As governments and service providers focus on providing internet access to more people, the shortage of IPv4 addresses is becoming a bigger issue. There just aren’t enough IPv4 addresses for the current number of internet users, let alone the increasing number of users being added every day.
What about IPv6? It was developed to replace IPv4, but the high costs and time requirements needed to migrate to IPv6 have made it impractical for most service providers. So the demand for IPv4 addresses remains.
To meet this demand, providers are increasingly adopting Carrier-Grade Network Address Translation (CGNAT). It enables a single router to act as an agent between the internet and a local private network, so that one public IPv4 address can represent hundreds, or even thousands of devices within the private network. By sharing a public IP address among many private IP addresses, CGNAT limits the number of public IP addresses an organization has to use, conserving its IPv4 addresses.
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Traditional CGNAT Solutions
CGNAT solutions have traditionally been sold by vendors that combined CGNAT software with their proprietary hardware. Of course, these “closed-systems” result in high costs and vendor lock-in. Traditional CGNAT solutions have mainly targeted large carriers, who can afford the costs associated with proprietary systems. For regional and local service providers, these high costs have been a major drawback to purchasing CGNAT.
A Tailor-Made CGNAT Solution for Service Providers
For service providers frustrated by legacy CGNAT systems, EPS Global is pleased to offer a CGNAT bundle with netElastic’s leading CGNAT software running on Lanner Electronics advanced network appliances.
netElastic CGNAT
netElastic's software-based CGNAT is a cost-effective alternative to traditional solutions. It’s built on high-performance virtual router technology, including a scalable software architecture that delivers a high-level of translation performance while supporting a broad range of additional routing capabilities.
netElastic CGNAT also has built-in support for application gateways to ensure applications will run continuously and transparently with CGNAT. Using DPDK and advanced packet processing, netElastic CGNAT can achieve near line-rate throughput on 10G, 25G, and 40G interfaces. It’s also highly scalable (scales by cores) and can deliver 5 Gbps to well over 300 Gbps per server. CGNAT also supports up to 4 million NAT sessions.
Lanner Electronics
Lanner is a world-leading hardware manufacturer of advanced network appliances, which are known for their reliable and customizable computing platforms with high quality and performance.
The CGNAT Bundle from EPS Global includes netElastic CGNAT software running on the Lanner NCA-5520 Whitebox Solutions™ network appliance. The Lanner NCA-5520, powered by Intel® Xeon® processors, features optimized computing power and virtualization capacity in a compact 1U form factor. It delivers numerous advanced networking features for maximizing packet processing efficiency.
CGNAT Benefits Without the High Costs
The combination of netElastic CGNAT software and Lanner network appliances will enable service providers to realize the many benefits of CGNAT with a cost-effective, high-performance solution. No need to try to mix and match CGNAT software with the appropriate hardware. EPS Global has already done that for you. And we’re also providing discounted pricing on the CGNAT bundle.
A Focus on Service Providers
EPS Global is focused on helping service providers reduce costs and increase margins, while maintaining product quality. Our new CGNAT bundle with netElastic and Lanner is a perfect example of that.
Talk to us today about the CGNAT bundle or check out the bundle for yourself here. Now, some of your technical questions answered…
Frequently Asked Questions
What Service Provider problems does GCNAT solve?
Smaller regional and many international Service Providers are finding IPv4 addresses scarce, and when they can find them in exchanges, they’re often polluted and always expensive. Moving entirely to IPv6 is still not possible without alienating many websites and legacy CPE, so it’s simply not an option. netElastic GCNAT allows Service Providers to share their existing IPv4 addresses among a much larger population of subscribers, allowing them to grow their business with lower costs and risks.
How many subscribers does netElastic GCNAT support?
netElastic GCNAT supports up to 4 million concurrent TCP sessions. The average household might use 100 or more sessions at any given time, so if we average to around 200, netElastic GCNAT would support 20,000 subscribers. Naturally, if you expect your subscribers to use more sessions, netElastic GCNAT will support fewer subscribers.
What if I need to support more subscribers?
You can use more than one netElastic GCNAT instance to accommodate different IP Pools and support as many subscribers are you would ever need. These instances can be either a new GCNAT instance running in a VM on a properly- sized server, a second socket on a dual socket server, or a whole new scale-out server.
What are the licensing options for netElastic GCNAT?
You start with a netElastic vRouter license which is available in versions from 10G to 160G. Then you add a CGNAT license for every 4 million sessions you require.
Can I just get an appliance?
Certainly. netElastic offers GCNAT appliances based on well-known Lanner servers. Authorized netElastic partners can provide even more tailored solutions, allowing you to acquire appliances that you’ll know are supported, reliable and purpose built.
On which hardware does netElastic GCNAT run?
netElastic vRouters run on Intel Xeon x86 servers with Intel X710 NIC adapters, including many from Advantech, Dell, Lanner, Portwell and SuperMicro.
What about redundancy?
The netElastic GCNAT can be deployed in an N+1 arrangement to ensure uptime in the event of hardware failure. It also supports VRRP.
Does netElastic GCNAT support NAT64?
No. The CGNAT vRouter was designed specifically for NAT44 to translate between private and public IPv4 addresses. It will not translate to or from IPv6. We recommend that ISPs keep IPv6 native and use NAT on IPv4.
What about SIP or FTP Traffic?
The netElastic GCNAT router support ALG or Application Layer Gateway functionality so packets that embed IP Addresses can be properly delivered while keeping tight security in the network.
Does netElastic GCNAT support Hairpinning?
Hairpinning or NAT Loopback allows hosts with NATed addresses to communicate using the external IP. This is not currently supported. Users, such as some gamers who need hairpinning support, should be given IPv6 or private IPv4 addresses.
Does the netElastic GCNAT support DHCP or Subscriber Management?
netElastic GCNAT is designed solely to translate IPv4 traffic. For advanced services such as BNG or BRAS, netElastic has a BNG add-on license. Please reach out to your netElastic Partner or Account Manager.
What if I want to upgrade to a full BNG in the future?
Easily done. It’s as simple as acquiring a vBNG license and applying it to your netElastic GCNAT router, assuming you have adequate hardware resources.
What about monitoring and management?
Yes. The optional netElastic web based Manager includes monitoring, performance trending, alerts, as well as Pool allocation tools. If you prefer a CLI, our ConfD CLI is very familiar. We also provide a NETCONF API so you can manage CGNAT functions with your own tools.
What Support is offered?
netElastic provides ongoing support for a year for all vRouter licenses which includes all updates to the vR and any feature licenses such as CGNAT. Extra years of support may be purchased up front. Installation and configuration services are available as a professionals service engagement with either netElastic or an Authorized partner.
Why choose EPS?
We sit at the center of the networking ecosystem, bringing together hardware and open source software to provide turnkey solutions for all Service Provider use cases, allowing you to accelerate the delivery of new network services while cutting CapEx and OpEx.
Global Reach. Local Presence.
We give you access to a global supply supported by local teams in 28 cities in 16 countries.
Stock Availability.
Switches, optics, cables and more stocked in our regional distribution hubs, minimizing lead times.
Pre-sales Technical Advice.
Engineers to support your network design, hardware configuration and deployment to ensure success.
Source your entire network solution, including software, in one place, and save yourself time and money. Talk to us today.