Alcatel-Lucent Debuts 100 GigE Edge Intelligence

Alcatel-Lucent introduced a 100 Gigabit Ethernet interface and a 10-port 10 Gigabit Ethernet interface, both with massive queuing, classification and traffic management capabilities, for its 7750 Service Router and 7450 Ethernet Service Switch (ESS). Operators who have deployed Alcatel-Lucent service routers since 2004 can add the new line cards and immediately multiply capacity up to 100 Gbps per slot , double the current 50 Gbps maximum.


The new 100 Gigabit Ethernet capabilities are enabled by Alcatel-Lucent's custom FP2 chipset (launched July 2008), which is capable of sophisticated and optimized network processing and traffic management at speeds up to 100 Gbps. The FP2 chipset integrates 112 array cores for 95,000 MIPs performance and is implemented in 90nm process technology. The silicon was developed in house.


Alcatel-Lucent's FP2 silicon innovations and enhancements in thermal efficiency reduce power consumption to levels approaching four watts per gigabit with the new 100 Gigabit Ethernet interface modules, a significant improvement compared to the 10 Gigabit and 40 Gigabit alternatives widely deployed today.


Alcatel-Lucent said the edge of service provider network is where most of the intelligence in the network resides, and where determinations should be made about how individual services, such as high-definition video, need to be handled to ensure an optimal experience for end-users. The traffic management capabilities of the FP2 chipset could enable "high touch" edge & metro services via a single 100GigE customer-facing port or high-densities of 10 GigE ports. For instance, massively scalable queuing on the new interface cards could be used to guarantee real-time video and voice application delivery. One 7750 Service Router could support 160,000 users @ 6.25 Mbps sustained per-user, each with 8 queues.


Alcatel-Lucent noted that other 100 Gbps announcements for other vendors have been limited to core IP transport.


The new line cards will be available for demonstrations in 4Q 2009 and commercially in mid-2010.


Alcatel-Lucent has shipped more than 35,000 IP/MPLS service router portfolio systems since 2004, resulting in an installed base of more than 270 service provider customers in 100+ countries.
http://www.alcatel-lucent.com