Can AWS DirectConnect be deployed between Branch office (Remote Location) and AWS?

Question

My company have few branch offices and have reliable internet connection and have a static IP. Branch office have only one Windows computer. Is it possible to deploy AWS DirectConnect/PartnerConnect between my branch office and AWS? I know we can do this in DataCenter. But not sure about small office with One windows computer.

Answer 1

It's possible, however setting up DirectConnect is very expensive, and also takes a few months to be installed, for a single machine I'd say it's not worth it.

I'd suggest to consider AWS Site-to-Site VPN instead, which is much cheaper and easier to set-up. It provides a throughput of up to 1.25 Gbps/140K packets per second per tunnel.

Please check out this blog post which explains further the differences between the two.

If recurring cost, installation cost and waiting time is absolutely not an issue for you then of course go for DirectConnect. Here's official AWS documentation on how to set it up, however it's not trivial so the best way is to have AWS support guiding you through the process

Answer 2

Frankly, it's not worthwhile.

Direct Connect involves putting a fiber connection between your location and an AWS data center. The benefits would not be sufficient for a single computer.

Direct Connect is normally used to connect on-premises data centers to AWS.

Answer 3

I would look into using a NaaS provider like PacketFabric, Megaport, or even I think Equinix has a solution to connect your on-premise to AWS.

It depends on what you are looking for but if you need a private, secure, and low-latency connection between AWS and your on-prem, go with a NaaS solution.