What is it?
What is XAFOGAR?
XAFOGARés una iniciativa sorgida del Consell d’Alcaldes de la Garrotxa per accelerar la implantació d’unaxarxa de fibra òptica mancomunada a la Garrotxa. L’objectiu és que aquesta xarxa acabi arribant a qualsevolllar o empresa amb independència de la seva ubicació, potenciant la economia local i amb el diversitatd’alternatives comercials. A la iniciativa s’hi han adherit empreses, operadors locals i la Fundació guifi.net.
What is the Network of Commons or Joint Network?
És quan la infraestructura de xarxa en comptes de ser un actiu privat, és de tots. Això garanteix 2 coses:disposar d’una xarxa neutral i propiciar l’accés a la xarxa a operadors sense els elevats aranzels quenormalment estableixen els models convencionals. D’aquesta manera es permet que més operadors estiguininteressats a oferir els seus serveis a la xarxa, i que els usuaris tinguin la opció d’escollir d’entre diferentsalternatives: La que li mereixi més confiança i s’adapti millor a les necessitats de cadascú.
Who are we?
Who are we at XAFOGAR?
- From the field of Public Administration: the Council of Mayors of La Garrotxa and the Consortium of Environment and Public Health of La Garrotxa
- From the foundational field: The Foundation for the Open, Free and Neutral Network, guifi·net
- Des de l’àmbit d’Operadors locals i de proximitat: De moment hi ha Girona Fibra, Goufone, Xartic i Indaleccius.Com que XAFOGAR és una xarxa oberta, n’hi podran haver més en un futur. Els operadors aniranactualitzant les seves dades a la llista al directori de proveïdors de la web de guifi.net de la zona de laGarrotxa (https://guifi.net/ca/node/2439/suppliers).
- From the business field: The companies that collaborate in supporting XAFOGAR and provide financing, to whom we will try to give visibility.
- Des de l'àmbit personal: Les persones com a usuàries de la xarxa i clientes d'algun servei contractat a algun operador.
How does it work?
What is the route of the XAFOGAR fiber optic?
La xarxa surt dels domicilis i empreses per acabar en els punts de concentració comarcal. Des d’aquestspunts s’utilitza una xarxa de transport majorista, que actualment és la de la Generalitat de Catalunya, per tald’arribar al «punt neutre d’Internet de Catalunya» (CATnix) a Barcelona, que és des d'on es connecta amb laresta d'Internet.
How is the Joint Network guaranteed?
La Fundació Privada per a la xarxa Oberta Lliure i Neutral guifi.net s’encarrega de garantir que la xarxa es posaa disposició de tots els operadors en igualtat de condicions, al millor cost, de que s’apliquin bones pràctiquescomercials i de gestió, i dirimir conflictes entre operadors, assegurant que es manté mancomunada de maneraperpètua i evitant que algú se’n apropii.
What services does the fiber optic network offer?
Les característiques tècniques de la connexió de XAFOGAR són de, com a mínim, 1Gbps simètric fins al puntd’agregació (PCC). La capacitat real i l’ample de banda mínim garantit serà el que l’usuari contracti ambl’operador (vegeu la pregunta següent).
How are the contracted services guaranteed?
The real bandwidth available towards the Internet is affected by the aggregations. These points are managed so that they expand when 50% of their capacity is reached during peak consumption hours. Currently, the PCC of La Garrotxa is at a capacity of 1Gbps, and at CATNIX it is at a capacity of 30Gbps. Regarding latency, which measures time, it is about 15 milliseconds or less from the users' connection to the interconnection point with the rest of the Internet operators in Barcelona (CATNIX). Note that we avoid the term 'speed', as it can lead to confusion, for other more precise and specific terms, such as bandwidth capacity, available bandwidth, or guaranteed minimum, and latency.
What users finally contract with the operators, and what the operators offer you, must comply with these characteristics of the available capacity, which will improve over time and is information that you can request at any time.
