Flexible network infrastructures

With market enthusiasm mounting for managed Ethernet and storage services, carriers are challenged to affordably transform their metro access, core and regional networks into demand-responsive infrastructures. Wavelength Division Multiplexing (WDM) provides service providers with the flexibility, scalability, protocol transparency and cost efficiencies they require to profitably offer an array of fully managed services to enterprise customers. Long distance telecommunications and private enterprise networks in recent years underwent significant expansion to accommodate the rise of high-bandwidth applications such as Internet access and business continuity. Service provider metropolitan area networks (MANs) and regional networks did not. Upgrading these infrastructures conceived and optimized strictly for traditional voice networks would have been prohibitively complex and expensive. Yet it is in cities where the majority of high-bandwidth traffic is generated, leaving MANs severely overburdened. Service providers are turning to flexible WDM infrastructures Dense WDM (DWDM) in metro core rings and regional links for maximum flexibility and scalability, Coarse WDM (CWDM) in access and feeder links for lowest cost. ADVA Optical Networking, the leading global supplier of metropolitan optical networking equipment, is a uniquely qualified and experienced partner for service providers seeking to ready their networks for new, high-margin revenue opportunities.

February 2005

ADVA AG Optical Networking Campus Martinsried Fraunhoferstrasse 9 a 82152 Martinsried/Munich Germany t +49 89 89 06 65 0 f +49 89 89 06 65 199 info@advaoptical.com ADVA Optical Networking Inc. One International Blvd. Suite 610 Mahwah, NJ 07495 USA t +1 201 258 8300 f +1 201 684 9200 info@advaoptical.com ADVA Optical Networking Ltd. Clifton Technology Centre Clifton Moor York YO30 4GU United Kingdom t +44 1904 692 700 f +44 1904 692 097 info@advaoptical.com ADVA Optical Networking Corp. World Trade Center Building 4F 2-4-1 Hamamatsu-cho Minato-ku, Tokyo 105-6104 Japan t +81 3 5408 5891 f +81 3 5408 5899 info-asiapacific@advaoptical.com ADVA AG Optical Networking Hightec 6, bt. A, 1er tage 9 Avenue du Canada, Les Ulis 91966 Courtaboeuf Cedex France t +33 1 64 86 46 04 f +33 1 69 07 87 19 info@advaoptical.com www.advaoptical.com

Contents Network infrastructure challenges The flexibility of optics Scalability and flexibility in the metro core Broadband access via CWDM Cost-efficient fiber relief in regional backbones The right solution About ADVA 2 3 5 7 8 9 9

ADVA Optical Networking Inc. 2005. All rights reserved.

Author: Dr. Klaus Grobe, ADVA Optical Networking

LEGAL DISCLAIMER The information provided in this document is distributed as is without any warranty, either express or limited.

Flexible network infrastructures

Network infrastructure challenges

Internet Protocol (IP) telephony, video conferencing to the desktop, cluster/grid and utility computing, business continuity, disaster recovery, remote backup, etc. the diversity of services and protocols that enterprise customers expect from their service providers is increasing every day. And the sheer bandwidth demand is stunning. A January 2004 report from The Yankee Group, for example, forecasted the 10 Gigabit Ethernet market to reach seven million ports in 2006. Leading-edge Ethernet and storage services promise companies unprecedented benefits in boosted productivity, business-process enhancement and greater cost efficiency. Information Technology (IT) departments, however, are already overwhelmed. Consequently, a trend has taken shape: enterprises are turning to their service providers for fully managed packages of data, storage, voice and video services. The service providers business customers get the services they want. They avoid implementation and maintenance hassles and concerns about equipment depreciation. They concentrate personnel and capital expenditures on corebusiness pursuits. And they convert the cost of networking into a predictable monthly line item. In addition carriers see strong bandwidth demand from the residential market putting pressure on their access infrastructure. Across many countries the acceptance of Digital Subscriber Line (DSL) services has been overwhelming and carriers have started to add IP-TV and triple play services to their portfolio. While the first mile in this segment is still mainly based on copper infrastructure, the necessity for higher bandwidth scalable backhaul solutions has emerged. Service providers on both sides of the Atlantic are seizing upon the clear market opportunities, but there are obstacles to be overcome: Base revenue streams must be maintained, and the legacy networking platforms supporting them have been optimized for voice traffic only. The new, high-bandwidth services must be transported across the same fiber infrastructure, without performance degradation. (This is particularly true where new fibers cannot be drawn into the ground.)

