Isocore Demonstrates Integration of MPLS and Carrier Ethernet Services across Domain Boundaries

Business Wire, Oct 21, 2008

Isocore verifies the leading edge interoperability of technologies of GELS, Inter-AS PCE, and Mobile Backhaul

WASHINGTON -- Isocore today announced that delegates will witness the first ever interoperability of GMPLS controlled Ethernet label switching (GELS) enabling cost-effective Ethernet transport of time-sensitive real-time services. In addition, key network equipment and test vendors successfully proved interworking of critical technologies, mobile backhaul (aggregating the Radio Access Network (RAN)) across an MPLS transport, Ethernet operation, administration and maintenance (OAM), point-to-multipoint traffic engineering (P2MP), and IPv6 MPLS VPNs.

The MPLS2008 public interoperability demonstration, taking place on October 23, at Isocore Interworking Lab in Reston, will also present the first ever demonstration of path computation across Autonomous Systems (Inter-AS) boundaries using the IETF PCE-based model for establishing traffic engineered MPLS Label Switched Paths (LSP). The co-existence of the GELS and PCE-PCC in one network offers providers the flexibility to dynamically control their Carrier Ethernet, and Large IP/MPLS networks that cross the administrative boundaries.

"It is very encouraging to see the first public GELS demonstration, it shows that a major networking technology has been brought into the GMPLS family," said Loa co-chair of the IETF MPLS working group. "It is fully possible that GMPLS will be the vehicle by which Ethernet finally becomes a data plane for large carrier networks."

In addition, the test event extensively focused on verifying the interworking of Provider Bridge (PB) and Provider Backbone Bridge (PBB) with MPLS Virtual Private LAN Services (VPLS). Considering that Inter-AS traffic engineering is a critical technology of interest to service providers, Isocore built an extensive test topology to investigate different scenarios for extending hierarchical-VPLS service across ASes using multi-segment-pseudowires (MS-PW) and Inter-AS LSP supporting IPv6/IPv4 IPTV subscribers emulated by test vendors. Interworking scenario of LDP-BGP VPLS was also tested.

Vendors participating in the Isocore testing included Agilent (NYSE: A), Alcatel-Lucent (Euronext Paris and NYSE: ALU), Cisco (NASDAQ: CSCO), Ericsson (NASDAQ: ERIC), Foundry Networks (NASDAQ: FDRY), IXIA (NASDAQ: XXIA), IP Infusion (independently operated subsidiary of ACCESS Co., Ltd.), Marben Products, NEC, Mu Dynamics, Juniper Networks (NASDAQ: JNPR), Redback Networks (an Ericsson company (NASDAQ: ERIC)), NTT-AT, on-site participation and support by NTT and KDDI R&D Labs.