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 Making The Connection With ISDN Routers High-end ISDN routers should be able to host several BRI circuits and one or more PRI circuits. PRI allows up to 23 B channels (or connections) per circuit. An entire PRI circuit may have only one telephone directory number, and a good ISDN router will dynamically allocate those lines as calls come in and bounce channels back into the pool when calls terminate. PRI reduces the amount of hardware required to host large dial-in networks and provides consolidated management, control and security for dial-in connections. PRI can be expensive, however, so make sure it's a cost-effective option for your company. Lock the Door ISDN gives you several security options. Caller Line ID (CLI), a feature in BRI and PRI circuits, sends the call address of the caller via the ISDN "D" channel to the receiving device. This ensures the host router that the caller is authentic, while identifying which set of rules to apply to that user. Another security feature to look for in high-end routers is support for external security servers, such as Remote Authentication Dial-In User Service (RADIUS) servers or other token-based products. Th ese features will provide additional security for dial-in users, and can be used with CLI. Naturally, performance is a key factor when handling many dial-in users. A router must be able to handle the load of concurrent users. Router vendors may claim to support many connections, but the performance of some routers seriously deteriorates when half of the connections are in use. Whether you plan to add ISDN connections to your existing routers or use a dedicated ISDN router, it's important that the routers take advantage of ISDN's features. Additionally, routers at SOHO and corporate sites should support the same standards and security models and be easy to manage. Jeff Newman can be reached at jnewman@nwc.com. |
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Updated May 12, 1997 |
