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S T R A T E G I C W H I T E P A P E R

The explosion of packet-based services and applications is spawning a new generation of

transport products and networks using Packet-Optical Transport. The principle strength

of Packet-Optical Transport is in leveraging embedded SDH/SONET network infrastructure,

operations and expertise with a new breed of products that can gracefully migrate toward

100 percent packet traffic. These packet-optimized transport networks have the scale,

operations, resiliency, and performance characteristics to meet the rigorous demandsof emerging consumer and business applications.

Packet-Optical Transport is enabled by converging TDM, packet and WDM technologies.

Standards developments for connection-oriented packet transport also play a major role

in assuring robust transport performance for packet traffic. Packet-Optical Transport is

a powerful network transformation tool for operators migrating toward packet services

from their current SDH/SONET base.

Packet-Optical TransportNetwork Transformation for Emerging Services


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Table of contents

1 Packet-Optical Transport market drivers

1 Packet-Optical Transport: an emerging market segment

2 Packet-Optical Transport systems provide Carrier Ethernet transport

3 Solutions enabled by Packet-Optical Transport

3 Packet-Optical Transport benefits

4 Leveraging todays networks

5 Transport Performance, Resiliency and OAM

5 Connection-oriented packet transport a key enabler

6 Alcatel-Lucent 1850 Transport Service Switch (TSS):

blazing the trail to Packet-Optical Transport

7 A case study in Network Transformation

9 Packet-Optical Transport: enabling seamless network transformation


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Packet-Opt ical Transport | Strategic White Paper 1

Packet-Optical Transport market drivers

There is huge demand for new data-oriented services from all segments of the market. Residentialcustomers expect video, voice and Internet from both their fixed and mobile platforms, with applica-tions such as video streaming, interactive gaming and high-speed Internet access. These applica-tions require huge amounts of bandwidth even when compared with todays standard Internet access.

Increasingly, business customers such as finance institutions are demanding high bandwidth, verylow latency and always-on services.

Industry and public sector (IPS) customers are demanding extremely resilient networks to support theirmission-critical applications. At the same time. they require high bandwidth to transport video data.

As well as requiring more bandwidth, these services increase network complexity and strain networkoperations with requirements such as Service Level agreements with precise Quality of Service behaviorand measurements, low latency and low packet loss, and extremely high network resilience.

The increased revenue generated from these new services is limited and this revenue may be split be-tween the service provider and the applications providers such as YouTube, Google and MySpace.

To support these new services,carriers are faced with a difficultbalance. On one side, costs escalatewith increasing capacity and opera-tions complexity. On the other side,revenues lag behind increasing trafficand costs. Faced with this cost/rev-enue dilemma, service providers musttransform their networks to reducethe traffic transport cost per bit,while maintaining and even increas-

ing service quality.

Packet-Optical Transport allowsservice providers to fully leveragetheir existing SDH/SONET net-work infrastructure and operationsas they migrate their networks fromcircuit-optimized to packet-optimizedtransport. Emerging products andstandards can enable this networktransformation and maintainprofitable services.

Packet-Optical Transport: an emerging market segment

The transport market is rapidly moving toward packet-based services as Ethernet and IP applicationsdominate the application landscape. Service providers must respond with packet-optimized networksthat provide carrier-class transport capabilities and strong operations, administration, and maintenance(OAM) while leveraging their installed SDH/SONET infrastructure.

Figure 1. Traffic growth compared to revenues

Traffic

Revenues

CostsNetwork

transformation!