Key for the service provider is getting the services across regional networks, all the way to the customers premises at native application speeds and affordable price points. To avoid both revenue losses due to fiber exhaust and high operational costs that savage profit margins, service providers require transparent, scalable infrastructure with obvious points of customer demarcation. WDM provides a compelling answer.

Flexible network infrastructures

The flexibility of optics

With different WDM technologies deployed in different areas of the network infrastructure (access, core and regional), service providers not only profitably offer managed services today but also future proof for emerging opportunities. With WDM deployed throughout the infrastructure, service providers protect the exponential revenue potential of its deployed fiber. Applications of any recognized protocol Ethernet up to 10GbE, Enterprise Systems Connectivity (ESCON), Fiber Connection (FICON), Fibre Channel (1/2/4/8/10Gbit/s), Coupling Link, Sysplex Timer, and Asynchronous Transfer Mode (ATM) and Synchronous Optical Network (SONET)/Synchronous Digital Hierarchy (SDH) with 155/622Mbit/s and 2.5/10Gbit/s are multiplexed on a single optical fiber in WDM. Individual applications are assigned wavelengths, multiplexed at one end of an optical link and de-multiplexed at the other. Because protocol conversion is unnecessary, there are no limitations regarding bit rates, protocols or latency. Application performance is at native speed. In particular 10 Gigabit Ethernet LAN PHY, which is gaining acceptance in the enterprise world and cannot be transported over SONET/SDH circuits, can be offered over regional distances and at native speed via WDM. The same holds for real-time video such as SDI, DVB-ASI or HDTV and various storage protocols, in particular the upcoming 4Gbit/s, 8Gbit/s, and 10Gbit/s Fibre Channel. And yet, with WDM, service providers continue to grow and profit from their SONET/SDH customer base. Todays leading optical networking platforms, such as ADVAs Fiber Service Platform, are evolving to include built-in SONET/SDH framing and digital wrapper (OTN/G.709) and can use Generalized Framing Procedure (GFP/G.7041) with Virtual Concatenation (VCAT) and Link Capacity Adjustment Scheme (LCAS/G.7042) for new services. WDM-based optical platforms can enable service providers to extend service transparency, with a variety of options for performance monitoring and application control. One option is fully transparent transport, with optical amplification and optical monitoring only. A second option also includes bitrate restriction or clock-specific speed monitoring. As a third option, signals can be mapped into and transported via synchronous infrastructure (SONET/SDH over WDM, OTN/G.709) in order to provide digital performance monitoring and advanced features like Forward Error Correction (FEC), together with optical amplification and optical monitoring. This option is mostly used for regional and carriers carrier applications. Finally, service provisioning is dynamic in WDM. This starts with multi-rate, multi-clock cards that can be provisioned remotely, via the Network Management System, or that are self-detecting the corresponding client bit rate. If desired by the service provider, upgrades can be initiated on only those links where additional capacity or application support is required. Remote Optical Add Drop Multiplexing (ROADM) technology is starting to mature, making the planning and engineering phase of WDM networks even simpler. And the addition of a distributed Generalized Multi-Protocol Label

Flexible network infrastructures

Switched (GMPLS) control plane automates the network infrastructure even further1. Service providers have options when deploying WDM across their infrastructures: CWDM for very low cost and small to medium-sized scalability or DWDM for reasonable, pay-as-you-grow investment and tremendous capacity. Both technologies are functionally similar. The primary difference is that CWDM uses a wider spacing between wavelengths (20 nm) than does DWDM (~0.8 nm or smaller). Consequently, CWDM creates fewer virtual channels (up to eight) than does DWDM (up to 64). Hybrid CWDM/DWDM optical networking platforms have arrived in the marketplace and provide interesting options, combining low cost of entry with DWDM scalability. Figure 1: Cost and scalability benefits of CWDM-DWDM-hybrids

