Ciena Corp. has unveiled its plan to transform Ethernet into a carrier-grade solution. As part of the news this week, the company also introduced two new product lines under its FlexSelect architecture – the 3000 Ethernet Access Series and 5000 Packet Services Series.
“Our flexible, service-aware portfolio and intelligent control plane eliminate the cost, scalability and management challenges of alternatives such as standalone Ethernet switches, data upgrades to legacy SONET/SDH equipment or proliferating routers everywhere,” said Gary Smith, president and CEO of Ciena. “By integrating packet transport, expanding Ethernet access market coverage and bringing traditional resiliency and management to Ethernet networks, we are moving beyond point products to create robust, end-to-end carrier Ethernet networks that enable service providers to evolve Ethernet from a network building block to a foundation for building their business.”
As for the new products, the 3000 Ethernet Access Series is aimed at expanding the service coverage of Ethernet to all business locations, whether served by copper or fiber network connections, on-net or off-net, while providing remote network monitoring and services control. It consists of Ethernet network termination equipment that resides on customer premises to provide managed Ethernet demarcation between carrier and enterprise networks, and scalable, pay-as-you-grow NTE aggregators located in central offices or distribution hubs to aggregate traffic from multiple NTE devices, minimizing access network costs. Certified compliant to MEF-9 and MEF-14 specifications, the initial products in the 3000 Series are designed to enable E-Line and E-LAN services for business applications such as Internet access, IP-VPN access and interoffice LAN connectivity over any access media.
The 5000 Packet Services Series, meanwhile, is targeted at high-performance business services, residential broadband and 2G/3G wireless backhaul. The first product in this line is the CN 5060 Multiservice Carrier Ethernet Platform that optimizes delivery of any service over Ethernet in metro and edge aggregation networks.
The company’s existing 4000 Transport and Switching Series is also expected to be expanded in short order with additional multiservice aggregation and transport products featuring multiservice programmable hardware for on-demand, service-selectable networking.
The FlexSelect Architecture already has been implemented by telco and cable service providers, enterprises and government organizations across the globe as a foundation for practical migration to software-defined, service-enabled transport networks. The FlexSelect for Ethernet solution builds on that approach to network transition using Ethernet as a vehicle for more cost-effective network and service convergence – fulfilling performance, management and economic requirements for convergence while simplifying IP/Ethernet service architectures. It can allow for the delivery of IP and Ethernet services over any access media and enable the convergence of any service over deterministic, connection-oriented Ethernet transport, including:
• Mesh-based, multilayer control plane – enabling self-healing network automation and performance optimization for Ethernet networks.
• Multilayer network and service-level management, which enables proactive network planning, fault isolation and SLA reporting for Ethernet services.
• Integration of Ethernet, enhanced OTN and reconfigurable DWDM – enabling reliable, flexible, cost-effective and manageable carrier solutions that surpasses the reliability and management of any native Ethernet switched or IP-routed solution.
• Wavelength flexibility – optimizing bandwidth utilization by allocating as much or as little capacity to Ethernet and other services as needed within a wavelength, including built-in granular, sub-wavelength switching down to 155mbps level to maximize bandwidth utilization.
Ciena Corp. www.ciena.com
