VSAT

Short for very small aperture terminal, an earthbound station used in

satellite communications of data, voice and video signals, excluding
broadcast television. A VSAT consists of two parts, a transceiver that is
placed outdoors in direct line of sight to the satellite and a device that
is placed indoors to interface the transceiver with the end user's
communications device, such as a PC. The transceiver receives or
sends a signal to a satellite transponder in the sky. The satellite sends
and receives signals from a ground station computer that acts as a hub
for the system. Each end user is interconnected with the hub station
via the satellite, forming a star topology. The hub controls the entire
operation of the network. For one end user to communicate with
another, each transmission has to first go to the hub station that then
retransmits it via the satellite to the other end user's VSAT. VSAT can
handle up to 56 Kbps to 4 Mbps.
VSAT is a satellite communications system that serves home and business
users. VSAT is used both by home users who sign up with a large service such
as DirecPC and by private companies that operate or lease their own VSAT
systems.

Most VSAT networks are configured in one of these topologies:

 A star topology, using a central uplink site, such as a network operations

center (NOC), to transport data back and forth to each VSAT terminal via
satellite,
 A mesh topology, where each VSAT terminal relays data via satellite to
another terminal by acting as a hub, minimizing the need for a centralized
uplink site,
 A combination of both star and mesh topologies. Some VSAT networks
are configured by having several centralized uplink sites (and VSAT terminals
stemming from it) connected in a multi-star topology with each star (and each
terminal in each star) connected to each other in a mesh topology. Others
configured in only a single star topology sometimes will have each terminal
connected to each other as well, resulting in each terminal acting as a central
hub. These configurations are utilized to minimize the overall cost of the
network, and to alleviate the amount of data that has to be relayed through a
central uplink site (or sites) of a star or multi-star network.
Advantages

 Availability: VSAT services can be deployed anywhere having a clear view of the Clarke
Belt
 Diversity: VSAT provides a wireless link completely independent of the local
terrestrial/wire line infrastructure - especially important for backup or disaster recovery
services
 Deployability: VSAT services can be deployed in hours or even minutes (with auto-
acquisition antennas)
 Homogeneity: VSAT enables customers to get the same speeds and service level
agreements at all locations across their entire network regardless of location
 Acceleration: Most modern VSAT systems use onboard acceleration of protocols such
as TCP ("spoofing" of acknowledgement packets) and HTTP (pre-fetching of recognized
HTTP objects); this delivers high-quality Internet performance regardless of latency (see
below)
 Multicast: Most current VSAT systems use a broadcast download scheme (such
as DVB-S) which enables them to deliver the same content to tens or thousands of locations
simultaneously at no additional cost
 Security: Corporate-grade VSAT networks are private layer-2 networks over the air

Disadvantages

 Latency: Since they relay signals off a satellite in geosynchronous orbit 36,000 km
(22,300 miles) above the Earth, VSAT links are subject to a minimum latency of
approximately 500 milliseconds round-trip. This makes them a poor choice for "chatty"
protocols or applications such as online gaming
 Encryption: The acceleration schemes used by most VSAT systems rely upon the ability
to see a packet's source/destination and contents; packets encrypted via VPN defeat this
acceleration and perform slower than other network traffic
 Environmental concerns: VSATs are subject to signal attenuation due to weather
("Rain Fade"); the effect is typically far less than that experienced by one-way TV systems
(such as DirecTV, DISH Network or British Sky Broadcasting) that use smaller dishes, but is
still a function of antenna size and transmitter power and frequency band
 Installation: VSAT services require an outdoor antenna installation with a clear view of
the sky (southern sky if the location is in the northern hemisphere or northern sky if the
 location is in the southern hemisphere); this makes installation in skyscraper urban
environments or locations where a customer does not have "roof rights" problematic

Future applications

Advances in technology have dramatically improved the price/performance equation of FSS

(Fixed Service Satellite) over the past five years. New VSAT systems are coming online using Ka
band technology that promise higher bandwidth rates for lower costs.

FSS satellite systems currently in orbit have a huge capacity with a relatively low price structure.
FSS satellite systems provide various applications for subscribers,
including: telephony, fax, television, high speed data communication services, Internet access,
Satellite News Gathering (SNG), Digital Audio Broadcasting (DAB) and others. These systems
are applicable for providing various high-quality services because they create efficient
communication systems, both for residential and business users.

COMPONENTS OF VSAT
• The IDU (In-Door Unit) is a satellite modem which converts IP signals into
radio signals.
• The ODU (Out-Door Unit) consists of Dish antenna, up converter, and
amplifier.