More

bandwidth

More

services

Packetservices era

Legacyservices era


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Packet-Optical Transport | Strategic White Paper2

The result of these market forces isa new segment of transport productsand networks using Packet-OpticalTransport. Packet-Optical Transportis in the early stages of market pen-etration. Vendors continue to debatethe precise definition of Packet-

Optical Transport, while proposingcompeting products and approaches.However, analysts and equipmentvendors generally agree on the fol-lowing Packet-Optical Transportcharacteristics (see Figure 2):

Converged support for SDH/SONET, Ethernet packet andwavelength division multiplexing (WDM)

Connection-oriented support for TDM and packet services

Robust, carrier-grade OAM for services and transport

Converged support for SDH/SONET and Ethernet or packet is essential because Packet-OpticalTransport systems must support both widely deployed TDM services and traffic from fast-growingIP applications, usually carried over Ethernet. WDM support is needed to efficiently switch trafficat the optics level. Connection-oriented packet transport, embodied in the MPLS-based transportstandards Transport-MPLS (T-MPLS) and MPLS-Transport Profile (MPLS-TP) leveragesthe flexibility of MPLS with transport-oriented OAM features to assure reliable and robust trafficstreams. In addition, end-to-end OAM is critical for network and services management.

Packet-Optical Transport systems provide Carrier Ethernet transport

For carrier-class Ethernet, service providers need a resilient, scalable and flexible transport solutionthat provides a high Quality of Experience (QoE). Service providers need these capabilities to be

cost competitive with existing transport mechanisms that are currently used for application andservice delivery. Key attributes recognized across standards bodies, and enumerated by the MetroEthernet Forum (MEF), include:

Scalability:Both in the number of services supported, such as Ethernet LAN (E-LAN) and Ethernetline (E-line), and of bandwidth. The key to attracting enterprises to Carrier Ethernet is its abilityto vary bandwidth on demand as business needs change.

Protection:Carrier Ethernetshould offer end-to-end, 50-msnetwork-wide restoration capabil-ity in the event of link or nodefailure, allowing service providers

to support traditional TDM traffic. Hard QoS:This fundamentally

changes how Ethernet is delivered.Service providers must delivercommitted information rate (CIR)and extended information rate(EIR), allowing Carrier Ethernet tounderwrite their SLAs. Only thencan service providers guaranteeservices with confidence.

Figure 2. Packet-Optical Transport characteristics

Wavelengthswitching

Packet transportT-MPLS/MPLS-TP

SONET/SDH/PDH

Packet

WDM

TDM

P-OT

Figure 3. Carrier Ethernet

Source: Metro Ethernet Forum


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TDM support:Provided through native support of TDM on the packet-optical system or usingTDM circuit emulation (CES) for pure packet transport

Services management:Carrier-grade service provisioning and OAM

Carrier Ethernet, as dened by the MEF, is rapidly becoming the ubiquitous delivery mechanismfor IP-based applications. Carrier Ethernet combines the traditional efciencies of Ethernet withcarrier-class transport capabilities. Packet-Optical Transport provides a platform for service providers

to transform their existing transport network to one that efciently provides Carrier Ethernet andTDM transport. This platform allows service providers to provide new data services while maximizingreuse of existing networks and minimizing disruption to existing revenue streams and operations.

Solutions enabled by Packet-Optical Transport

Carriers are exploring many solutions that leverage carrier Ethernet and other capabilities of Packet-Optical Transport networks such as:

Mobile backhaul solutions:Mobile applications are the fastest growing segment in the industry.Innovative applications drive bandwidth and require exacting, real-time performance. Fromcell-site to the mobility core, networks are growing in size and sophistication. Whether mobil-ity providers deploy their own backhaul network or buy service from a third party, the mobility

transport network must be transformed to furnish increased bandwidth at a diminishing cost perbit. Packet-Optical Transport provides a flexible vehicle to serve todays predominantly TDM-oriented backhaul with a smooth migration to packet backhaul as Ethernet becomes increasinglyavailable on mobile network equipment.

Triple play solutions:Operators globally are responding to customer demands with bundled voice,data and video services. Clearly, video is the bandwidth driver for these services, and IP services arecritical to cost-effective delivery. Packet-Optical Transport can provide efficient traffic aggregation,regardless of the access methods employed, and deliver this traffic to the appropriate servicepoints in the network for IP routing and other higher layer services.

