GCX are the network experts. Our teams design, build and manage networks for some of the world’s most recognised brands and have done for many years.
We provide solutions with rapid scalability, resilience and guaranteed performance for customers because GCX’s backbone networks are supported by our own fibre footprint.
We can deliver and support any major access types, your business may need, whether your data requirements are from a Mumbai office, a Shanghai shopping mall, a Stuttgart production line or a ship in the wide ocean we cover them all.
When data is made scalable, the fundamental benefit to our customers is about more than technical solutions. It’s about delivering peace of mind – anywhere.
GCX’s Network Underlay products deliver a flexible and reliable global network solution, with wired, wireless or satellite access they cover all networking and connectivity needs – delivered via a single SLA and commercial relationship for ultimate simplicity.
Maximise your network performance and security with GCX SD-WAN, which can be purchased as a bundle with an underlay, or as a standalone managed SD-WAN layer. With a range of vendors we cover a multitude of solutions.
GCX’s Managed Secure Access Service Edge (SASE) solution empowers your enterprise to thrive by converging network and security functions into a single, cloud-delivered platform – empowering office based, mobile and home working with high performance, secure data solutions.
GCX’s Managed Secure Service Edge (SSE) solution delivers a comprehensive and integrated suite of security products, regardless of device or location, delivering employee flexibility whilst protecting your business and remaining compliant.
GCX’s Managed LAN Services delivers both Wired and Wireless Lan capability, backed by a full design and delivery function with options that are easily integrated into our WAN solutions to deliver a true end to end solution from a world class service provider.
GNSX is a suite of solutions covering every product in the network stack from user and device security through SD-WAN and SASE and adds options like advanced analytics, automation, and SOAR capabilities. Start with a single solution and seamlessly integrate others over time, to build a comprehensive, cohesive security network stack. GNSX may be the roadmap you seek to guide your network and security journey.
Struggling with complex global network procurement? With over 250 vendor relationships, GCX simplifies the process. From design and carrier selection to circuit procurement, migration, and either GCX management or self-management. GCX ensures cost-effective, globally optimized networks with minimal disruption and a single point of control.
GCX, alongside our partners at Cato Networks, are helping enterprises simplify global networking and security through a converged SASE approach, reducing complexity, improving visibility, and enabling measurable business outcomes.
Cloud-managed networks provide centralised management via a single dashboard, remote monitoring and troubleshooting, automatic updates, and enhanced scalability. They reduce hardware needs and operational costs while offering greater visibility, reporting, and analytics. GCX offers cloud-managed LAN solutions which are the most efficient way to significantly reduce WAN, LAN, and WLAN related costs, whilst delivering the desired level of security and performance for critical applications.
Best practices include adhering to IEEE 802.11 standards and local regulations, conducting thorough site surveys, implementing standardised security protocols, segmenting networks, and ensuring consistent hardware and configuration. Ongoing monitoring and regular audits are essential for performance and security. GCX’s professional services team offers global deployment expertise, with the ability to design, procure, implement, and manage wireless solutions across over 160 countries, ensuring local compliance and best-practice standards are met at every site.
A Wireless First approach prioritises wireless connectivity as the main means of network access, supporting mobility, flexibility, and the needs of the modern workplace by enabling employees to work from anywhere within the premises. GCX can design and deliver a fully managed Wireless First strategy, leveraging cloud-managed access points and a centralised management dashboard that provides visibility and control across your entire wireless estate.
Wireless First supports hybrid and hot-desking strategies by allowing seamless, secure connectivity across the workspace, enabling staff to move freely and collaborate effectively, and making office space usage more efficient. GCX’s managed LAN and wireless solutions integrate with SD-WAN to ensure that hybrid workers receive the same quality of experience whether connecting from the office or remotely.
To secure BYOD, enforce strong authentication, use network segmentation, implement device compliance policies, and deploy MDM solutions. Regular user education and clear policies also help mitigate risks. GCX’s managed networking and security portfolio includes network segmentation, integrated NGFW capabilities, and access control solutions that can be applied to BYOD environments to reduce risk and enforce policy.
