What does failover mean?

Routers with a failover feature are indispensable for organizations that want 100% uptime. These routers automatically switch to an alternative connection if the main connection fails. For example, to 4G / 5G if the fixed internet line drops. Or from SIM 1 to SIM 2 if the mobile network fails.

4G routers with failover function: never again internet downtime

As a retail store, restaurant or petrol station it is unthinkable that people will no longer be able to pay by PIN. Fewer and fewer people have money in their pockets to pay for groceries, dinner or a full tank of gas.

And now that almost everyone works in the cloud, it is every company’s nightmare if their employees cannot access their files because of an internet outage. Orders are no longer processed, bookings cannot be made. Employees quickly leave for home, because they have internet there.

4G back-up restaurant
Back-Up

How do 4G routers with failover feature work?

Most routers with the failover feature offer both internet via a landline (WAN port) and via 3G, 4G or 5G (SIM card). Many routers with the failover feature also offer internet over WiFi (WAW) and have 2 SIM slots (dual SIM).

They can be set to automatically switch to another internet connection if the main connection fails. For example to 4G if the fixed internet line fails. Or from SIM 1 to SIM 2 if the network leaves something to be desired. As soon as the main connection is working again, they switch back to it as quickly as possible, this is called fallback.

Use as a main router or as an back-up router

Routers with a failover feature can be used as either a main router or an back-up router. When used as the main router, no other router is needed. The router meets the customer’s needs in all aspects and provides the business with internet, secure connections, WiFi and any other options.

When routers with failover functionality are used as back-up routers, they are linked to the main router and are “in front of” it, for example. This can be useful if the main router better meets the customer’s needs and has, for example, more LAN ports or VPN connections than the router with failover function. In this case, the backup router only comes into play if the main connection fails and it needs to make an alternative connection.

Dual SIM for even more reliable connections

The internet connection can also fail due to a bad network. In that case, a router with dual SIM offers a solution. In fact, you can set it up to do just that:

  • Switch to another provider as soon as the network breaks down.
  • Switch from SIM 1 to SIM 2 when the data credit on SIM 1 runs out.

There are also routers that support 4 SIM cards, which is useful if your customer needs to switch a lot, for example in international transport.

dual sim

Out of band management: your main router always reachable and manageable

If you attach a router with out of band management (OOB) to your main router, your main router remains reachable and manageable, even if, for example, a configuration error has been made and it no longer functions.

Out of band management via the Cradlepoint ARC CBA850

The Cradlepoint CBA850 is a router from Capestone that offers out of band management. With this device, it goes like this: if you have the CBA850 and the main router connected via their serial ports, you can always get “into” the main router via this connection and fix the problem. Even if you are hundreds of miles from your routers. Through the cloud management platform of the CBA850 you can then remotely control the main router.

cradlepoint cba850

Get in touch with our engineers

Direct contact

Capestone bv
Haagse schouwweg 6
2332KG Leiden
Nederland

Subscribe to our newsletter