Business services solutions:Business traffic is increasingly driven by high-speed applications basedon Ethernet and storage area networking. Yet businesses retain a high demand for TDM-basedservices. Packet-Optical Transport, with its ability to service TDM and packet traffic, is wellsuited to provide traditional, leased-line services as well as packet services.

Industry and public sector (IPS) solutions:Many large organizations in industry and public sectors,such as utilities, government, and large corporations deploy networks for their internal mission-critical communications. These networks can be leveraged to offer services to other corporationsor government entities. Packet-Optical Transport solutions offer the flexibility to offer high-bandwidth TDM and packet services to multiple customer organization with high reliabilityand resiliency.

Packet-Optical Transport offers efficient, scalable traffic aggregation for packet and TDM traffic witha smooth migration path from todays SDH/SONET networks to networks optimized for packet traffic.

Packet-Optical Transport benefits

The new breed of packet-oriented applications driving todays networks demand a level of serviceand scaling that have pushed the performance limits of traditional packet networks, such as layer 3routed networks (IP) and Ethernet. Certainly one can counter that there is nothing traditionalabout todays carrier-class router and switched Ethernet networks. With the widespread deploymentof IP/MPLS networks, carriers have a proven technology available from multiple established vendorsto serve the burgeoning demand for high performance services based on IP routing. Likewise, therise of carrier Ethernet platforms, using MPLS and/or Ethernet enhancements standardized byvarious bodies such as the IEEE and ITU-T and championed by the Metro Ethernet Forum, offersservice providers a rich set of options when building layer 2 Ethernet service networks.


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The functionality of IP/MPLS and dedicated Ethernet service networks comes with a price as equip-ment becomes more expensive and, more importantly, operations systems and procedures becomemore complex. Likewise, deployments are often overlay networks that do not take full advantageof the service providers installed base.

Packet-Optical Transport melds the technological benefits of todays MPLS and Ethernet advanceswith the proven reliability and operations of embedded SDH/SONET networks. A key aspect of this

approach is in structuring an efficient, packet-aware transport layer with a feature-rich, service layer(Figure 4).

Figure 4. Packet-Optical Transport and service layers

With this approach, Packet-Optical Transport devices build out an efficient, packet-aware aggrega-tion network for metro and core transport. Packet and TDM traffic flow over this Layer 1/Layer 2network and are delivered to the service network layer as appropriate. IP edge routers in the servicenetwork provide higher level functions, such as deep packet inspection and other sophisticatedfeatures, to offer service-aware application features and subscriber management.

Key advantages of Packet-Optical Transport are the ability to leverage the installed base of SDH/SONET networks, transport operations approaches and management systems. There are also keystandards emerging for connection-oriented packet transport that combine the flexibility of packetswitching with connection-oriented transport for optimal treatment of packet and TDM traffic.

Leveraging todays networks

The ubiquity of SDH/SONET networks is testimony to the success of the products and standardsdriven by the need for high capacity, and reliable and deterministic transport. With its TDM orien-tation, SDH/SONET met the needs of delay-sensitive, real-time traffic such as voice and providedhigh bandwidth trunking for data services such as frame relay, ATM and IP router networks.

IP edge

service/subscribermanagement

Residential

Business

CPE Access

Service network

Layer 3 (IP)

OSI layers

Protocolrichness

Bandwidthefficiency

L7

L1

P-OT

Metroaggregation

Coreaggregation

IP/MPLS

core

Access

P-OT

Fiber

User

Application

IPTV, 3G storage, and so on

Efficientaggregation

Rich subscriber,application and

service awareness

IP routingand MPLSswitchig

Efficienttransport

Fiber


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In response to the growing demand for Ethernet services, SDH/SONET platforms evolved intomulti-service provisioning platforms (MSPP), offering Ethernet over SDH/SONET (EoS). MSPPscan provide carrier Ethernet transport with the SDH/SONET layer providing carrier-class capabilitiesfor OAM, manageability, and resilience. These MSPPs enjoyed tremendous success in the marketas service providers were able to leverage their installed SDH/SONET networks. The MSPP modelworks well when TDM traffic is dominant, but it has scaling limitations with Ethernet traffic growth.