Secure guest access by using separate SSIDs/VLANs, captive portals for authentication, bandwidth limiting, and network monitoring. Regularly update security settings and review access logs to maintain a safe guest environment. GCX can configure and manage secure guest wireless access as part of a broader managed LAN service, ensuring isolation from corporate traffic and ongoing monitoring through GCX’s Global Service Centre.
The ROI for cloud-managed wireless networks often includes reduced operational costs, increased productivity, and enhanced security. Many organisations begin seeing benefits within months, with additional value from faster onboarding, easier expansion, and improved user experience. GCX’s cloud-managed wireless solutions — backed by 24/7 support, proactive monitoring, and a single global SLA — reduce the operational overhead that typically dilutes ROI, helping customers realise the value of their investment faster.
The network underlay refers to the physical infrastructure and foundational connectivity—such as leased lines, MPLS circuits, or internet links—that carry data between sites. The overlay, by contrast, is a virtual network built on top of the underlay, using technologies like SD-WAN to manage and optimise traffic routing, segmentation, and security. While the underlay provides the raw transport, the overlay delivers advanced features, flexibility, and policy-driven control independent of the underlying hardware. GCX offers both managed underlay and overlay services — independently or as a fully integrated solution — giving customers the flexibility to choose the model that best suits their needs.
Underlay networks typically rely on a mix of technologies such as dedicated leased lines, Dedicated Internet Access (DIA), Broadband Internet Access (BIA), fibre connectivity, and sometimes cellular (4G/5G) links. These technologies provide the essential point-to-point or multipoint connections that underpin the overall data transport for enterprise networking. GCX delivers MPLS, DIA, Broadband and wireless solutions to over 160 countries using over 200 carriers – all supported from a single NOC with a single SLA.
Managing a global underlay network presents several challenges, including dealing with multiple service providers across regions, inconsistent service levels, varied regulatory requirements, and complex troubleshooting when outages occur. Logistics such as provisioning, upgrades, and maintenance can become time-consuming, while ensuring consistent security and performance across all geographies adds further complexity. GCX eliminates many of these challenges by delivering a fully managed global network underlay under a single operational relationship and a single global SLA, simplifying carrier management and fault resolution worldwide.
The quality of the network underlay is critical for SD-WAN or any overlay service because it directly impacts performance, reliability, and user experience. Issues such as high latency, packet loss, jitter, or outages at the underlay level can degrade application performance and reduce the effectiveness of overlay optimisation features. A robust underlay ensures that the overlay can deliver consistent, high-quality connectivity and maximise the benefits of advanced routing and security. GCX’s integrated approach to underlay and overlay management ensures both layers are engineered, monitored, and maintained to the highest standards, maximising the performance of your SD-WAN investment.
Protecting underlay networks involves a combination of best practices such as segmenting traffic, enforcing strong access controls, encrypting data in transit, monitoring for anomalies, and deploying firewalls or intrusion prevention systems. Regular patching, vulnerability assessments, and collaboration with providers to ensure compliance with security standards also play a key role in mitigating risks. GCX’s managed security portfolio — including NGFW, micro segmentation, and SASE services — can be integrated with the network underlay to provide end-to-end protection across your entire network estate.
Comprehensive underlay services typically include 24/7 monitoring, proactive incident management, rapid fault resolution, and escalation procedures. GCX’s basic reporting features cover service availability, performance analytics, ticket histories, and change logs, all accessible through centralised dashboards or regular service reviews to ensure transparency and continuous improvement. GCX advanced reporting includes security reports and recommendations to improve your security posture backed by our professional services team who can you help deliver the recommendations we propose.
Deployment speed depends on factors such as location, access type, and provider relationships. In major cities, standard broadband or direct internet access can often be provisioned within days or weeks, while dedicated circuits like MPLS or fibre may take longer. Modern managed services can accelerate expansion by leveraging a mix of underlay technologies and global partnerships, supporting rapid onboarding and scalable growth as business needs change. GCX’s relationships with over 200 carriers worldwide, combined with its global logistics and project management capabilities, enable rapid and scalable underlay deployments across more than 160 countries.
