Alcatel-Lucent introduced Wednesday a more aggressive approach to integrating IP and optical technologies in the service provider backbone in an effort to ease growing strain on core networks.
The so-called Converged Backbone Transformation Solution is part of Alcatel-Lucent’s High Leverage Network strategy, which seeks to create a network that can not only support higher traffic volumes but do it at a lower cost per bit.
Houman Moderres, IP marketing director, said the paradox service providers face is that while their traffic volume is growing due to multimedia applications, their revenue is not growing at the same pace. That, he said, requires them to operate more efficiently than ever before.
“It’s time for a radical rethink of how service providers look at their core networks, bracing for the growth ahead,” Moderres said. “Our Converged Backbone Transformation Solution addresses exactly that.”
The Converged Backbone Transformation Solution seeks to tightly integrate IP and optical transport resources.
“Here’s how the network looks today,” Moderres explained. “There’s an IP infrastructure – edge routers, service routers and core routers – and underneath that there is a transport layer of DWDM equipment. The two layers are connected, they pass a lot of traffic between them, but historically have been very separate in how they have been provisioned and maintained. There is actually very little cross-layer visibility.”
He said the result is that there is a lot of unnecessary packet processing by core routers because the two layers are not talking to each other to set up a more efficient path.
In contrast, Alcatel-Lucent’s Converged Backbone Transformation Solution offers a range of traffic “grooming” options to enable core router traffic to be offloaded onto the optical transport network when needed. These include lambda (or wavelength)-level, port-level and subport-level grooming.
To be fair, some router vendors like Cisco Systems Inc. offer lambda-level grooming, otherwise known as IP over DWDM. Moderres said that’s great and Alcatel-Lucent supports that, but it’s not sufficient. So, the gearmaker has added the more granular options.
In addition, he concedes that IP offload is not a new concept for removing network congestion. However, Alcatel-Lucent’s solution allows the assessment of hot spots to be done more proactively, accurately and, if needed, more frequently.
To enable the increased visibility between the IP and optical layers, Alcatel-Lucent is introducing intelligent control plane integration between the layers. In addition, both optical and IP portfolios are evolving to support 40 and 100 gigabit speeds in the data plane, increasing network capacity. The company also is delivering an integrated network management approach that will provide end-to-end network visibility across both IP and optical domains to the appropriate Network Operation Centers.
The realization of Converged Backbone Transport Solution will be in several phases. Phase one, which is available now, encompasses zero- touch photonics
(DWDM-ROADM), multiterabit service router, IPoDWDM /tunable optics (SR), GMPLS control plane (optics) and cross-layer network planning and design. Phase two, which will be completed in 2010, includes ODUflex, 100GE on SR, 100GE/ODU-4 on optics, multiterabit OTN Switch and EMS/NMS Integration. And, phase three, which will be in 2011, includes Dynamic ODUflex, GMPLS UNI enhancements, cross-layer automation and common management.
Moderres explain there will be overlaps in the phases and enhancements along the way based on service provider feedback. “This a significant journey for service providers and for us,” he said.