Packet-Optical Transport represents the next step in the evolution of the transport network as trafficis increasingly dominated by packet services, principally Ethernet. Well-designed Packet-OpticalTransport platforms, with the ability to switch TDM and packet traffic with equal efficiency, allowservice providers to migrate smoothly from TDM-optimized SDH/SONET and MSPP transportnetworks to packet-optimized transport networks.

Transport Performance, Resiliency and OAM

The IP/MPLS and Carrier Ethernet solutions for packet transport require increasing levels of perfor-mance and resiliency with the growing sophistication of their associated standards and architecturalapproaches. This sophistication comes with a price as equipment becomes more expensive and, moreimportantly, operations systems and procedures become more complex.

With this rich set of options the issue remains what is the optimal network transformation pathfor the service provider with a large installed base of SDH/SONET, including MSPPs, and the asso-ciated transport operations infrastructure and expertise for these networks? An IP/MPLS or carrierEthernet approach means deploying an overlay network in addition to the existing SDH/SONETinfrastructure. This can mean duplication of services, network resources and operations systems andpersonnel and potentially stranded or under-utilized resources that will drive the operators costs higher.A Packet-Optical Transport approach allows for a smoother migration. By introducing Packet-OpticalTransport platforms, the service provider can support a mix of TDM and packet services while lever-aging their existing SDH/SONET network and operations infrastructure. Packet-Optical Transportplatforms leverage existing transport-oriented OAM for service performance and resiliency andintegrate Carrier Ethernet features and innovative connection-oriented packet transport mechanisms,such as T-MPLS, to minimize costs and complexity. For rich service features, a service-aware IP/MPLSnetwork can be deployed at service points rather than a wide deployment for the dual transport andservice layer roles.

This maximum leverage strategy can be implemented by deploying Packet-Optical Transport inareas of high packet service growth to augment the existing SDH/SONET and MSPP network.Over time, the Packet-Optical Transport platforms can be populated with higher percentages ofpacket interfaces as the traffic mix migrates in this inevitable direction. The Packet-Optical Trans-port network, with its ability to efficiently transport and manage TDM and packet traffic, evolvesfrom todays mix of TDM and packet services towards the network of the future supporting featurerich packet transport.

Connection-oriented packet transport a key enabler

Efficient transport of connection-oriented TDM traffic and connectionless packet traffic on a commonnetwork requires a new transport paradigm: connection-oriented packet transport. Connection-orientedpacket transport combines the bandwidth efficiencies and flexibility of packet switching with TDMstraffic routing efficiency, transport-oriented OAM and service quality assurance to create a powerful,flexible transport network. There are two competing connection-oriented, packet transport approachesin the industry today: the MPLS-based approach, T-MPLS/MPLS-TP, and Provider Backbone BridgingTraffic Engineering (PBB-TE).


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The goal of T-MPLS/MPLS-TP isto provide connection-orientedtransport for packet and TDMservices over optical networksleveraging the widely deployedMPLS technology. Key to this effortis the definition and implementation

of OAM and resiliency features toensure the capabilities needed forcarrier-grade transport networks scalable operations, high availability,performance monitoring and multi-domain support.

Following the approval of the first version of the ITU-T recommendations on T-MPLS, the IETF andITU-T jointly agreed to work together to extend MPLS protocols to meet transport network require-ments to ensure a smooth convergence of MPLS-based packet transport technology. A Joint WorkingTeam (JWT) was formed between the IETF and the ITU-T to achieve mutual alignment of require-ments and protocols and to analyze the options for MPLS-based transport standards progress.

