Analysing the current state of the Uganda Internet Exchange Point (UIXP).

By Jimmy Drasi | This brief has been produced as part of the Internet Society 2020 Internet Society Chapters Training Program. At the beginning of the training, we were presented with a slide about the internet infrastructure. This is one of our main target areas for this training. To secure Global Routing you have to be well knowledgeable with your Internet Infrastructure especially of your local community. This will enable you to apply the different practices rightly and integrate the MANRS initiative effectively if need be.

The internet infrastructure is a branch of the vast internet ecosystem. When talking about the internet infrastructure we tend to focus on different things and one of those things is its design i.e. its architecture. The internet architecture is composed of different components and that includes the internet service providers (ISPs), internet exchange points (IXPs) and content Delivery network (CDN). An Internet Exchange Point (IX OR IXP) is a physical infrastructure allowing various Network operators (ISP, CDN) to exchange internet traffic between their networks of Autonomous Systems (AS) thanks to so-called “peering” agreements.

This brief focuses on the Uganda Internet Exchange Point (UIXP) (https://www.uixp.co.ug), highlighting its background and current state. The UIXP is the only known internet exchange point in the country. The UIXP is a private not-for-profit company founded in 2001 by Charles Musisi, Badru Ntege, and Hope Mugaga with support from the Uganda Communications Commission (UCC) and others in the local technology community. Its mission is to improve Internet connectivity (high-speed internet) within Uganda and the East African region.

Some other objectives of starting the UIXP include creating a reliable and resilient IP traffic exchange facility for both Uganda and external entities, allowing them to route IP traffic efficiently thereby providing faster, more reliable and lower-latency Internet access for their customers. Creating new local Internet bandwidth in the local market. Improve reliability and performance leading to cost benefit for the end user. To provide redundancy for peers and consumers and finally to spur completion among ISPs leading to drop in prices for consumers. The organization turned over to new management in 2014.

Background.

The Uganda Internet Exchange Point (UIXP) began as a project to get existing internet service providers (ISPs) in the country to interconnect and exchange traffic locally, hence keeping local internet traffic within the country. 

Ideally, without an IXP, an email from a customer on one local ISP would have to go over slow, expensive satellite links to say, the United States of America before coming back to the recipient on another local ISP who may even be sitting across the street. This international transiting normally increases the cost of connectivity and distorts the development of local content, including the advancement in the use of the internet for real-time applications like video streaming.

The Uganda Communications Commission (UCC) had a meeting of existing ISPs in 2001, and this was followed by a series of other meetings held in two categories; one was a managerial/executive committee and the other a technical committee. After extensive discussions, an operational model was agreed, and a grant from the United Kingdom’s Department for International Development (DFID) enabled the purchase of various equipment that included, uninterruptible power, equipment rack, cabling and office supplies. The Network Start-up Resource Centre (NSRC) based in the University of Oregon also donated a switch that is used to interconnect all the providers. 

Despite this intervention, the UIXP did not commence operations mainly due to differences among stakeholders over the way it would be managed and how to make it viable and self-sustaining in the end. A consensus to eliminate charges for peering was enacted, and the Commission decided to offer rent-free space inclusive of utilities (power, cooling, equipment and security). Accordingly, there were no membership dues for connecting to the IXP or payment for the exchange of traffic. Members were each responsible for maintaining their link to the IXP. The technical issues were handled jointly between the members of the IXP.

The ISPs at the time proceeded to register the ISP Association (ISPA) as a non-profit organization to oversee the operations of the UIXP.  The UIXP was to operate under self-regulation with the Commission as an observer member, ensuring a balance of interests of all stakeholders in the internet community (government, ISPs and the consumers). 

The UIXP has for a period, been depending on volunteers that are not necessarily representatives of ISPs and maintained using donations from members and well-wishers. Over the years, the traffic carried, and the number of ISPs connecting to the UIXP has grown.

