Will it work?
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From reading various posts FAQs etc.. I see the answer as yes. I'm just curious if it will work well or if anybody would see a better way I suppose.
Right now we are based in the US and have 4 T1 lines coming in. 1 from covad, 1 from megath, 2 from level 3. We have a block of 5 addresses coming from each company. Covad/Megapath are both bundled/bonded T1 lines giving us 3mbps per connection. (Covad = 3mbps, Megapath = 3mbps) Level 3's T1s are not bundled
We're currently using the Covad/Megapath connections to serve data between us and 11 other subsidiaries. Covad/Megapath are intended as a primary / secondary set up. The two T1s from level 3 are load balancing to give us 3mbps for internet use.
So if the west coast wants internet access, it's CA > MD > Internet, literally traveling through 2,600 miles (at least by road, I'm sure much more by copper/fiber) to access the internet.
It gets better. Currently If the same office, wants to send/receive a file from Texas… Take a guess... CA > MD > TX.
So what do I want to do? Interconnect offices that communicate frequently. Create a hardware fail over solution in the central office (here) since so much relies on us. Do a better job of load balancing the level 3 internet connections. Maybe load balance between Megapath and Covad for the "data" lines. <<< Being the 11 other offices rely on this connect a majority of the week, downtime is a bit harsh.
My "concern" is creating a spider web of offices inter-connecting via ipsec/openvpn. How many VPN connections can 1 box handle? I assume it's hardware based in terms of load, but having lets say each office connect to one another create a problem? How would the firewalls know the shortest distance from point A to point B?
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Routing protocol? ospf? bgp?
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I saw the package for BGP, but I haven't heard of OSPF before. We're currently using BGP for the level 3 T1s. I see under packages OpenOSPFD is listed for 1.2.1, is this in production for other companies using 2.0? If it isn't apparent already, I do not have a very deep knowledge of networking, I barely have my eyes above the water :-)
Well after using the infamous search button, I believe I see where quite a few use it including Jim P. Very awesome.