Network Visibility 2017 - CenturyLink

To really understand how your application is performing it is critical to gain end-to-end visibility across the network, says Andy Huckridge, Director of Service Provider Solutions at Gigamon. You have to be able to measure performance across multiple layers and network boundaries.

Customers are more demanding these days, says Drew Flechsig, Director of Network Policy, Traffic and Security for CenturyLink.  Customers want visibility at Layer 2, 3 and up through the OSI stack.

Series produced by Converge! Network Digest and sponsored by Gigamon.

See video: https://youtu.be/juZgYIrw2xM

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Pascal Menezes, CTO, MEF – Automating Carrier Networks

Pascal Menezes, CTO, MEF provides an update on key MEF initiatives to enable orchestrated Third Network services over automated networks.  He notes that MEF is seeing “huge demand” to develop “East-West” APIs  for orchestration across multiple providers. MEF also is working on “North-South” APIs to orchestrate services over multiple technology domains within a single operator.  Stay tuned for news in the coming months about MEF’s expanded certification programs centered on orchestrated services and open APIs.

Filmed at PTC'17 in Honolulu, Hawaii.

See video:  https://youtu.be/oVYvbaq4djA

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Juniper Unveils Unite Cloud Framework for Hybrid Environments

Juniper Networks introduced "Unite Cloud" - a data center framework for helping enterprises to simplify the creation and management of hybrid, multi-cloud environments.  The solution complements the previously announced Unite Campus and Unite Cloud-Enabled Branch solutions to further broaden Juniper's Unite architecture.

Juniper's Unite Cloud is aimed at building and managing many virtualized elements spread across multiple geographies and cloud environments.

The framework includes the latest version of Juniper's Junos Space Network Director data center management tool, provides advanced automation for simple management, allowing networks to scale securely with analytics that enable an enhanced experience to visualize, analyze and control the network. This provides the ability to to configure and visualize multiple data centers through a single pane of glass, relieving network administrators from performing manual provisioning and configuration. It features controller-less network virtualization to automate the building and management for overlay fabrics on top of layer 3 fabrics, utilizing Ethernet VPN (EVPN) control plane and Virtual Extensible LAN (VXLAN) overlay.

The Unite Cloud framework uses Juniper's new QFX5110 data center switch, which is designed to be scalable and agile enough to handle high-bandwidth applications, including server virtualization and simple leaf and spine topologies to web scale fabric architectures.  Juniper is offering Contrail JumpStart services to assist customers with the deployment of the Contrail Cloud Platform or Contrail Networking software in their data centers.

"The move to hybrid, multi-cloud IT is accelerating with workloads migrating to cloud data centers at lightspeed. Enterprises require agility and elasticity for applications or services to be spun up quickly and managed efficiently and securely with limited resources. With the solutions announced today, Juniper is changing the landscape for IT leaders who are in search of open, automated and secure solutions to deploy hybrid cloud environments," stated Denise Shiffman, senior vice president, Juniper Development and Innovation, Juniper Networks.

http://newsroom.juniper.net/

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AT&T Advances Project AirGig to Trials

AT&T reported progress with its Project AirGig, which aims to deploy low-cost plastic antennas along medium-voltage power lines as a means of propagating millimeter wave (mmWave) signals that can be used for 4G LTE and 5G multi-gigabit mobile and fixed deployments. AT&T confirmed that it is now in advanced discussions with power companies and others to trial Project AirGig in at least two locations by this fall. One location will be in the United States with others to be determined in the coming months.

Project AirGig ueses patented broadband-over-power lines (BPL) technology developed at AT&T Labs.  The technology has been tested at an AT&T outdoor facility for some time with positive results, leading to the development of new innovations like the Radio Distributed Antenna System (RDAS).

Significantly, there’s no direct electrical connection to the power line required and it has the potential of multi-gigabit speeds in urban, rural and underserved parts of the world.

“We are looking forward to begin testing the possibilities of AT&T Labs’ invention for customers and utility companies,” said Andre Fuetsch, president of AT&T Labs and chief technology officer. “AT&T is focused on delivering a gigabit-per-second speed everywhere we can with our wired and wireless technologies. Project AirGig represents a key invention in our 5G Evolution approach. AT&T Labs is ‘writing the textbook’ for a new technology approach that has the potential to deliver benefits to utility companies and bring this multi-gigabit, low-cost internet connectivity anywhere there are power lines – big urban market, small rural town, globally.”

AT&T noted that it now has more than 200 patents and patent applications for Project AirGig. AT&T Labs engineers and scientists invented low-cost plastic antennas, a Radio Distributed Antenna System (RDAS), mmWave surface wave launchers and inductive power devices. The RDAS will reconstruct signals for multi-gigabit mobile and fixed deployments. A typical DAS carries cellular signals throughout buildings and stadiums, using fiber and/or coaxial cables to transmit analog signals.


AT&T also confirmed that it has started deploying small cells using Centralized RAN (C-RAN) architecture on light posts in San Francisco.

