Packet ring access

Telecommunications Americas, Dec, 2004

Luminous

www.luminous.com

After a slow start, carrier interest in RPR (resilient packet ring) is gaining momentum. While cable operators were the first to take on RPR, it's clear that with the ratification of the IEEE 802.17 standard, giant PTTs and RBOCs are now taking notice. And while the core and metro networks are being built out with MPLS and RPR, the next frontier will be the access network. To accommodate such growth, Luminous is taking multi-service RPR networking to the edge with its PacketWave E100 family of Packet Ring Access platforms that will enable service providers to offer multi-service applications over Ethernet-based MANs. Available in two models--E110 and the E150--these new platforms extend the benefits of RPR/MPLS to the access network. Deployed at the CO, MTU or as a premises-based solution, the E-Series allows service providers to offer SONET-like robustness with Ethernet economics.

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The E110 supports a variety of Ethernet services providing four fixed 10/1000BaseT user interface ports and an additional slot for either four additional 10/1000BaseT ports or one Gigabit Ethernet port. Then, the E150 supports both legacy T1/E1 and Ethernet services with four fixed T1/E1 user interface ports and, software selectable, either four 10/1000BaseT ports or one GigE port. On the network side, both products can be deployed in an RPR topology supporting East and West facing 1 Gigabit ring interfaces, providing sub-50 ms ring protection. Alternatively, the E110 and E150 can be deployed in a linear topology for MTU applications. As a multi-service packet architecture platform, the PacketWave E family can deliver a mix of Ethernet-based services (TLS, VPN, Internet access and E-LAN) and T1/E1-based services (TDM private line, TDM grooming/cross connect and PBX trunking). By offering CoS assignment, carriers can prioritize each traffic flow. Available now, both of these new platforms are interoperable with PacketWave M-Series, C-Series and other E-Series platforms that scale from the customer edge to the metro core, supporting up to 254 nodes per ring. Each of these platforms can be configured, provisioned and managed from a single Luminous Management System.