Current Situation

The situation surrounding the UIXP is the ever-growing interest from the government to take over the company. Today, the UIXP has a total number of 31 members subscribed to its operation. All these members have their unique assigned ASN, IPV4 and IPV6 prefixes.

Several attempts have been launched by the government  to try and own this company not only because it wants to nationalize it but also for political reasons such as aims to avoid duplication, censor and control the internet and also because the government plays a central role in providing infrastructure. 

Another major situation was in the introduction of charges that started January 1, 2018. The reason for this was since 2001, they provided these services free in an effort to develop the Internet ecosystem in Uganda. In order to do this, they had to rely entirely on volunteer staff and donations. However, demand for their service grew substantially over time, and has now reached a scale where operational requirements can no longer be sustainable. In other words, UIXP could no longer provide a reliable service and satisfy the growing needs of the networks that rely on them without a regular source of monetary income.

Role and operation

The UIXP situated in Kampala Uganda, uses a media type Ethernet and a supported protocol Unicast IPV4 and IPV6. Its protocol IPV4 has the prefix 196.223..25.0/25 and protocol IPV6 has a prefix of 2001:43f8:130::/112. It has 31 members registered under it.

UIXP has grown and experienced a problem of overly controlled practice of the facilities and resources available. In 2001, when the UIXP started with five peers, it was exchanging 5MB per second of data. It has now grown to 31 peers who are transferring over and  over 7 Gbps of Internet traffic on a daily basis.

Normally at an Internet exchange, point network operators manually configure and maintain BGP sessions with every other network. However, this process can be quite laborious, especially as more networks join the exchange and the number of required BGP sessions grows.

 As an alternative, UIXP offers a Route Server service, which automates this process. Networks that establish BGP sessions with the Route Servers will automatically peer with all other networks that use the Route Servers. This simplifies the process of peering and significantly reduces network management overhead related to the IXP.

This service is optional and does not require its members to use it. Network operators are free to establish bilateral BGP sessions with any or all other networks if they wish.

UIXP operates on two different Bird route servers hosted on two different physical hardware;

Route server#1 ASN-37386, IPV4-196.223.25.11, IPV6-2001:43F8:0130::11

Route server#2 ASN-37386, IPV4-196.223.11.12, IPV6-2001:43F8:0130::12

Here is a systematic guide aimed at network operators who wish to connect to the Uganda Internet exchange Point.

  • Acquire an Autonomous System Number (ASN) and Public IP address space from AFRINIC or another Regional Internet Registry (RIR).
  • Send an introductory message through their online contact form, which includes your ASN and other basic data about your organization; also indicate which services you wish to receive.
  • Review and submit a signed copy of their Participation Agreement along with a Service Order Form either by e-mail (preferred) or by post to our mailing address.
  • Meet with them to tour the facility and discuss deployment plans.
  • Submit payment and extend your network to the facility either via fiber or a wireless radio link. It should be noted that they offer rack-space available for peering related equipment, and each peer is eligible for 2RU free of charge.
  • Connect your network equipment to their switching equipment using the specific port and IPv4/6 addresses that are assigned you. You will also be assigned a username and password for their online customer portal.
  • Optionally configure an IPv4 and Ipv6 BGP session with their route servers and/or work to establish bilateral BGP sessions with other networks at the exchange.

Conclusion

The UIXP remains a non-to profit organization despite the charges that were introduced a few years back. Excess income must be invested back to the company by law. Since the introduction of the UIXP, it has greatly improved on the internet connectivity between different ISPs and eased all kinds of hardships related to the internet related.

Internet Society Uganda Chapter has not fully integrated the MANRS initiative around as one of their top operations. We do not have any probably registered possible future clients to the Manrs initiative and from this research, there is no signal that UIXP is a member of this MANRS initiative but it can surely be a future potential client. As an IXP, it totally qualifies as a target area for the ISOC MANRS initiative.