In addition, based on the learnings of a G.fast trial at a multifamily property in Minneapolis, AT&T now plans to make G.fast access available at additional locations beginning mid-2017.

http://www.att.com

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FCC Eliminates Two Rules in First Meeting

The FCC, now under the Chairmanship of Ajit Pai, announced the elimination of two public inspection file requirements: (i) the requirement that commercial broadcast stations retain in their public inspection file copies of letters and emails from the public; and (ii) the requirement that cable operators maintain for public inspection the designation and location of the cable system’s principal headend.

The FCC said the eliminating the correspondence file and principal headend public file requirements will reduce regulatory burdens on commercial broadcasters and cable operators.

http://www.fcc.gov

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Telefónica Picks Huawei for Large Scale Virtual EPC in 13 countries

Telefónica has selected Huawei for building a large scale virtual Evolved Packet Core (vEPC) covering eleven countries in Latin America:  Brazil, Argentina, Uruguay, México, Colombia, Peru, Panama, Costa Rica, Nicaragua, El Salvador and Guatemala; and two in Europe: Germany and Spain.

Huawei’s vEPC solution, named CloudEPC, enables carriers to build agile networks that quickly scale to match the performance demands of new services, reduce production costs, support faster service rollout, and dynamically allocate virtual resources while providing carrier-grade availability, security and reliability and enabling seamless integration with Telefónica's legacy networks.

The vEPC allows serving diverse use cases that include traditional customer-centric services, IoT/M2M, MVNO, private LTE, and Mobile-Edge Computing. Huawei vEPC maintains the same features as its existing physical version, SingleEPC, inheriting the long-term experience and the advantages of its leadership in communications technology.

Telefónica said it has been working with Huawei on testing CloudEPC performance in its NFV Reference Lab in Madrid. During the test, Huawei CloudEPC showed one of the best performances in both data and signaling planes by good cloud-formation architecture and by using EPA (Enhanced Platform Awareness) technologies. That achievement was a joint effort by both companies within the Telefónica NFV Reference Lab framework. Telefónica and Huawei are currently testing the onboarding of the CloudEPC solution over Telefónica´s UNICA infra cloud platform that will allow full automatization of the vEPC deployments and life cycle management within Telefónica networks.

“Telefónica has been actively working for some time in the evolution of network virtualization technologies. Huawei is a reliable EPC vendor, and a strategic partner of Telefónica collaborating in many NFV areas. This large scale vEPC network deployment is a further step within the Telefónica UNICA virtualization program where a smooth migration to UNICA infra cloud capabilities will be reached following extensive test in Telefónica LAB. These results provide the confidence needed to continue with the adoption and deployment of virtualized solutions and to enable the transformation to software-driven networking," said Javier Gavilán, Planning and Technology Director at Telefonica, Global CTO.

“Huawei is leading the All Cloud strategy for operators´ business success. This CloudEPC network build out represents a significant step forward in Telefónica’s cloud transformation roadmap and reinforces our long standing partnership as main EPC provider to Telefónica. We are delighted Telefónica has entrusted Huawei the cloudification of such critical network function, which further strengthens the cooperation within Telefónica UNICA program.” said Michael Ma, President of Cloud Core Network at Huawei.

http://www.telefonica.com

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Nokia Extends IP/MPLS for Power Distribution Smart Grids

Nokia introduced its 7705 SAR-Hm, an LTE/3G wireless router aimed bring IP/MPLS to the distribution networks of utilities and other vertical applications.

Nokia noted that many power utilities currently use narrowband or proprietary wireless solutions to connect their field devices to each other and the control center, with most remote devices have no connectivity at all.

The SAR-Hm uses standards-based LTE/3G and IP/MPLS technologies, and security features in both hardware and software implementations, including Network Group Encryption (NGE).  The SAR Hm expands Nokia's mission critical WAN solution set, already deployed in over 100 utility customers globally.

Sri Reddy, head of the IP Routing and Packet Core Business Unit for Nokia, said: "Power utilities worldwide are in the midst of a significant transformation as they gear up to meet new market forces, green environmental regulations and disruptive renewable energy technologies. Grid reliability, power quality and automation are all key areas that will require improved field area networks. We are excited to offer our utility customers wireless options for extending the proven, secure and reliable IP/MPLS services of our Service Router portfolio. This will not only allow them to modernize their field area operations with more automation and monitoring for improved grid reliability and power quality, it will position them well to maximize tomorrow's opportunities."

http://www.nokia.com

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DISH Acquires DBS and OTT Assets from EchoStar

DISH Network Corporation will acquire certain EchoStar assets and operations, including its EchoStar Technologies hardware and software development group, its national and regional uplink business, its managed fiber backhaul network serving all U.S. DMAs and its OTT development group, in exchange for DISH’s 80 percent economic interest in Hughes Retail Group held in the form of a tracking stock. The deal also transfers to DISH the 10 percent stake in Sling TV held by EchoStar, wireless spectrum licenses covering four markets in the 28 GHz band and certain real estate properties.

DISH will continue to market satellite broadband under the brand dishNET to rural customers.

“With this transaction we will vertically integrate all the elements that define our customer experience – one team will deliver the full DISH and Sling TV experience end to end,” said DISH President Erik Carlson. “Not only do we gain full control of product development roadmap for DBS and Sling TV but we also anticipate achieving operational efficiencies.”

http://www.dish.com

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