Business need

Network operators have deployed complex architectures including Add/Drop Multiplexers (ADMs), digital cross-connects and Wavelength Division Multiplexing (WDM) throughout their metro and access networks to offer their enterprise customers services from 1.5 Mb/s to 622 Mb/s. With the growth in bandwidth and Ethernet, operators need to simplify and converge their networks to support new Ethernet services without sacrificing legacy revenue streams.

Challenges

There are three key issues: support for new services, scalability, and cost. Legacy networks are not designed to support new Ethernet services and traditional services simultaneously. In many cases these networks require a separate, expensive, overlay network, or a forklift replacement, which can interrupt revenue streams. Even more difficult is planning a service mix to support your customers’ needs, knowing the service mix changes everyday. Without flexible migration solutions, supporting new Ethernet services can be expensive and time consuming—time your customers may use to shop around for a new service provider.

Solution

Network operators require flexible solutions that can incrementally scale and add new services, while controlling cost. Ciena’s FlexSelect™ Architecture offers a comprehensive approach to  evolve networks efficiently as customer demand drives new, higher bandwidth Ethernet services. Additionally, the programmable approach to optical services and the adoption of ITU G.709 (OTN) for network transparency allows operators to offer a standards-based hand-off across platforms and other carriers’ networks.

Ciena's offerings

Ciena's CN 4200® FlexSelect Advanced Services Platform Family was built from the ground up to support services from 10 Mb/s to 40 Gb/s, regardless of virtually any protocol. With its hybrid electrical and optical ROADM, OTN-based sub-wavelength grooming and fully programmable optical line cards, the inherent architecture supports legacy, new Ethernet services, storage and video services with full transparency and optimum service flexibility. Ciena’s CoreStream® Agility DWDM line systems supplement the CN 4200 with programmable optical line cards for regional, long-haul and ultra long-haul line systems. Our CoreDirector® Multiservice Optical Switch enables switching architecture automation for services from 10 Mb/s to 10 Gb/s, with DS-3/STS-1 level granularity, to be switched automatically in the core network and protected from multiple network failures with 50 ms restoration.

Benefits

• Built-in WDM, eROADM and optical ROADM with fully programmable optical ports
• 66% fewer spares
• 78% improvement in wavelength utilization due to eROADM
• 60% TCO reduction
• Industry’s only fully programmable optical ports
• Industry’s most reliable automated networking solution that enables 50 ms restoration during catastrophic failures