BIA (Broadband Internet Access) shares bandwidth with other users meaning it is cheaper but less reliable, and SLAs reflect this. DIA (Dedicated Internet Access) is a private dedicated (not shared) solution, usually backed by more stringent SLAs and is more expensive. GCX offers both DIA and BIA options globally, and can advise on the most appropriate mix for each site type based on your performance, resilience, and cost requirements.
Understand your needs by site and users both today and for the next 12 months, in terms of throughput, uptime, and quality. Grade your sites by levels of importance, build a network purchasing strategy that aligns with this, and then start to look for suitable suppliers and products by needs and by region — don’t forget the costs of management and regional variations in quality. Alternatively, talk to GCX about their network cost benchmarking service, which can quickly identify areas of overspend and recommend strategies to optimise your global network budget.
GCX can deliver both fixed and wireless managed network services in over 160 countries, via a single operational relationship and a single SLA. This global reach, combined with GCX’s relationships with over 200 carriers, means customers can consolidate their network suppliers and reduce operational complexity significantly.
Typical costs for underlay network services include installation or provisioning fees, monthly or annual service charges, and potential costs for bandwidth upgrades or redundancy options. Depending on the provider and technology—such as MPLS, leased lines, fibre, or broadband—pricing can vary widely. Additional expenses may arise from maintenance, hardware, and support. It’s important to review contracts for any hidden charges related to usage limits, service changes, or fault resolution to ensure full transparency. GCX provides transparent pricing across its global underlay portfolio and offers a cost benchmarking service to help customers understand if they are receiving competitive value for their current network spend.
Managing your own network underlay can be complex, requiring coordination with multiple service providers, handling varied regulatory requirements, and ensuring consistent performance across regions. Troubleshooting outages can be time-consuming, and regular provisioning, upgrades, and maintenance add to operational overheads. Likewise, currency variations and cross charging can be problematic. Maintaining robust security, achieving reliable performance, and keeping pace with technological changes present ongoing challenges for organisations without specialist expertise. At GCX, we can deliver global solutions with a single SLA and a single bill, thereby taking away the issues of self-management.
Underlay network services typically come with SLAs covering service availability, uptime guarantees, fault resolution times, and performance metrics such as latency and packet loss. Comprehensive SLAs may also include provisions for proactive monitoring, rapid incident response, escalation procedures, and regular reporting. These agreements are designed to ensure transparency, reliability, and continuous improvement, supporting your business needs with defined service standards. When looking at global services, a single SLA that succinctly covers all operations is preferable. GCX offer a single global SLA for network underlay, simplifying governance and providing customers with a clear, consistent standard of service across all geographies.
GCX underlay services are engineered to deliver enterprise-grade connectivity, combining dedicated circuits, MPLS, fibre, and broadband options to guarantee consistent performance, reliability, and support. Unlike the public internet, which can be unpredictable and prone to congestion, our underlay ensures lower latency, higher availability, and robust security. Centralised management and proactive monitoring further distinguish our offering, providing greater visibility and faster response times than many traditional providers or standard internet links. By delivering services on a largely owned global network — including subsea cable assets and owned PoPs — GCX has greater control over network deployments and therefore shorter fix times, ensuring superior application performance and user experience globally.
Traditional telecom underlay networks often involve working with multiple regional providers, which can result in inconsistent service quality, varied regulatory requirements, and complex contract management. Provisioning and upgrading circuits may be slow and bureaucratic, while troubleshooting outages frequently demands coordination with disparate support teams. Maintaining uniform security and performance across geographies is also challenging, leading to increased operational overheads and potential risks for organisations operating global networks. GCX addresses these challenges through a single-provider model spanning over 160 countries, a unified SLA, and a dedicated Global Service Centre providing 24/7 proactive monitoring and fault management.
GCX’s underlay pricing model is designed for transparency and flexibility. We provide a clear breakdown of installation charges, recurring service fees, and optional features such as bandwidth upgrades or redundancy. All potential costs, including those for additional bandwidth, service changes, or enhanced resilience, are detailed upfront to minimise surprises. This contrasts with some providers who may include undisclosed fees for overages, support, or configuration changes. GCX also offers a simplified single-bill model for global customers, removing the complexity of managing multiple currencies, invoices, and billing terms across different regional providers.
