Ethernet Virtual Private LAN (or EVP-LAN) is a multipoint-to-multipoint networking capability that enables users to connect assets — including Network Edge virtual devices — across locations without requiring direct connections between each location. It can be configured in either a regional network setup (e.g. all assets are within a single region) or a global network setup.

If you're looking to connect assets like virtual devices or ports together over a Global WAN without point-to-point connections, this feature is for you!

You can read all about it in the Network Edge docs.

During currently scheduled Network Edge maintenance events, the EVP LAN feature can help customers minimize traffic disruptions by moving to a geo-redundant setup for Bring Your Own Connection traffic (docs).

For folks that prefer a visual reference here is an example topology using EVP-LAN to connect global assets across colocation, Equinix Fabric, and Network Edge:

Hi friends!

It's amazing how 5 years fly by, and yet here we are...good old Ubuntu 18.04 will reach the end of Standard Support on April 30th (details on Canonical's website). After April 30th, Canonical will provide security updates only.

Here's what it means for Equinix Metal, and for folks (we see you!) still rocking 18.04:

Questions? Just reach out via the chat bubble or support@equinixmetal.com.

Happy to kick off 2023 with new versions for two popular Linux distributions. Both are available across our Standard Gen3 fleet today!

Hey team!

For a while there we got a bit stale with one of our favorite operating systems: Flatcar Container Linux. Well, we've remedied that.

For those of you who don't know, we support two Flatcar channels, stable and beta. Both are now updated and released with a nice cadence, which can often be quite rapid.

Throw it at us, Flatcar team, we're ready for ya.

Hip hip hurray!

With the release of our Melbourne (ME) metro into the wild, we're not only completing 12 months worth of builds, but also a milestone in both Australia and Japan: two geographically diverse metros in each country. Shall we call our Aussie regions "AU East" and "AU West"? :-)

Whatever you call it, we've got plenty of m3.small and n3.xlarge's online down under, ready for you to deploy as you start your 2023 journey.

Truth be told, many of us have never been to Osaka, but it's definitely on the bucket list. And with our newest Equinix Metal Metro, you can get a taste from afar.

OS just launched with a clutch of zippy m3.small inventory and more options (including our n3.xlarge) on the way. Enjoy!

It's been a long road, but we're super pleased to unlock FreeBSD (specifically FreeBSD 13.1-RELEASE) as an official operating system for our Gen3 configs. You'll find it on our most popular configs today, with the rest coming online shortly.

This release is the result of a tight collaboration with Dave Cottlehuber, of Skunkwerks, who led the charge and has taken over as our resident "FreeBSD" expert. Thank you Dave!

We first unlocked the capability for customers to connect to Equinix Metal with dedicated connections (leveraging a dedicated port on Equinix Metal's infrastructure) back in 2021. At the time, we didn't prioritize the billing system constructs (long story!) to charge for this feature, so it has been chugging along at a $0 rate.

In September we reached out to all customers currently using this feature via email to notify them that we would begin charging on November 1st, 2022. However, we made the mistake of not posting this on our changelog for wider visibility. Sorry about that!!

When taking advantage of dedicated ports for connectivity to and from Equinix Metal (via either Fabric or cross connect), there are two fees that will be applied to your Equinix Metal bill in addition to any Fabric or cross connect charges:

Current pricing is listed below for convenience. Any questions? Let's talk!

According to a recent Forrester Total Economic Impact™ (TEI) study, folks who leverage interconnection and deploy services at the edge can see a 328% return on investment and 30% minimum latency reduction.

But, to be honest, this whole "private internet" thing has been a bit hard to take advantage of, even with Equinix Metal. To cut the work down by about 50%, we've unlocked a new "Metal Billed" option for local Fabric virtual connections.

With this option, you can consume local Equinix Fabric virtual connections . Pricing starts at just $0.15 / hr for a 50 MB connection and tops out at $1.00 / hr for 10 Gbps!

All fees are included on a single Equinix Metal invoice.

We love Sweden, and we love adding to our global Metal footprint. With only a few weeks left in this "open up a bunch of new metros" year, we're crossing Stockholm off the list today.

As you might expect, we'll celebrate the launch of SK with something cozy, like waffles with our own team-made Maple syrup. Or maybe we'll follow the NYTimes, who has us covered with their recent "36 hours in Stockholm" bit.

Here's what you should know about our Stockholm metro: