Introduction
Orbitor 3000 Reference Manual— 1-17
WAN Topologies
The Orbitor Ethernet bridge/router may be connected to other Orbitor Ethernet bridge/routers in two configurations:
Multipoint or Point-to-Point. The WAN routing method used is set in the WAN Set-Up Menu under the Link Operation
option.
Point-to-Point
In a Point-to-Point configuration, two Orbitor Ethernet bridge/routers are connected together with one or two
WAN links. Each link may be set to an always active (unconditional) state or a backup/recovery (conditional)
state.
A single link may be used for general traffic, and the second link may be used for disaster recovery or increased
throughput. The Bandwidth on Demand feature controls the conditional behavior of the second link in a Point-
to-Point configuration.
The Time of Day connect feature may be used in a Point-to-Point configuration to provide specific hours of
access or increased throughput.
Multipoint
In a Multipoint configuration, an Orbitor Ethernet bridge/router is connected to more than one other Orbitor
Ethernet bridge/router. A Multipoint configuration consists of three or more Orbitor Ethernet bridge/routers
connected together on the same wide area network.
A dual-link Orbitor Ethernet bridge/router that is connected to two different Orbitor Ethernet bridge/routers (one
on each link) is in a Multipoint configuration.
The Time of Day connect feature may be used in a Multipoint configuration to provide specific hours of access.
Bandwidth On Demand
Each Orbitor Ethernet bridge/router has the ability to automatically enable or disable a second link based on traffic
activity, time of day, or main link failure.
The Bandwidth on Demand feature allows you to use a second link only when required, thus saving the cost of having the
second link up and connected all of the time. The second link could be connected to an inexpensive dial-up line that is
only required when the main link fails or is exceeding a predefined traffic throughput level.
Bandwidth on Demand is accomplished by using the intelligence of the Orbitor Ethernet to measure the utilization of the
primary link. When it approaches saturation, Bandwidth on Demand will initialize and loadshare with a second stand-by
link. This will effectively increase the throughput of the Orbitor Ethernet Bridge/Router, thereby alleviating the
saturation and avoiding data loss. The second link is then deactivated when traffic levels drop off to where the primary
link can adequately handle the traffic load once again.
When the stand-by link is activated, the Orbitor Ethernet bridge/router raises the outgoing control signals. This control-
signal transition is then used to initiate autodial or auto call-setup procedures on the interface device. This autodial
feature is standard on most of the modems and terminal adapters on the market.
When the second link is deactivated, the Orbitor Ethernet bridge/router lowers the outgoing control signals. This control-
signal transition is used to disconnect the call and bring down the link. The second link then remains in stand-by mode
until the bridge/router determines that the link must be used again.
