Members of the Optical Internetworking Forum (OIF) have been busy. At their second quarterly meeting, they voted to start work on a specification for virtual network services (VNS) that could become a main driver for deployment of software-defined network (SDN) capabilities in optical transport networks. OIF members also passed two implementation agreements addressing OTNv3 and ENNI (external network-network interface), and completed a 100G carrier requirements document.
VNS are provided by slicing the network, dividing the underlying network resources, and presenting them to the customer or application as a virtual network (VN). The forum will look at potential classification of VNS depending on the customer or application needs for varying levels of control of their VN resources.
“This work on VNS is timely as the network struggles to define SDN services for transport networks,” said Vishnu Shukla of Verizon who is OIF president. “The OIF has a history of recognizing gaps in technology through its member interaction between carriers and vendors.”
The OIF OTNv3 amendment adds support for the latest ITU-T G.709 recommendation on Optical Transport Network (OTN). The amendment’s signaling extensions to the OIF UNI and E-NNI and routing extensions to the E-NNI interfaces add support for the OTU and ODU containers, including flexible and resizeable ODUflex containers, 2.5G and 1.25G tributary slot granularities, single-stage and multi-stage multiplexing, and hitless ODUflex resizing. This enables support for dynamically adjustable client services, e.g., Ethernet, over OTN networks.
The OIF E-NNI Recovery amendment adds support for signaling protection and restoration recovery mechanisms. The amendment’s signaling and routing extensions establish multiple associated connections to provide a recovery mechanism to achieve a requested service level. Supported recovery mechanisms include 1+1 protection, soft and hard rerouting, and shared-mesh restoration that may be combined to provide even higher service levels.
Carrier Working Group members completed a requirements document for “Intermediate Reach 100G DWDM for Metro Type Applications.” The document was created to support ongoing work in the OIF’s Physical Link Layer (PLL) working group to produce requirements and application scenarios related to low cost, reduced power, and high-density approach for next-generation 100G transmission. The requirements document provides a short description of the metro network constraints and architecture evolution and summarizes the OIF Carrier Working Group requirements on such interfaces.
The Forum also said that work on specifications for the CEI-56G project is proceeding rapidly with an interim meeting called to discuss details. CEI-56G will define the next generation of serial electrical interfaces that will enable 400-Gbps roadmaps (see “OIF launches 56-Gbps electrical interface projects” and "OIF approves CEI Rev. 3.1, starts new work on 56-Gbps interfaces").
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Want to learn more about optical SDN innovation? Attend the Lightwave Optical Innovation Summit
The Lightwave Optical Innovation Summit will feature panels and presentations that will illuminate where optical innovation is required in carrier and enterprise/data center networks, what it should look like, and when it might appear. A wide range of experts from the user, technology development, academic, and analyst communities will offer their views on innovation in a variety of areas, including optical SDN. Find out more about the Summit, which will be held in Austin, TX, July 14-16, at the Lightwave Optical Innovation Summit website.