DWDM enables service providers to accommodate up to 512 applications of any protocol without installing additional dark fiber, and it is the choice for the highest-bandwidth applications, such as 10 Gigabit Ethernet and 10 Gigabit Fibre Channel. But because of its undeniable cost benefits, CWDM has emerged as a topic of considerable attention among enterprise IT managers, network planners, service providers, equipment vendors and industry observers. Best-of-breed optical networking solutions with CWDM features typically deliver capital savings of 30 to 50 percent compared to DWDM systems at low channel counts and similar system functionality. This is because lower-cost un-cooled lasers, low-cost thin-film filters and smallform-factor transceivers can be used to enable CWDM. In the right situations, enterprises and/or their service providers find a compelling alternative in CWDM, delivering more than 50 times the bandwidth of traditional DS3/E3 services, for roughly the same price.

1 International standards and industry bodies embrace the concept of automated, dynamic optical networking from various angles: International Telecommunications Union (ITU): ITU-T ASON G.8080 Automatically Switched Optical Networks International Engineering Task Force (IETF): GMPLS control plane Optical Interworking Forum (OIF ): User-Network Interface (UNI) and Network-Network Interface (NNI)

Flexible network infrastructures

The unprecedented price points achieved with CWDM makes highperformance Ethernet and storage services viable for enterprises of almost any size, creating increased interest in service providers campus and access offerings. In particular for backhaul scenarios where traffic from DSLAMs or provider edge routers needs to be carried to the metro core, CWDM systems are increasingly popular: value add features such as Time Division Multiplexing (TDM) maximize wavelength utilization and guarantee most economic bandwidth transport hot-standby transponder designs provide cost efficient protection for all traffic against fiber cuts. Best of breed WDM systems allow application specific configurations. Their functionality and performance can be tailored to the service providers specific requirements - a capability that provides significant economic and operational advantages over integrated mainstream WDM features in SONET/SDH or Ethernet platforms.

Scalability and flexibility in the metro core

The metro core has become the main bottleneck in modern service provider networks. Todays advanced WDM metro core ring systems like the ADVA Fiber Service Platform, however, can deliver cost-effective, ongoing fiber relief combined with native interface speeds. Leading solutions deliver all of the scalability, flexibility and functionality necessary to profitably introduce and manage legacy and new services, such as Ethernet and storage offerings. By deploying protocol-agnostic WDM platforms between central offices, service providers offer a total volume of services of up to 640Gbit/s without installing new fibers. Within these limits (per pair of fibers), all relevant services and bit rates are supported through either the use of transparent transponders or the new standardized mapping scheme, GFP/G.7041. Figure 2: Metro core WDM infrastructure

Wavelength group add/drop granularity Optional group amplification for express traffic

Flexible network infrastructures

A metro core infrastructure, as illustrated in Figure 2, enables service providers to: rapidly add capacity to existing fiber infrastructures, extend infrastructures to any metropolitan distances in any network configuration, cost-effectively roll out any number of applications and flexibly support all data, storage, voice, and video applications, both transparently or via GFP/SONET/SDH/OTN.

Service providers find WDM infrastructures to be the most cost-effective option for scaling networks especially where bandwidth needs are not uniform. SONET/SDH bandwidth upgrades must be executed in set increments and across every node in the ring. Not only is a service provider forced to sometimes leapfrog to a greater capacity than it immediately needs, the service provider must also pay for the unnecessarily large upgrade across its network. With WDM platforms deployed, the service provider is poised to add capacity in non-uniform fashion only in areas where capacity is needed, as it is needed. With the ADVA Fiber Service Platform deployed in metro cores, this is even true for the optical amplification. ADVAs unique per-group amplification not only offers the industrys only true plug-and-play characteristic for amplified DWDM systems, it also provides low cost and real, pay-as-you-grow capabilities, even for the amplifiers. Service providers affordably assume a proactive approach to addressing escalation in bandwidth requirements among enterprise customers.

