Manage transfer volume in your subscription
This value measures the volume of all transfers into and out of storage when you use an entitlement-enabled Aspera transfer server.
Which transfers accrue to your subscription?
Your subscription accumulates transfer volume when you use any Aspera transfer server that is enabled by an entitlement to transfer files or folders. Your subscription does not accumulate transfer volume when you use a transfer server that is enabled by a license, which is bandwidth-based rather than consumption-based.
Using an entitled server, upload from desktop: A simple upload of a 10 GB folder to an entitlement-enabled transfer server accrues 10 GB of transfer volume in your subscription. The same would apply for a download of a 10 GB file from an entitlement-enabled transfer server.
Using a licensed server, upload from desktop: A simple upload of a 10 GB folder to a license-enabled transfer server does not accrue transfer volume in your subscription. The same would apply for a download of a 10 GB file from a license-enabled transfer server.
Using an entitled server, send files from one person to another: This operation combines an upload and a download of a 10 GB file for a total of 20 GB transfer volume.
Between entitled servers, transfer from Node to node/Region to region/Cloud to cloud: When you transfer from one entitlement-enabled server to another, the transfer is metered on both the send and receiving systems. In this example, the transfer of a 10 GB file from one region to another results in 20 GB of total transfer volume. This type of transfer volume may accrue when you move files or folders from one location to another in your AoC Files app.
Between a licensed and an entitled server, transfer from Node to node/Region to region/Cloud to cloud: When you transfer between a license-enabled server and an entitlement-enabled server, the transfer is metered only at the entitled system. In this example, the transfer of a 10 GB file from one region to another results in 10 GB of total transfer volume. This type of transfer volume may accrue when you move files or folders from one location to another in your AoC Files app.
What causes transfer volume overages?
Your pre-paid subscription includes a pre-paid transfer volume. You have the entire term of your subscription to use that volume. Once you exceed the pre-paid volume, your subscription incurs overage charges for further transfers; you move into a pay-per-use status for transfer volume.
You remain in pay-per-use status and continue to be billed overage fees for additional transfer volume until either you increase your pre-paid volume in negotiation with IBM, or the term expires and your transfer volume accumulation begins again.
AoC does not limit your ability to transfer data even if you exceed your pre-paid transfer volume.
Pay-as-You-Go subscriptions do not have pre-paid transfer volume. As a Pay/Go subscriber, you are billed for all outbound and inbound transfers enabled by an entitlement.
Example
In the screenshot below, taken from the Subscription management page (Admin > Subscription > Usage > Transfer volume), your transfer volume exceeds your pre-paid max in April. The excess volume is shown in red in April. IBM Aspera bills you for the excess volume at pay-per-use rates.
In May, April's excess volume, already billed to you, shows as part of the overall cumulative transfer volume you've used so far. IBM Aspera bills you for the transfers you make in May at pay-per-use rates, since you continue to be in excess of your pre-paid max.
Interpret the graph and table
Transfer volume accumulates over the term of your subscription.
Reminder: Your subscription does not meter or charge for volume usage on your own bandwidth-based, licensed Aspera HSTS nodes or clusters tethered to Aspera on Cloud.
Graph
Consider a sample graph for transfer volume.
- You'll see that the actual cumulative transfer volume to date is shown by the height of the last bar to the right, which is the current month.
- The in-plan allowance or pre-committed maximum is the heavy horizontal line on the graph.
Table
If your subscription includes multiple entitlements, you can filter the table view. When you filter by month, the table shows a different view of the same data shown in the graph. If you filter by entitlement, you see usage depicted by entitlement.
Each monthly row shows transfer volume used, the total for the month, and the total cumulative volume used per date. Monthly usage is broken down into your pre-paid volume and pay-per-use volume. As long as your cumulative volume remains below your pre-paid max, you are not billed for pay-per-use fees (also called overage fees). Once you exceed your pre-paid max, all subsequent monthly transfer volume is pay-per use or overage.
As an example, suppose transfer volume exceeds the in-plan allowance during the month of April. Consider these columns in the April row. The third column shows that the total transfer volume used in the month was 93.072.9 GB. This total monthly volume is split between 19,096.7 GB (left column) as the last of the pre-paid volume, plus 73,976.2 GB (second column) additional transfer volume that month, to be billed as pay-per-use.
Now consider the last two columns for two adjacent months. The value in the last column ("Total transfer volume used to date") for October, plus the value in the second-to-the-last column ("Total monthly transfer volume") for November, equals the value in the last column for November. In other words, the Month1 cumulative volume plus Month2 monthly volume equals Month2 cumulative volume.
