Alcatel introduced an MPLS-based Metro Ethernet switch designed for SLA-enabled Ethernet VPN services. Alcatel said its goal in developing this new platform was to deliver the same capabilities that Service Routers provide at the IP/MPLS provider edge, but optimized for Ethernet. These capabilities include per-service QoS, per-service OA&M, and per-service accounting.
The Alcatel 7450 Ethernet Service Switch uses the same hardware architecture and IP/MPLS control plane as the Alcatel 7750 Service Router. MPLS capabilities are offered on every port at any speed from 10 Mbps to 10 GigE. Per service hierarchical QoS is supported with 200 ms ingress and egress buffering. Ethernet services that could be supported include Virtual Leased Lines (VLL), Virtual Private LAN Service (VPLS), and Service Aware Ethernet Aggregation (such as DSL aggregation). It also provides sub-50ms fast re-route capability.
Two configurations of the Alcatel 7450 are initially offered: a 7-slot chassis (2 switch fabrics and 5 I/O cards) with a 100 or 200 Gbps switch capacity; or a 1-slot integrated system (1x I/O) with a 20 Gbps switch capacity.
Telia Sonera will use the Alcatel 7450 Ethernet Service Switch to build its next generation metro network. The service provider will deploy the 7450 ESS to expand its MPLS network into the metro from the Service Edge. This Alcatel solution allows TeliaSonera to deliver scalable, reliable and predictable Ethernet services with guaranteed Service Level Agreements (SLAs), including VPLS and VLL. The network will also be used to provide Ethernet/MPLS aggregation for DSL-based consumer services.
The company is also introducing the Alcatel 1662 Packet Ring Switch, which uses Layer 2 MPLS-enabled Resilient Packet Ring (RPR) technology to deliver point-to-point and multipoint Ethernet services with end-to-end QoS across multiple rings or a mesh network. It offers Ethernet and Gigabit Ethernet interfaces and could be used for Ethernet aggregation and is also fully compatible with existing SDH transport infrastructure. http://www.alcatel.com
- In April 2004, Alcatel rolled out a number of hardware and software enhancements to its Alcatel 7750 IP/MPLS edge routing platform, including a new hierarchical QoS model, greater scalability and support for VPLS, new traffic engineering capabilities, channelized DS3 and OC-12 interfaces, new CALEA capabilities, a new mid-range chassis, CWDM capabilities, and support for 1000BaseTX SFP.
- The Alcatel 7750 Service Router, which is based on technology acquired from TiMetra Networks a year ago, is carrier-class routing platform currently deployed by over 19 service providers. Recent customer wins include Iberdrola (Spain) and Allstream (formerly AT&T Canada). Alcatel previously offered 3 different models, scaling from a single-slot 20 Gbps box to a 12-slot 400 Gbps chassis. The new model is a 7-slot unit with 200 Gbps of fabric/system capacity.
- Alcatel's new hierarchical QoS model uses 3 levels of child/parent scheduling queues on the line cards, enabling lower priority traffic to burst to higher rates whenever higher priority traffic falls below a committed rate. Alcatel said this ATM-like capability was enabled by the flexibility its network processors, without requiring it to re-spin ASICs.
