Carrier claims success in deploying 100 Gbps optical wavelength on the AT&T network in Dallas area using open ROADM technology.
AT&T claimed success in its move to redesign a network switch with software control and open hardware specifications.
Andre Fuetsch, CTO at AT&T Labs, in a blog post said the telecom operator recently implemented a 100-gigabit per second optical wavelength on a production network using open reconfigurable optical add/drop multiplexer-compliant technology in the Dallas area. The move included the connection of two IP multiprotocol label switching routers with transponders and ROADMs from Ciena and Fujitsu.
Fuetsch claimed the implementation was the industry’s first multivendor interoperability for optical transport equipment carrying live customer traffic, with the ROADMs supporting “full software control according to the published open ROADM specification.” Ciena and Fujitsu are both part of AT&T’s Domain 2.0 program.
The carrier noted NetConf/YANG application program interfaces and information models defined in the open ROADM specification were used to control and manage the optical network, with the 100G wavelength provisioned using a software-defined networking ROADM controller developed by Fujitsu and integrated into the AT&T enhanced control, orchestration, management and policy platform.
In describing the initial ROADM plans earlier this year, Fuetsch noted “In most ROADMs today, there are particular ‘lanes’ dedicated to each wavelength of laser light that comes into the switch. You can’t easily move signals to less congested lanes if traffic gets heavy on the original path. That’s where software control comes in. Software-controlled ROADMs can automatically detect and adjust bandwidth. They can move traffic to different lanes as needed. These software-controlled ROADMs can turn capacity up or down, route around trouble and come back online quickly when there’s a failure.”
The platform is being used to help the carrier deal with growing data traffic demand on its wireless network, which Fuetsch said grew 150,000% between 2007 – just prior to the launch of Apple’s iPhone device – and 2015.
“ROADMs are one of the workhorses pulling that growing load,” Fuetsch explained. “We need the efficiency, innovation and cost savings that come from open ROADM specs to continue delivering the network performance our customers expect. I’m thrilled to say our team pulled it off.”
AT&T previously stated it would open the ROADM specifications in a move to broaden its vendor portfolio, which is currently limited to just a handful of “specialized hardware manufacturers,” and limits interoperability. By opening the specifications through the Open ROADM initiative, AT&T is looking to speed up the pace of deployment.
“In a major metro area like Chicago or Dallas, for example, we’ve generally had to rely on a single vendor’s equipment to manage all optical traffic in that area,” Fuetsch said. “You can’t mix and match according to capability or price. That needs to change.”
The ROADM initiative is expected to grow, with the carrier stating plans to expand the ROADM platform across its network in support of new services like its recently launched DirecTV Now offering.
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