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HFN: Preparing for the Future

By July 29, 2021February 17th, 2022Connections, HFN

Upgrading Our Network Now to Keep You on the Cutting Edge

Highlands Fiber Network (HFN) is proud to be one of the earliest fiber communities, regarded as a pioneer across the industry. Since the beginning, the network has received numerous upgrades to maintain its quality, so the network can continue to deliver state-of-the-art service. While the upgrades have been significant, most improvements go unnoticed.

Most telecom and communication companies wait for things to break before considering a replacement; however, HFN constantly strives to provide residents with best-in-class service reliability while staying on the cutting edge of future technology. With this in mind, HFN has been upgrading our fiber network so it’s ready for the future.

To prepare the HFN fiber network for the future, our team is upgrading portions of the physical fiber throughout the community. Our team has started upgrading new areas of multimode fiber to single-mode fiber, which will allow for future scalability. Fiber upgrades help with the stability of service to homes and can provide faster speed options in the future. In addition, we have started retrofitting one of the cooling systems in our original data centers, making sure systems stay cool and stable for internet service without interruptions.

HFN upgraded our network’s primary switches to allow more direct connections from our customers to the internet. This has aided in simplifying network complexity and streamlined bandwidth delivery. A more direct path through our network means lower latency to the world. In simple terms, this means more responsive gaming, less buffering on Zoom calls, and faster/clearer streaming.

We now deploy new switches for customer connectivity in our data centers. This provides for better density and higher capacity, allowing HFN to scale into the future with faster throughput with a smaller physical footprint, and less power consumption. HFN has also started to deploy new internet gateways into customer homes, which will help provide a more resilient network connection.

In total, HFN has nearly $2 million set aside for fiber upgrades as part of our plans to make the network ready for future speed offerings. HFN will continue to strive to be a leader and is continuously taking steps today to make sure we are ready to take the leap when our residents (and the technology) are ready for it.

Jeremy Fallt is the HFN general manager and a Central Park resident.