[UPDATED] Six months after unveiling the PTX Series Packet Transport Switch at OFC/NFOEC this past March, a source at Juniper Networks (NYSE: JNPR) says the product is well on its way towards initial deliveries in the first quarter of next year. The system will be part of an increase in the number of Juniper Network platforms with 100-Gigabit Ethernet (100GbE) capabilities.
Juniper Networks has already delivered beta units of the PTX Series Packet Transport Switch to six customers and has one sale, according to Luc Ceuppens, vice president of product marketing. The company is emphasizing speed, scale, and economy in marketing the product, according to Ceuppens, who notes that it has to compete with circuit-switched network approaches.
The system will feature both 40GbE and 100GbE interface options, both enabled via CFP modules in a two-port per line card configuration. Ceuppens says the company has significant interest in moving the 40GbE capabilities into a smaller form factor such as the QSFP, noting that the 40GbE option doesn’t effectively maximize potential slot space compared to 100GbE line cards that are the same size.
[UPDATE] The initial versions of the PTX Series Packet Transport Switch will feature a separate optical transponder shelf, which will leverage technology from ADVA Optical Networking. Ceuppens revealed that in addition to working in-house on integrating the optical transport features into the main system, Juniper Networks is also working on management integration of transponders that will be housed in the external shelf. Contrary to what was reported in the original version of this story, Juniper will not develop its own external shelf as an alternative to the ADVA-enabled external shelf, Ceuppens has told Lightwave in an email.
Meanwhile, the company also is expanding its 100GbE capabilities to other platforms as well. The company has offered 100GbE interfaces on this T1600 core routers since last October. Verizon has used the system in its 100GbE deployments, paired with Ciena 6500 Family optical transport systems (see, for example, “Verizon to deploy 100 Gigabit Ethernet on Paris-to-Frankfurt route”). Ceuppens reveals that Juniper Networks has other 100GbE interface customers; in fact, some customers are already aggregating 100GbE links.
Ceuppens says the T4000 routers will have 100GbE capabilities by the end of this year, Meanwhile, the first quarter of 2012 will see not only 100GbE-enabled PTX Series Packet Transport Systems, but also availability of 100GbE interfaces on the company’s MX Series of routers, Ceuppens says. The company has qualified transceivers from Finisar, Opnext, and Santur, Ceuppens says; the Santur units comply to the 10x10 MSA.
Ceuppens adds that Juniper Networks is seeing healthy interest in 40GbE interfaces as well, particularly within data center applications but elsewhere as well.