Amsterdam Internet Exchange

[Boudewijn Nederkoorn <]

The Amsterdam Internet Exchange: the place to interconnect

The Amsterdam Internet Exchange (AMS-IX) is a historical place for 
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) to interconnect. The AMS-IX is 
used by ISPs to exchange traffic with each other at a national or 
international level. In order to accomodate the growing number of 
ISPs looking for interconnection at the AMS-IX services are being 
restructured. In addition to the currently supported ethernet 
connections, switched ethernet and FDDI facilities are being 
introduced.
Any ISP with an arrangement for traffic exchange with any of the 
ISPs already connected to the AMS-IX can connect to the AMS-IX. 
The Internet Service Providers that are currently connected to 
the Amsterdam Internet Exchange are: Ebone, EuropaNET, EUnet, 
NLnet and SURFnet. Several other ISPs are currently in the 
process of becoming connected to the Amsterdam Internet Exchange. 

Since the end of 1993 the forerunner of the AMS-IX is in use, 
better known as "IBR-LAN". This ethernet spans the computer rooms 
of SARA, CWI and NIKHEF, all located in Watergraafsmeer in Amsterdam. 
As of February 1994 the Amsterdam Internet Exchange was formally 
established. 
Due to the growing of the Internet and, hence, the growing number 
of ISPs looking for an interconnection point that meets todays 
quality standards, new technology such as switched ethernet and 
FDDI is introduced for the Amsterdam Internet Exchange. Through 
the use of the new technology inside the AMS-IX, new connections 
can be accomodated for at the location of the layer-2 equipment 
which is at SARA. 

More information (e.g. about costs) can be found via WWW at the URL:
http://www.ams-ix.net/

Do you have questions? Please contact:

SURFnet bv
Network Services
P.O. Box 19035
NL - 3501 DA Utrecht
The Netherlands

E-mail: netmaster@localhost
Phone:  +31 302 305 305
Fax:    +31 302 305 329