Stay online when the broadband fails
Backup Internet for Business
When the internet goes down, so do your phones, card machines and cloud systems. We add a second connection, Starlink or 4G/5G, that takes over automatically, so your team keeps working.
What stops when the internet does
Card machines and tills
Payments stop when the internet does. A backup keeps taking money during a broadband fault.
Phones and Teams calls
Business phones now run over the internet. Without a backup, a broadband fault means no calls in or out.
Cloud systems
Microsoft 365, your CRM, booking system and accounts software all need the internet to work at all.
Faults take days to fix
Broadband repairs, cable damage and street works can take several days. A backup keeps you working while you wait.
Choosing the backup connection
Starlink
Internet by satellite, completely separate from the cables in your street. Ideal where mobile signal is weak or you need more speed. We set it up once the dish is mounted.
4G or 5G
A mobile broadband router with a business SIM. Quick to add and lower cost, and works well where mobile signal is strong.
A second broadband line
A line from a different provider, ideally over a different route into the building, for sites that need the most capacity.
What's included
- A router or firewall that takes two internet connections and switches between them automatically
- Your broadband and backup connected, with your provider's router in modem mode where possible
- One Wi-Fi and office network that stays the same whichever connection is working
- Phones, card machines, VPNs and cloud systems checked on both connections
- Alerts so you know when the backup has taken over
- Tested by unplugging the main connection before we leave
Backup internet works best as part of a wider plan. See our managed IT support, backup and disaster recovery and business landline switch-off pages.
Plan your backup internet
Tell us about your office or site. We'll reply by email, usually within a few hours, with the options that suit it.
Backup internet: common questions
A second internet connection, such as Starlink, 4G/5G or another broadband line, connected to a router that switches to it automatically if your main broadband fails. Staff, phones and card machines carry on working, usually after a pause of a few seconds.
4G or 5G is usually cheaper and quicker to add, and works well where mobile signal is strong. Starlink is better where signal is weak, more speed is needed, or you want a backup that doesn't depend on local phone masts.
They can. Internet-based phone systems, including Teams Phone and most hosted phone systems, keep working on the backup connection if they're set up through the router that switches over. Calls in progress may need to reconnect.
We don't do the physical mounting. Once the dish is installed, by your landlord's contractor or a local installer, we set up the router, the network and the automatic switch-over, and make sure everything works on both connections.
Usually within a few seconds to a minute of the main connection failing. Most people notice a brief pause rather than an outage, and the router switches back automatically when the broadband returns.