On the basis of the JWT activity, it was agreed that future standardization work will focus on definingMPLS-Transport Profile (MPLS-TP) within the IETF using the same formal requirements that drovethe development of T-MPLS. In parallel, the ITU-T will align the existing T-MPLS Recommendationsto the MPLS-TP work in the IETF.

T-MPLS/MPLS-TP share many of the same goals as PBB-TE, an effort currently in the IEEE standardsprocess and scheduled for ratification in the same timeframe as MPLS-TP. PBB-TE, also known asProvider Backbone Transport (PBT), and T-MPLS/MPLS-TP are both connection-oriented trans-port technologies with OAM and protection capabilities. There are some important differencesbetween the two approaches. PBT is focused on Ethernet support, while T-MPLS/MPLS-TP supportsall client payloads. PBT supports point-to-point connections, and T-MPLS/MPLS-TP supports

point-to-point and multipoint operations. There are, likewise, some differences in supportedprotection mechanisms.

While both T-MPLS/MPLS-TP and PBT are being pursued in the industry, T-MPLS/MPLS-TPleverages the mature and proven MPLS technology. The T-MPLS standard is implemented todayand offers investment protection for the future as it will be aligned with MPLS-TP.

Alcatel-Lucent 1850 Transport Service Switch (TSS): blazing the trailto Packet-Optical Transport

The Alcatel-Lucent 1850 Transport Service Switch (TSS) product family meets Packet-Optical

Transport market challenges. The 1850 TSS-320 was the first Packet-Optical Transport productintroduced in the industry. The Alcatel-Lucent 1850 TSS product family now spans the Packet-Optical Transport network from the metro and regional core to the CPE with MEF CarrierEthernet certified platforms. These products include:

Alcatel-Lucent 1850 TSS-320 and its compact chassis version, the 1850 TSS-160, which share acommon software release and hardware modules:metro- and regional-core switches for backboneand aggregation applications

Alcatel-Lucent 1850 TSS-100:a metro-edge and core switch with rich TDM and Ethernet servicefeatures for scaling multi-service provisioning platform (MSPP) networks with a transition toPacket-Optical Transport

Figure 5. MPLS-based transport drivers

Need

Standardized connection-orientedpacket transport technology

Transport operations

Ethernet and multiservices Packet traffic growth

T-MPLS/MPLS-TP

Packet networkIP/MPLS

Circuit networkSONET/SDH


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Alcatel-Lucent 1850 TSS-40:a metro-edge switch for packet-ring transport

Alcatel-Lucent 1850 TSS-5:a metro-edge and CPE switch for multi-service Ethernet and TDMaggregation with circuit emulation services (CES) support

Alcatel-Lucent 1850 TSS-3:a CPE device for intelligent Ethernet demarcation, offering end-to-endmanagement and Quality of Service (QoS) support for carrier Ethernet services

Managed by the Alcatel-Lucent 1350 OMS, the 1850 TSS products enable a seamless migration fromSDH/SONET and MSPP networks to a converged, Packet-Optical Transport network that efficientlyhandles todays mix of TDM and packet traffic and gracefully scales to tomorrows predominantlypacket traffic profile.

Figure 6. Alcatel-Lucent 1850 TSS

The Alcatel-Lucent 1850 TSS products have been developed with attention to space utilization, powerconsumption and in compliance with global eco-standards for materials and packing. These platformsare making gains with next-generation electronics and optics components as well as software- andhardware-driven power and cooling improvements. For example, the Alcatel-Lucent 1850 TSS-320demonstrates a 65 percent power reduction on a power-per-transported-bit basis compared to MSPP

platforms and can save up to 50 percent floor space.

