The document discusses the development of the IX-API, an open API designed by three internet exchange points (IXPs) - AMS-IX, DE-CIX, and LINX - to standardize and automate the provisioning of interconnection services. The IX-API allows customers to programmatically access peering facilities, point-to-point connections, cloud connections, and more through a single RESTful API. This consolidates multiple APIs into one and accelerates service provisioning from days to minutes while reducing costs. The roadmap includes expanding support for additional services like statistics/monitoring and remote peering. Several companies are participating in the pilot of the IX-API to integrate it into their systems.

1. IX-API
An Application Programming Interface
built by
13.11.19 1

2. The Background Story
• To make life easier for our
customers we have to make
implementation of peering and
interconnection in general more
convenient
• Creating a NaaS-model within the
interconnection-community provides
a consistent way of consuming
peering, point-to-point
connections, cloud-connections
and so on
13.11.19 2

3. The Background Story
• A lot of companies, whom use services
of an IXP would like to interface through
an API.
• Until today, they had to handle different
API´s – one for each IXP.
• Moreover, new services like cloud
connections are more complex
requiring a different approach
• Today’s businesses demand faster
planning and deployment of
Interconnection infrastructure
13.11.19 3

4. The Background Story
As partners in this project we are
convinced that we have to overcome
the manual provisioning of
interconnection
It can be error-prone and time-
consuming for our customers, putting
pressure on network engineers,
cloud architects and staff members
13.11.19 4

5. The Background Story
• To meet these new business
requirements
• The three IXPs have joined forces
to standardize on a uniform API
13.11.19 5
• Programmability of all supporting
IXPs lowers the bar for automated
provisioning
• This ultimately supports the digital
transformation of participants

6. What is the IX-API?
Open community API designed by the three IXPs
• At various stages of implementation at AMS-IX, DE-CIX and LINX
Technical Details:
• Restful Standard API
• Security with API-keys and API-secret
• Documented with the OpenAPI3.0 standard
• Dockerised reference implementation sandbox available
• Test suite available to check if it meets the standard
13.11.19 6

7. Service Scope and Design V1
Service Scope:
• Demarcs/ports/LAGs
• Peering facilities including route server,
• Point-to-Point and Cloud services
• Extendable for additional functionality
13.11.19 7

8. Who benefits?
All customers of exchanges that support the standard regardless of
their business model and size
• Resellers
• Internet Service Providers
• Content Delivery Networks
• Carriers
• Other IXs use as standard to sell
services to their customer base
• …
13.11.19 8

9. Benefits for IX Customers
Supports fully end-to-end automated processes:
• No human interaction necessary
• Accelerate speed of configuring, changes and cancelling from days to minutes
• 24*7 reachable
• Less effort per transaction saves money
• More transparence of the services due to instant feedback
• Integration of IX service in portals of customers
Reduced implementation costs due to a single API to multiple IXs
• Implement once use many
13.11.19 9

10. IX-API Roadmap
13.11.19 10
§V1-Peering
EPF14 (September 2019)
§V2-Private VLAN
Next 6 months
§V3-Cloud Connectivity
In parallel with V2
Other important topics:
• Statistics / Monitoring (Timings TBD)
• Remote services: Remote Peering / Private VLAN (Timings TBD)
• Physical / Access (Timings TBD)

11. The next IX to join
13.11.19 11

12. IX-API Pilot Customers
The IX-API has been developed with pilot
customers:
„Epsilon’s customers and Partners will benefit from faster,
automated provisioning and improved service visibility
when connecting to enabled IXPs from any of the 220+
data centres on our global network.”
Woon Lee Chin, Product Director, Epsilon
13.11.19 12

13. For more information
Visit www.ix-api.net
13

14. SDN PLATFORM SHOWCASE

15. v
v
username@domain.com
●●●●●●●●●

31. AMSIXHK_250M

32. AMSIXHK_250M

33. AMSIXHK_250M 3
44356 AS-PATH (44350, 44351)
F8-CA-B8-08-9D-8B

34. Test Customer SDN BHD peering@testcustomer.com
Changkat Raja Chulan, Bukit Ceylon
Malaysia50200 Kuala Lumpur
Kuala Lumpur
noc@testcustomer.com