Frequently Asked Questions
Q: What is RocketFailover and Why do we need it?
A: RocketFailover provides automatic Internet connection failover, so whenever your primary Internet connection fails your network traffic transparently fails over to a secondary connection. When your primary service is restored, Internet traffic automatically fails back to your primary connection. RocketFailover also includes iStatus® which provides continuous monitoring of all of your connections, provides email alerts whenever troubles occur, and data usage alerts as needed. iStatus is an IoT (Internet of Things) appliance that provides secure monitoring of all connections 24/7.
Q: Does RocketFailover include 4G LTE/5G data service?
A: Yes - There are several versions of RocketFailover and they include everything you need in easy-to-buy, easy-to-install packages. RocketFailover is designed to be simple to buy and simple to use. It provides all the hardware, cabling, software, 4G LTE/5G data service, and monitoring - making it simple for you to add a backup Internet connection to any business. LTE is technically capable of 100 Mbps, however, in most locations across the United States, you can expect to receive 15 Mbps to 20 Mbps of throughput. With LTE-A service those speeds can double. We offer plans that include static IP addresses for businesses that require a static IP address.
Q: What is the typical speed of a 4G LTE connection?
A: The national average is 36 Mbps download and 15 Mbps upload based on an impartial survey.
Q: How does data pooling work?
A: Data pooling is very beneficial to businesses with multiple locations. It helps each location within the business acquire the data they need while also keeping the business's overall costs down. The data you acquire for your business can divide that data among your locations. For example, if your business has 6 GB of data overall, and 3 locations, you can divide the 6 GB evenly among your locations, so each gets 2 GB, or divide it unevenly to best meet each locations’ needs (i.e. 1 GB, 3 GB, & 2 GB).
Q: What's the benefit of data pooling?
A: Data pooling helps businesses avoid overage fees. This is possible because overage fees are applied only when a business goes over its total data limit (i.e. your business has 6 GB, but used 7 GB); it is not applied based on individual locations going over their limits. For example, say your business has 6 GB overall, and you divide that evenly between your 3 locations, giving each 2 GB. If your locations use 1 GB, 3 GB, & 2 GB respectively (6 GB total), your second location went over its limit, but thanks to data pooling your overall business did not; thus preventing overage fees and saving your business money.
Q: What are iStatus® and ConnectionValidation™?
A: iStatus is the monitoring, alerting, and customer dashboard component of RocketFailover. iStatus provides a view of all of a customer's locations to identify issues easily. iStatus also tracks issues and cellular data usage, and generates email alerts. ConnectionValidation is a patented technology that concurrently monitors all of a customer's Internet connections so that a customer can receive a notification when any of their Internet connections experience downtime.
Q: Why is RocketFailover better than a hotspot or USB-based cellular device?
A: USB-based cellular devices are consumer-grade; they frequently go into a sleep mode that takes minutes to wake up from, and they often do not work reliably with most firewalls used by businesses. USB-based devices also rarely, if ever, get security updates or patches, making them more susceptible to viruses or hacking. USB devices do not provide a reliable failover solution in the best cases and provide no monitoring of failover events. USB devices will only work with a select number of routers and do not support networks with diverse needs or networks without a dual-WAN router. Lastly, because these are consumer-grade devices, there is little support available for them.
Hotspot devices are also consumer-grade and are designed to allow a small number of devices to connect to WiFi. They are not a workable solution for failover in a network with wired and wireless devices and would not provide automatic failover, nor monitor failover events. Once again, because these are consumer-grade, there is little support available.
RocketFailover provides Internet failover using enterprise-grade equipment that is managed and maintained by Akative's expert support team. RocketFailover devices have three different deployment methods that support any network (see Question 1 about which type of RocketFailover plan you need). RocketFailover devices have better cellular connectivity than consumer-grade devices like USB-based devices and hotspots. RocketFailover also includes patent-pending and industry-leading monitoring services that provide alerts and connection validation for both the primary and failover connections.
Q: Can I only failover part of my network traffic to RocketFailover?
A: Yes. This is common in facilities that have guest WiFi and other networks that businesses do not want to failover to a cellular connection. There are multiple ways to accomplish this, and your Akative sales representative can assist you in achieving the desired outcome.
Q: Is RocketFailover compatible with any firewall/router/gateway?
A: Yes. Akative's three deployment methods support both single and dual/multiple-WAN gateways and are brand agnostic. In addition, Akative offers RocketFailover Complete Security™ with a managed firewall included.
Q: What are the primary versions of RocketFailover and how do they differ?
A: All the standard versions of RocketFailover include all necessary hardware, cabling, 4G LTE/5G data service, monitoring, and support. RocketFailover comes in three basic versions:
Autopilot™ The most simple version of RocketFailover, Autopilot can be installed in almost any business network. Autopilot allows you to use your existing firewall with no or minimal configuration changes, even if it doesn’t support multiple Internet connections. Autopilot allows you to continue to manage your own firewall and network security, but delivers a solution which is easy-to-install and highly cost effective.
Fusion™ Is designed for multi-location businesses who have a dedicated IT department. It’s slightly less expensive at-scale than Autopilot but requires that you have a firewall which is capable of providing the failover functionality (typically called a dual-WAN firewall).
Complete Security™ Is a custom solution which is sized-to-fit different organizations. Complete is a fully managed solution that includes 4G LTE/5G data connectivity and an enterprise-grade firewall which is sized appropriately for your organization.
For more details, please visit our Solution Comparison page.
Q: Who installs RocketFailover?
A: In most cases, a customer will perform the onsite install themselves with the remote assistance of our deployment and support team. Onsite installation is available for a fee from Akative; ask your sales representative for more information.
Q: How do I install RocketFailover?
A: RocketFailover is easy to install. Depending on your plan, a typical installation takes anywhere from 10 to 60 minutes. An installation guide will be provided upon purchase, and our support team is available by phone and email to assist you as well.
Q: Which type of RocketFailover plan do I need?
A: See the flow chart below; follow the path indicated based on your answers to the questions about your business' network equipment and requirements.
