Although the internet is a fairly recent invention, the speed in which we have become dependent on hasn’t always been reflected in the speeds available to us.
Commercial internet was introduced around 1995 using landline phone connections, meaning speeds were slow and if somebody picked up the telephone they would be met with the screech of a computer talking to the world.
Speeds remained slow, with the best connection speeds being around 56Kbps for a few years.
In the early 2000’s broadband began to replace dial up, allowing people to stay connected at all times. Roughly half of all internet users had made the switch to broadband by 2008 rising to almost 90% in the last few years, and speeds today are often in excess of 1100Mbps.
As your school’s reliance on fast internet speeds increases, Virtue Technologies offers flexible, bespoke solutions designed to target your needs, and achieve the access speeds you rely on to keep the productivity of your colleagues and students at the level they would expect.
Why has my internet suddenly slowed down?
Virtue Technologies are often asked to look into why a school’s internet connection has slowed down, and there are many things that can be causing the problem.
When you first installed your internet connection, you may have considered how many users there would be, on what type of equipment and at what times.
Recent changes in working practices have meant there are more people working from home, using VOIP (Voice over Internet Protocol) applications and video applications such as Zoom and Microsoft Teams which in turn puts added strain on your internet connection and leads to slower speeds for everyone.
Virtue Technologies use our vast experience and knowledge of the different network technologies to ensure we can bring you the right systems for your school, creating a scalable and future-proof solution backed by an end-to-end Service Level Agreement (SLA) and continual monitoring to maintain performance levels.
Break the (Fire)walls Down!
A firewall is extremely important in the overall security of your school’s network; it prevents malware infections and lets you specify which sites can be visited etc. It does this by using a set of defined rules and inspecting each packet of data that comes into and leaves your network to this list of rules; however your school’s firewall may be poorly configured reducing overall speed of your connection as the firewall struggles to inspect every data packet.
Virtue Technologies offer a single appliance firewall, eliminating the need to manage multiple solutions. This allows you to easily configure and monitor your firewall through an easy to use browser based system. The reporting system of this application can help you see usage patterns and make changes accordingly. A properly configured firewall will create less strain on the network, speeding things up while keeping your network secure.
Innovation, personalisation, optimisation
Virtue Technologies innovative approach to high speed internet service provision means we offer a completely bespoke service to each of our clients.
This allows us to create a reliable service that has the flexibility to grow as the demands of students and staff changes, whether coping with the extra demand that comes with home working, or the more data intensive applications being used, we will work with you to tailor a solution that offers optimal performance.
We can review your current service and make recommendations on how we can solve any speed issues with your network.
Contact us now to discuss how we can assist your school maintain the fastest internet connection speeds and keep your data secure.
