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Partner Interconnect, a high-bandwidth, private network connectivity option for business customers of Google’s cloud platform, is now generally available.
Starting this week, organizations can use the option to connect their data centers and on-premise resources to Google’s cloud infrastructure from a Google partner location or network. With general availability, beta customers of Partner Interconnect will now be covered by Google’s standard service level agreements and pricing terms.
Partner Interconnect is designed for organizations that want direct physical connectivity to Google’s Cloud Platform, but are geographically distant from Google’s points of presence.
It is also aimed at companies that want high-bandwidth connectivity but do not require or cannot afford Google’s higher-priced 10Gbps wholly dedicated circuits. With Partner Interconnect, organizations can purchase partial circuits ranging from 50Mbps to 10Gbps.
“With Partner Interconnect, you can connect to GCP where and how you want to,” Google technical program manager Sankari Venkataraman wrote in a blog June 15.
Google announced Partner Interconnect this April. The option is available to Google’s cloud customers around the world. The company has so far teamed up with some 15 service providers under the effort including AT&T, Verizon, Orange, Softbank and Tata.
All of these companies already have direct physical connections to Google’s network that they will now make available for organizations to connect to Google. Their networks have been certified as fully ready to handle connections from customer networks to Google’s cloud.
Companies connected to Google’s cloud network will have access to advanced Google networking technologies, such as its Virtual Private Cloud (VPC), across global regions, without the need for distinct connections, the company has previously noted.
Service providers that are participating in Partner Interconnect provide either Layer 2 (data) or Layer 3 (network) connectivity services, or both. Organizations that sign up for Layer 2 services are responsible for configuring and establishing some aspects of the connectivity between their infrastructure and the cloud. The partner takes care of all configuration-related issues for Layer 3 services, according to Google.
Google will charge on a monthly basis for interconnects and for each VLAN attachment or virtual point-to-point tunnel between an on-premises network and a single region on Google’s network. Prices will vary depending on the VLAN attachment capacity. A 50Mbps attachment for instance starts at $39 per month per attachment. Google will charge $1,700 per month per attachment for a 10Gbps VLAN attachment.
The company also will charge for egress traffic from a Google Virtual Private Cloud network through a partner interconnect. In addition, organizations that opt for Partner Internet may have to pay the service provider for using their network and other services.
Google has recommended several topologies for non-critical applications and for production apps. For businesses that follow its recommended topologies when establishing a Partner Interconnect link, Google will provide a 99.99 percent or 99.9 percent availability guarantee, for the connectivity between the partner network and Google’s network, Venkataraman said.