StarBand Questions: Service Features

What StarBand services are available?
Does StarBand require a separate account with an Internet Service Provider?
Are there any time limits or hourly restrictions on the StarBand® service?
Are there any activities prohibited on the StarBand service?
Can I access computer systems at my office through the StarBand system?
Does StarBand® service require a telephone connection?
Can I use other satellite Internet provider equipment?
Are there cancellation fees?
How do I receive technical and/or maintenance support?
Can you tell me more about VPN performance?

What StarBand services are available?
The new line of StarBand Nova services - Nova 1000 and 1500 - offer reliable, high performance, always-on broadband satellite Internet for small office/home office (SOHO) and small business customers. StarBand Nova 1000 and 1500 offer faster speeds than previous generations of Nova services, new PC professional support services and value-added features.

Does StarBand require a separate account with an Internet Service Provider?
No. StarBand provides both the satellite connection and the ISP services. If you take your laptop on the road, you will need an additional dial-up service.

Are there any time limits or hourly restrictions on the StarBand® service?
There are no restrictions regarding time of day or hours of usage. StarBand is available 24 hours per day, 7 days per week, 365 days per year. (Note, however, that continuous use of your StarBand system may result in excessive bandwidth usage in violation of StarBand Acceptable Use Policies.)

Are there any activities prohibited on the StarBand service?
Yes. Like most, if not all, ISPs, StarBand does not permit activities that are illegal, or that violate or are disrespectful of the rights of other StarBand members or any Internet users. Also, in consideration for all StarBand members, StarBand reserves the right to limit excessive bandwidth usage by members. The Acceptable Use Policy details a number of these activities and applications and the various available remedies and actions that StarBand may take to stop inappropriate or bandwidth hog activities.

Furthermore, StarBand is committed to helping reduce the proliferation of SPAM (bulk e-mail) activities over the Internet. StarBand's e-mail service automatically blocks known SPAM accounts from entering into the StarBand system, and we reserve the right to take other measures to limit SPAM messages (such as limiting the number of addresses in outgoing e-mail messages).

You may not host a Web site on a PC connected to the satellite system. However, StarBand will host a personal Web site for you. See our Acceptable Use Policy for more information on restricted activities.

Can I access computer systems at my office through the StarBand system?
If your company provides a public Internet Web page interface to the information you are seeking, you can easily access it. However, in a VPN (virtual private network) setup, it may be difficult for you to access this information. The latency inherent in a satellite environment may cause the security (or "firewall") system to "time-out" your connection.

Does StarBand® service require a telephone connection?
No, StarBand service NEVER requires a telephone connection.

Can I use other satellite Internet provider equipment?
No. You must use StarBand equipment in order to utilize the StarBand service.

Are there cancellation fees?
Yes. Customers not completing their contract's minimum term commitment will be assessed an early termination fee. Canceling service in the first year of a term commitment has a $499 fee on all plans. There is no service cancellation fee for customers outside of their contract's minimum term commitment period.

How do I receive technical and/or maintenance support?
If you purchased your StarBand® service from an authorized StarBand Dealer, that Dealer offers complete technical and maintenance support. You also can contact StarBand Member Services and Support to help troubleshoot any issues. If you purchased the system through StarBand directly, contact us at 1-800-4STARBAND for technical support. In the event you need on-site maintenance support, the StarBand Installation Partner who performed your installation will assist you.

Can you tell me more about VPN performance?

In many cases, IPSec-based VPN clients/services will indeed work with your StarBand broadband Internet service. However, they will typically do so in a limited manner and the download and upload performance you will experience will generally be similar to running IPSec VPN connections over a dial-up connection (in the range of 20 kbps up and 50 kbps down, at most). There are VPN solutions available that utilize protocols other than IPSec. The most popular alternative protocol is called SSL (Secure Socket Layers). SSL  or other non-IPSEC based VPN clients may perform better than IPSEC clients, but are still subject to the same limitations and support guidelines listed herein. Lengthy delays and reduced performance across VPN connections is due to inherent VPN security features which make it impossible for StarBand to “accelerate” VPN connections as we do with other Internet-based applications.  While many VPN applications will work with specified StarBand services, StarBand does not offer technical support for VPN client configuration, connectivity or performance related issues.  If you choose to utilize a VPN in conjunction with your StarBand service despite these issues, please be aware of the following facts, tips and limitations:

• Download and Upload speeds across your VPN connection will be, at its best, similar to that of dial-up performance.  StarBand cannot guarantee ANY minimum service levels.
• Both Client side and Server side connection timeout values MUST be set to a minimum of 3,000 milliseconds. Even this value does not guarantee elimination of network timeouts during connection or use.  Be aware that most configuration changes must be made on the server side and will require your corporate IT department to make trial and error changes to maximize performance.
• Inherent delays in the satellite connection will render VPN based remote control (i.e. “remote desktop”) applications unresponsive and should not be attempted.
• StarBand technical support will not be able to assist in troubleshooting any VPN client configuration or performance issues whatsoever.
• Extensive use of a VPN connection may generate traffic volumes that exceed acceptable use levels.
• You may be required to disable or uninstall your VPN software before receiving any non-VPN related technical support from StarBand or your Retailer.