Launch "IIJ Private Backbone Service/Smart HUB," A New Flexible Cloud Connection Service with High Performance Broadband Over 10Gbps

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TOKYO - June 15, 2022 - Internet Initiative Japan Inc. (IIJ, TSE Prime: 3774), one of Japan's leading Internet access and comprehensive network solutions providers, today announced the launch of IIJ Private Backbone Service/Smart HUB ("Smart HUB"), a service that enables interconnectivity between customer networks and various types of cloud services while offering flexible control over connection bandwidths according to cloud usage status. With this service, connection bandwidths with various types of cloud services can be freely assigned on the customer side from among contracted bandwidths that have been pooled in advance. Connection environments can also be secured at optimal cost according to traffic volume, offering significantly greater convenience when using multi-cloud.

As digital transformation (DX) and work style reforms have advanced and the COVID-19 pandemic has dragged on, companies in Japan are establishing operating environments that enable work to be performed from any location outside of company grounds, including from home or satellite offices. Since the in-house network environments (on-premises) of many business systems have been migrating to cloud services, the traffic volume from increased cloud connections needs to be handled. Stable communications must also be secured, and flexible network environments that can handle fluctuating cloud usage volume while properly deploying multiple cloud services are needed.

In response, IIJ offers Smart HUB. This network service flexibly handles traffic to various types of cloud services, which continue to increase in number, and is ideal for broadband multi-cloud connectivity.
To provide this service, IIJ is using Cisco ACI (Application Centric Infrastructure) SDN solution for data centers from Cisco Systems G.K., and vSRX Virtual Firewall by Juniper Networks, Inc. Through cooperation with these two companies, IIJ has developed new infrastructure dedicated to broadband connectivity, enabling broadband high-volume connectivity at speeds in excess of 10 Gbps.

Features of IIJ Private Backbone Service/Smart HUB

Delivers high-volume, stable communication by directly linking on-premises to cloud services

Smart HUB enables broadband, stable connectivity with all types of cloud services (Microsoft Azure, AWS, Microsoft 365) by providing new network infrastructure that directly links on-premises with cloud services. Additionally, this service is connected to the IIJ Private Backbone Service which builds customer-dedicated networks on the IIJ backbone and can be linked with IIJ digital workplace-related services via secure networks.

Ability to freely assign bandwidths needed for connecting each cloud

Since the contract is for a bandwidth pool of the bandwidths needed for all of the clouds overall rather than the connection bandwidth for each cloud, customers can assign the bandwidths they need for each cloud service from the bandwidth pool (maximum 100 Gbps) at the necessary time, offering significantly greater convenience when using multi-cloud.
Dedicated control panels have also been created for this service, and changes such as assigning bandwidths and configuring firewalls can be handled on demand. The service enables flexible network control, such as to gradually increase bandwidth after small-scale implementation, or to freely fluctuate bandwidth according to traffic that suddenly becomes necessary or unnecessary.

Managed services that act on behalf of customers to absorb cloud connectivity operations requiring specialized expertise

Cloud operators update the connection environment of direct connections to their clouds on a daily basis according to their respective technological specifications and operating policies, so the user side must conform to various changes that vary for each operator and address issues and problems that arise. Since this service is provided managed, even sudden problems such as responding to specifications changes on short notice are handled on behalf of the customer based on internet operations technologies and cloud connection expertise accumulated over the years in order to continuously provide a high-quality, stable cloud connection environment.

Features Provided

Basic items

Bandwidth pool	Billed according to bandwidth assigned to each port
Region	Location of service facility can be selected in Eastern or Western Japan(*)

• (*)To be provided in the Western Japan region in October 2022

Add-on items

On-premises connector ports (line connections within facilities)		Connectivity for customer sites within IIJ data centers
Cloud connector ports	Type A: Private	Connectivity for AWS Direct Connect
	Type A: Public(*)
	Type M: Private	Connectivity for Microsoft Azure ExpressRoute
	Type M: Public(*)
	Type M2: Public(*)	Connectivity for Microsoft Azure Peering Service
NAPT sessions (from 30,000 sessions)(*)		Address translation when connected to public networks
Static NAT (from 1 global IP address)(*)		Providing static IP addresses when communication from the cloud to on-premises is needed during public connection
Firewall (from 500,000 sessions)(*)		Can configure virtual firewalls in each port

• (*)Cloud connector ports (public), NAPT sessions, Static NAT, and firewall to be provided from October 2022 onward

IIJ will continue supporting customers’ cloud usage while combining a diverse range of network services.

The statements within this release contain forward-looking statements about our future plans that involve risk and uncertainty. These statements may differ materially from actual future events or results.

For inquiries, contact

IIJ Corporate Communications

• +81-3-5205-6310
• +81-3-5205-6377
• press@iij.ad.jp

• (*) All company names and service names used in this press release are the trademarks or registered trademarks of their respective owners.