Flexible network infrastructures

Optical backhaul via CWDM

Broadband CWDM access technologies are ideally suited for backhauling traffic to the metro core. Traffic originating from DSL access multiplexers (DSLAMs) or provider edge routers can be further multiplexed via TDM technology and economically transported to the carriers point of presence (PoP). Ring structures and innovative transponder designs allow cost efficient protection of the aggregated bandwidth. Service providers tend to prefer DWDM for metro core rings. But, for the most cost-effective access solutions, CWDM can be deployed either as pointto-point feeders or as access rings with hubbed traffic patterns. Service providers add capacity and channels as needed. With respect to access rings, advanced features like single channel add/drop and low-cost path protection are offered, in order to enable the service provider to offer managed services flexibly and with any required availability.
Figure 3: Optical backhaul via CWDM

Single wavelength add/drop granularity Optional single card traffic protection

As illustrated in Figure 3, a CWDM ring enables service providers to: rapidly add new services over existing fiber, easily implement hubbed collector rings to feed the metro core, implement advanced optical features like single-channel add/drop and path protection at very low price points and flexibly support all data, storage, voice and video applications.

Flexible network infrastructures

With advanced WDM platforms like the ADVA Fiber Service Platform, both CWDM and DWDM can be offered under the same management system and even within the same shelves. This includes hybrid solutions that can grow from lowest-cost CWDM to reasonably priced, high-capacity DWDM without traffic interruption.

Cost-efficient fiber relief in regional backbones

Because of their unprecedented cost efficiencies and scalability, state-of-theart DWDM systems initially developed for the metro core are appearing in carrier regional-network deployments historically the domain of expensive, SONET/SDH-minded, long-haul WDM systems. Though having all of the optical functionality necessary to support both legacy and leading-edge Ethernet and storage services, the industrys leading metro DWDM platforms come at lower cost than traditional long-haul, pointto-point WDM systems. Through the use of advanced amplifiers and channel cards with extended dispersion capabilities these metro platforms become a compelling alternative, satisfying a service providers regional transport needs in a more scalable and affordable way. All of a service providers WDM systems fall under a single management system, and there is no need for permanent protocol conversion or back-to-back regenerations. Figure 4: Regional DWDM

Wavelength group add/drop granularity Full band amplification for all wavelengths

As illustrated in Figure 4, deploying regional links with optical amplification and bypass via leading-edge metro DWDM platforms enables service providers to: rapidly scale and add services over existing regional fiber extend networks by hundreds of kilometers, and flexibly support all data, storage, voice, and video applications, including 10GbE LAN PHY.

Flexible network infrastructures

The right solution

A competitive network infrastructure is every service providers most important asset flexibility and scalability being the key to business success. WDM has proven to be the ideal technology to futureproof the network infrastructure. Any recognized protocol is supported, and there are no limitations regarding bit rates, protocols or latency. Ethernet, storage, voice and video services are all efficiently carried over one single platform. ADVA has a long history of providing application-focused WDM solutions that add value to the service provider networks. Covering the entire range from high-speed DWDM pipes to lowest-cost CWDM links ADVA technology allows service providers to affordably transform their metro access and regional networks into demand-responsive infrastructures.

About ADVA
ADVA Optical Networking (FSE: ADV) is a leading global provider of optical and Ethernet networking solutions for rapid and cost-effective provisioning of high-speed data, storage, voice, and video services in the metropolitan area. Leveraging core competencies in optical and Ethernet technologies together with expertise in enterprise applications, ADVA focuses on delivering end-toend solutions from enterprise sites to carrier regional infrastructure. ADVAs carrier-class Fiber Service Platform (FSP) portfolio is explicitly designed to enhance services, simplify networks, and reduce the total cost of ownership. ADVAs solutions have been deployed at over 100 carriers and several thousand enterprises worldwide. For further information about ADVA: www.advaoptical.com.