Self-managing a network underlay can lead to hidden expenses such as increased staffing requirements, additional time spent coordinating with multiple vendors, and costs related to troubleshooting, maintenance, and regulatory compliance. Unexpected charges may also arise from upgrades, fault resolution, and the need for specialist expertise. Without dedicated monitoring and support, organisations may face higher risks of downtime or security incidents, all of which contribute to a higher total cost of ownership than initially anticipated. GCX’s fully managed underlay service absorbs these hidden overheads, providing a predictable cost model while freeing internal IT teams to focus on strategic priorities rather than day-to-day network operations.
GCX’s underlay pricing typically covers installation, ongoing service fees, standard bandwidth allocation, and 24/7 support. Additional features like redundancy, bandwidth upgrades, and proactive monitoring can be bundled or selected as optional add-ons. Compared to traditional MPLS or other providers, our model emphasises flexibility and cost transparency, allowing customers to tailor services to their needs without incurring unnecessary expenses. Legacy MPLS contracts, by contrast, may be less flexible and carry higher charges for changes or enhancements. GCX’s global carrier relationships and procurement scale allow us to source cost-competitive solutions across MPLS, DIA, broadband, and cellular technologies, passing those savings on to our customers.
GCX provide a global network costs benchmarking service and can quickly help you determine if you are paying too much for your network and provide advice on how to optimise your network costs. With over 200 carrier relationships covering over 160 countries, GCX has unparalleled global market visibility and can identify where savings can be made without compromising on service quality or resilience.
When paired with an SD-WAN or overlay solution, an underlay circuit failure triggers automatic, sub-second path failover. Active sessions seamlessly redirect traffic to a healthy secondary or tertiary circuit (such as failing over from MPLS to Broadband or 5G) without dropping user applications or active connections. The team at GCX can design, deliver and support the most optimal circuit combinations to maximise uptime.
Cloud interconnects and cloud-native underlays extend the enterprise private network directly into hyperscale cloud data centers, bypassing the public internet for predictable performance. They integrate with the broader underlay infrastructure through dedicated virtual interfaces (VIFs) and secure routing extensions, ensuring seamless integration between on-premises sites and cloud workloads. GCX can provide global onramps to all major cloud providers via the GCX Cloud-X product.
Modern underlays support high-bandwidth applications by combining high-capacity fiber and high-speed DIA circuits with automated traffic prioritization (Quality of Service, or QoS). When combined with an SD-WAN overlay, latency-sensitive traffic like video or voice is dynamically assigned to the cleanest, highest-performing underlay path while large data transfers utilize high-throughput broadband links. GCX consultants can advise and configure on the best network profiles that suit your business traffic.
Managed SASE (Secure Access Service Edge) is a fully managed service that combines advanced networking—such as SD-WAN—with robust, cloud-delivered security controls, including firewalls, secure web gateways, and zero trust access. Delivered by a specialist provider like GCX, it enables organisations to benefit from the latest connectivity and security technologies without the complexity of managing multiple solutions or maintaining in-house expertise. GCX’s Managed SASE is a seamless integration of GCX’s Global Network, Security, and Experience services; providing end-to-end Zero Trust Hybrid Networking with real-time visibility, security, and control.
SASE provides unified, cloud-based network and security services, enabling secure, consistent access for users and devices wherever they are. Benefits include improved security posture through centralised policy enforcement, greater agility to support remote working and business growth, simplified management, and inherent scalability—helping IT teams reduce complexity and operational overheads while enhancing user experience. With GCX SASE, customers benefit from centralised management, monitoring, visibility, reporting, audit/compliance readiness with consistent end-to-end data protection and visibility regardless of network ingress, through a single-stack solution that lowers administrative time, effort, training, and licensing costs.
SASE is designed to replace or converge multiple legacy solutions, including traditional VPNs, on-premises firewalls, secure web gateways (SWG), cloud access security brokers (CASB), and standalone SD-WAN devices. It also integrates with modern tools such as identity providers and endpoint protection platforms, providing end-to-end visibility and control across the enterprise network. GCX’s SASE solution integrates with leading SIEM, SOAR, and Digital Experience Monitoring (DEM) platforms, providing seamless convergence with a customer’s existing security ecosystem.
