IXPs make Canada’s internet faster, cheaper, and more resilient.

The number of Internet Exchange Points (IXP) in Canada is growing. Governments, universities, content providers, internet service providers (ISPs) and businesses have the opportunity to interconnect at made-in-Canada hubs to experience a faster, cheaper and more robust internet.

What is an Internet Exchange Point?

An IXP is a microcosm of the internet itself. It’s a key component of the internet that connects networks together. It is an ecosystem, where content providers can reach internet service providers, and where governments and businesses can serve end users directly by providing high-bandwidth and low-latency access at a lower cost than traditional transit. As the IXP grows, it will become attractive to global players, such as infrastructure and transit providers.

Canadian infrastructure for Canadian data

Many Canadian ISPs rely on north-to-south transit pipes that travel through the United States. It’s great that data can easily move across international borders, but when it needs to move between two Canadian points, it can be costly and inefficient. By peering at Canadian IXPs, data travelling between Canadian entities never needs to leave the country. This allows Canadians to interconnect with one another in a faster, more robust way.

The value of peering in Canada

  • Improve performance. Shave tens of milliseconds of latency between major cities.
  • Increase resiliency. IXPs reduce congestion, ensure uptime, and help stop cyberattacks at the border.
  • Access global content. ISPs and enterprises can gain low latency, low-cost access to major content providers
  • Reduce transit costs. Peering at IXPs can lower the average per-bit delivery costs by reducing the need for transit.
  • DNS resolution resilience. Resolving DNS queries is critical for modern IT infrastructure. Having diverse paths via transit and through the IXP to resolve .CA and other TLDs directly is important.

Peer with CIRA to resolve .CA

Canada’s country code top-level domain operator, CIRA peers with a number of network operators – including the majority of Canada’s IXPs -- to help resolve DNS queries close to the source.

By peering with CIRA’s DNS, you can ensure that your users have fast, reliable access to over 3 million .CA domains, more than 37,000 second level domains, and 50 top-level domains including .SE, .NU, .NL, and .CH.

Want to peer with us? Click here to get in touch.

Peering at Canada’s IXPs is simple

Becoming a member of an IXP requires an Autonomous System Number and a network connection from a router to an IXP switchport. IXPs may charge a monthly or annual port fee to connect..

You can join any of the IXPs listed below:

City

IXP

Metro Population

Contact Info

Toronto

TORIX

5,928,040

torix.ca

Montreal

QIX

4,098,927

qix.ca

Vancouver

VANIX

2,463,431            

vanix.ca

Calgary

YYCIX

1,392,609

yycix.ca

Ottawa-Gatineau

OGIX

1,323,783

ogix.ca

Edmonton

YEGIX

1,321,426

yegix.ca

Winnipeg

MBIX

778,489                

mbix.ca

Halifax

AIXP / HFXIX

403,390

aixp.ca

Saskatoon

YXEIX

295,095

yxeix.ca

Moncton

AIXP / MonctonIX

144,810

aixp.ca

Saint John

AIXP / SJIX

126,202

aixp.ca

Charlottetown

AIXP / PEIX

69,325

aixp.ca

Contact your local IXP to find out how to get connected.

Canada's Internet Exchange Points (IXPs)

How does CIRA support IXPs in Canada?

CIRA has long been an advocate and supporter of the expansion of Canadian IXPs. CIRA can help you get the information you need to connect to Canada’s IXPs and improve the integrity and reliability of internet for you and your clients. Any questions? Just send us an email.