The 1850 TSS product breadth and Alcatel-Lucent innovations establish Alcatel-Lucent as the leaderin Packet-Optical Transport. The 1850 TSS core switches feature the unique universal agnosticswitch, switching TDM and packet traffic in their native formats for maximum flexibility and scale.The 1850 TSS-320/160 implements the industrys first standards-based, connection-oriented packettransport protocol, T-MPLS. Alcatel-Lucent has taken a leadership role in implementing MPLS-basedpacket transport and is fully committed to MPLS and MPLS-TP and will continue to develop a fullrange of products based on common specifications, while working closely with service providers andother vendors to ensure interoperability.

A case study in Network Transformation

A recent deployment of the 1850 TSS by an established fixed network operator provides a demon-stration of the advantages of a Packet-Optical Transport-enabled network transformation in:

Meeting rising demand for packet services

Maintaining highly protable TDM services

Integration with existing SDH infrastructure and operations

Positioning the network for new services

P-OT platform

Universalswitching

WDM

1850 TSSTDM

Packet/

MPLS


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This service provider had an installed SDH/MSPP base and was experiencing high growth in packetservice demand, especially in dense metro areas. In addition to business and residential services, theprovider has major positions in providing mobility backhaul, which in the near term translates intoincreased E1 demands with the potential of sparking Ethernet backhaul requirements as mobilityoperators begin to deploy Ethernet enabled base stations. The provider was also anxious to positionitself for entry in video and IPTV services for the future.

After considering several alternatives, the service provider chose to transform its network using the1850 TSS, seeding the network with Packet-Optical Transport devices in high-growth areas andtaking advantage of interworking with the installed SDH base. For very high-growth and trafficconcentration areas, the DWDM capability of the 1850 TSS provides capacity and scale. At theappropriate points, the Packet-Optical Transport network hands traffic off to an IP/MPLS networkfor higher level services, thus providing cost-efficient aggregation and transport. With the 1850 TSS,the service provider was able to keep the transport operations paradigm, allowing integration withexisting operations systems and procedures.

Figure 7. Network transformation with 1850 TSS, Packet-Optical Transport

With the 1850 TSS, this provider was able to meet high growth demands for packet and TDM servicesand anticipate demand for new services. This scalable network fully leverages their existing networkand management infrastructure with no stranded resources.

IP DSLAM

Business

WDM

Home

Internet

VoIPIPTV

Carrier-grade OAM, resilience and management

IP/MPLS

Metro

P-OT

Mobile

SDH/MSPP

1850 TSS

P-OT


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Packet-Optical Transport: enabling seamless network transformation

The emerging Packet-Optical Transport market segment is driven by burgeoning IP and Ethernetapplications and services. These high-volume applications require packet-optimized transport withcarrier-class performance and OAM.

With Packet-Optical Transport, carriers can leverage their embedded SDH/SONET network infra-

structure, operations and expertise in migrating toward 100 percent packet transport. These newnetworks, combining TDM, packet and WDM capabilities, have the scale, OAM, resiliency andperformance to meet the rigorous demand of services critical to success in the market today andin the future. Standards development for T-MPLS/MPLS-TP will assure robust features for OAM,resiliency and full interworking with IP/MPLS service layers.

The Alcatel-Lucent 1850 TSS is a pioneering Packet-Optical Transport platform offering modelsranging from the metro-regional core to the customer premises. With full featured packet and TDMservices, innovative platform architectures, and carrier-class OAM and resiliency, the Alcatel-Lucent1850 TSS family fulfills the rigorous requirements for the migration from SDH/SONET to Packet-Optical Transport. Our market position and standards leadership in SDH/SONET transport andMPLS networking make Alcatel-Lucent a good choice for moving into the future with Packet-

Optical Transport.


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www.alcatel-lucent.com Alcatel, Lucent, Alcatel-Lucent and the Alcatel-Lucent logoare trademarks of Alcatel-Lucent. All other trademarks are the property of their respective owners.The information presented is subject to change without notice. Alcatel-Lucent assumes no responsibilityfor inaccuracies contained herein. Copyright 2008 Alcatel-Lucent. All rights reserved.CAR7526080907 (09)

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