Zero Trust Network Access (ZTNA) is a security approach based on the principle of “never trust, always verify.” Unlike traditional models that grant broad access based on network location, ZTNA enforces strict authentication and authorisation for every user and device, providing access only to the specific applications and resources required—minimising the risk of unauthorised access and lateral movement within the network. GCX’s SASE platform delivers ZTNA as part of a fully managed service, removing the burden of policy configuration and ongoing management from internal IT teams.
SASE platforms embed ZTNA as a core function. When a user or device requests access to a resource, SASE verifies identity and applies granular access policies based on factors like user role, device status, and location. This process uses secure authentication, continuous monitoring, and dynamic policy enforcement, ensuring users only access what they’re permitted—regardless of where they connect from. GCX’s SASE solution delivers ZTNA as part of a fully managed service, removing the burden of policy configuration and ongoing management from internal IT teams.
Key components of a SASE solution include SD-WAN for optimised connectivity, Secure Web Gateway (SWG) for web security, Cloud Access Security Broker (CASB) for cloud app protection, Firewall-as-a-Service (FWaaS) for network security, and ZTNA for zero trust access control. These elements are tightly integrated and delivered via the cloud, providing a unified platform for secure, agile networking. GCX’s SASE solution brings all of these components together under a single managed framework, supported by GCX’s global network backbone and 24/7 operational support.
SASE is typically simpler to deploy than traditional network security projects, thanks to its cloud-native architecture. Managed SASE providers handle planning, policy configuration, and ongoing management, reducing the burden on internal IT teams. Integration with existing identity and cloud services can accelerate adoption, though careful planning is advised for larger or more complex environments. GCX’s professional services team — backed by a bench of network and security experts — manages the entire implementation journey from design and procurement through to delivery and ongoing management, ensuring a smooth and risk-managed transition to SASE.
SASE can offer significant cost savings compared to maintaining multiple point solutions and legacy hardware. By consolidating networking and security into a single, subscription-based service, organisations can reduce capital expenditure, lower operational costs, and minimise the need for specialist staff—delivering predictable budgeting and scalable value. GCX SASE achieves cost efficiency through consolidation, automation, and simplification, reducing on-premises security subscriptions and eliminating the complexity and expense of managing disparate networking and security point products.
SASE (Secure Access Service Edge) combines both networking (like SD-WAN) and security services in a single cloud-delivered platform. SSE (Security Service Edge), on the other hand, focuses solely on the security elements—such as SWG, CASB, ZTNA, and FWaaS—without including the networking components. In short, SASE delivers a complete secure connectivity and security solution, while SSE is dedicated to security services alone. GCX can deliver both SASE and standalone SSE capabilities, allowing customers to adopt the model that best aligns with their current network maturity and roadmap.
SD-WAN is a technology for optimising and managing network connectivity across multiple locations. SASE builds upon SD-WAN by integrating advanced security functions—such as ZTNA, SWG, CASB, and FWaaS—into a single, cloud-delivered platform. While SD-WAN focuses on connectivity and traffic management, SASE offers a holistic approach that unifies network and security capabilities for secure, agile access everywhere. GCX offers both standalone SD-WAN (via Meraki, Fortinet, and Palo Alto) and a full SASE solution, allowing customers to start with SD-WAN and evolve towards a full SASE architecture at their own pace.
Yes, but beware — BIA is contended so no bandwidth guarantees and service levels (like fix times) are not commensurate with many business needs. To maximise BIA, you may need two diverse circuits to each site to maintain uptime. You should always compare with DIA, which is a much better service. SD-WAN may help remove some of the issues with BIA, but you do get what you pay for. GCX offers both DIA and BIA underlay options and can advise on the optimal mix for each site, balancing cost and performance requirements as part of a holistic SD-WAN design.
Providing it is planned correctly and the scenarios are fully scoped, the actual act of migration can be very swift. GCX’s consultants scope and plan the migration and deliver pilot tests; once the customer is in approval, the migration can be delivered on a push basis to all users or in line with an agreed phased project plan. Whichever way, GCX consultants are there every step of the way.
