive Coverage: Effective monitoring requires visibility across the entire network, from the physical layer up through the application layer. This ensures that any issue can be detected, regardless of where it occurs.

2. Real-time Analytics: The ability to analyze data in real-time is crucial for identifying issues as they arise and taking immediate action to mitigate them.

3. Growth: As networks grow, monitoring solutions must scale accordingly, both in terms of capacity and the ability to integrate with new technologies.

4. Customizability: Every network is unique, and monitoring solutions need to be customizable to meet specific needs, including the ability to set specific thresholds for alerts and to integrate with existing operational processes.

Impactful Use Cases

It’s easy to see that careful thought must go into monitoring, but how does this translate into a practical real world example. Let’s explore two use cases to see what this means for leased lines.

1. Proactive Fault Detection in a National Telecom Operator: A national telecom operator implemented a state-of-the-art monitoring solution for their leased lines, incorporating AI and machine learning for predictive analytics. This allowed them to identify and resolve potential issues before they impacted customers, significantly reducing downtime and improving customer satisfaction. As a result, the operator not only met their SLA commitments but exceeded them, leading to higher renewal rates and increased business from existing customers.

2. Enhancing Network Security for an International Telecom: By integrating advanced security analytics into their leased line monitoring, an international telecom was able to detect and mitigate sophisticated cyberattacks before they breached the network. This proactive approach to security not only protected the telecom’s infrastructure and customer data but also positioned the company as a leader in network security, attracting new customers concerned about cybersecurity.

Conclusion

Monitoring leased lines effectively is a complex but critical task for telecom operators, requiring a balance of technical sophistication, operational efficiency, and strategic foresight. By addressing the challenges and considerations outlined above, telecom operators can ensure their networks are reliable, secure, and capable of meeting the high expectations of today’s businesses. The use cases demonstrate the tangible benefits of effective leased line monitoring, from improved operational performance to enhanced customer satisfaction and competitive advantage. As telecom networks continue to evolve, so too will the strategies and technologies for monitoring them, underscoring the importance of innovation and adaptability in this critical area.

At VC4 we understand the complexities of managing Leased Lines. Our software IMS, has a module designed specfically to manage and report on leased lines, accurately called the Leased Line Module. The Leased Line module delivers a unified, comprehensive view of all your leased lines and their costs. If you’re intrigued to find out more then drop us an enquiry on our contact form or e-mail us directly at sales@vc4.com.