For more details, or verifications of the available bandwidth, use the tools indicated by your provider: Keep in mind that few speed tests are effective beyond 100Mb symmetric.
Can I contract superior services to those offered?
Yes. Any service superior to the available capacities or not reflected in the operators' offers, you can request directly to the operators or to the Foundation, so that it can be evaluated and implemented by making the necessary improvements.
What service guarantees are offered?
All operators have service level commitments (SLA) that describe both the characteristics of the connection and a commitment to the response time in the event of an incident according to the contracted service, and attention during business hours and also at other times or holidays. The more demanding the commitment, the more expensive the service tends to be. The Foundation seeks to monitor compliance with these commitments to guarantee the quality and resilience of the network, you can always contact us in case of doubt.
Can I choose an operator?
Si. Mai s’obliga a escollir a un operador en concret, XAFOGAR tampoc exigeix permanències a ningú, ésl’usuari qui lliurement es vincula amb l’operador que li mereixi més confiança a través d’un contracte i una ofertaen concret.
I'm in a hurry to connect. When will it arrive?
The process of deploying fiber optics is complex, slow, and expensive, and once deployed, the process of connecting each new user is also slow. It also limits the financing capacity available. All this affects the pace of everything and means that it can take time. If you are in a hurry and do not want to wait, see the answer of 4.3.1 Priority when connecting.
How is it financed?
What financing need does XAFOGAR have?
Fer arribar la fibra fins a una empresa o una llar requereix una inversió d’uns 1.500€ o més. Això vol dir que perarribar a complir el nostre objectiu de connectar a tota la Garrotxa, cal un mínim de més de 10 milions d’euros,una quantitat que va mes enllà de la capacitat inversora que inicialment tenim tots els que hi col·laborem.
How do we solve the investment need to make it viable and sustainable?
Per resoldre la necessitat de finançament descrita en el punt anterior de forma sostenible, s’aplica una metodologia que recentment ha merescut the recognition by the European Commission as a best practice in the field of innovation in financing and developing new business models. Consisteix en aconseguir el total de la inversió combinant incentius per als inversors (com més n’hi hagin, més ràpid es podra desplegar), i per l’altre, garantir que gradualment es va generant reinversió a partir de l’activitat generada, i així, amb el pas del temps, aconseguir el total necessari que XAFOGAR té com a objectiu.
What incentives are there for investors?
4.3.1.- Priority when connecting.
The process of connecting users with fiber optics is complex, expensive, and slow, it will take time, we make an effort to connect first and prioritarily to those who help us finance the network the most or pay the cost of their connection, with respect to those who wait for their connection to be financed through the added fees that will be paid each month with the service (see the answer of 4.4 Is it mandatory to invest in XAFOGAR?).
4.3.2.- Tax deductions.
Since the Network infrastructure is for everyone and is accessible to everyone, it is formally guaranteed through the Foundation, which is a non-profit entity of general interest, that contributions to infrastructure and maintenance duly accredited can benefit from the tax deductions provided for in Law 49/2002 on the tax regime of non-profit entities and incentives for patronage.
4.3.3.- Return on investment.
For those who contribute beyond the cost of their connection, there are several mechanisms planned to return the investment to them, either with discounts on the service or with returns as users are incorporated.
4.3.4.- Acknowledgment.
Optionally for those who wish, in addition to all the previous incentives, there is a planned public and formal recognition for everyone who collaborates in making the deployment of XAFOGAR a reality for all the inhabitants of La Garrotxa.
Is it mandatory to invest in XAFOGAR?
No. As XAFOGAR develops, it is expected that there will be an offer for users to connect so that they will pay the total cost of the deployment of their connection through the fees and an addition to the service fee offered by the operators. However, the availability of this type of offer, that is, where the user is financed in whole or in part of the cost of their connection through additions to the service fee, may be limited, especially at the beginning, since as explained in previous questions, either we do not yet have enough financing capacity, or we are prioritizing investors: Then you will have to wait for this type of offer to be available.