Ciena goes stackable with 8180 'white box' and 6500 RLS

Ciena has unveiled two products - the 8180 coherent networking platform and the 6500 reconfigurable line system - that target cable and cellular operators that are deploying fibre deep in their networks, closer to subscribers.

The 6500 line system is also aimed at the data centre interconnect market given how the webscale players are experiencing a near-doubling of traffic each year.

Source: Ciena

The cable industry is moving to a distributed access architecture (DAA) that brings fibre closer to the network’s edge and splits part of the functionality of the cable modem termination system (CMTS) - the remote PHY - closer to end users. The cable operators are deploying fibre to boost the data rates they can offer homes and businesses.

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Verizon, Ciena and Juniper trial 400 Gigabit Ethernet

Verizon has sent a 400 Gigabit Ethernet signal over its network, carried using a 400-gigabit optical wavelength.

The trial’s goal was to demonstrate multi-vendor interoperability and in particular the interoperability of standardised 400 Gigabit Ethernet (GbE) client signals.

Glenn Wellbrock“[400GbE] Interoperability with the client side has been the long pole in the tent - and continues to be,” says Glenn Wellbrock, director, optical transport network - architecture, design and planning at Verizon. “This was trial equipment, not generally-available equipment.” 

It is only the emergence of standardised modules - in this case, an IEEE 400GbE client-side interface specification - that allows multi-vendor interoperability, he says. 

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Real-time visibility makes optical networking smarter

Part 1: Ciena's Liquid Spectrum

Systems vendors are making optical networks smarter. Their latest equipment, combining intelligent silicon and software hooks, can measure the status of the network and enable dynamic network management.

Ciena recently announced its Liquid Spectrum networking product while Infinera has launched its Instant Network. Both vendors exploit the capabilities of their latest generation coherent DSPs to allow greater network automation and efficiency. The vendors even talk about their products being an important step towards autonomous or cognitive networks.

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Ciena brings data analytics to optical networking

• Ciena's WaveLogic Ai coherent DSP-ASIC makes real-time measurements, enabling operators to analyse and adapt their networks.     
• The DSP-ASIC supports 100-gigabit to 400-gigabit wavelengths in 50-gigabit increments. 
• The WaveLogic Ai will be used in Ciena’s systems from 2Q 2017.  

Ciena has unveiled its latest generation coherent DSP-ASIC. The device, dubbed WaveLogic Ai, follows Ciena’s WaveLogic 3 family of coherent chips which was first announced in 2012. The Ai naming scheme reflects the company's belief that its latest chipset represents a significant advancement in coherent DSP-ASIC functionality.  

Helen XenosThe WaveLogic Ai is Ciena's first DSP-ASIC to support two baud rates, 35 gigabaud for fixed-grid optical networks and 56 gigabaud for flexible-grid ones. The design also uses advanced modulation schemes to optimise the data transmission over a given link.

Perhaps the most significant development, however, is the real-time network monitoring offered by the coherent DSP-ASIC. The data will allow operators to fine-tune transmissions to adapt to changing networking conditions. 

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Ciena enhances its 6500 packet-optical transport family

Ciena has upgraded its 6500 family of packet-optical transport platforms with the T-series that supports higher-capacity electrical and optical switching and higher-speed line cards.

"The 6500 T-Series is a big deal as Ciena can offer two different systems depending on what the customer is looking for," says Andrew Schmitt, founder and principal analyst of market research firm, Cignal AI.

Helen XenosIf customers want straightforward transport and the ability to reach a number of different distances, there is the existing 6500 S-series, says Schmitt. The T-series is a system specifically for metro-regional networks that can accommodate multiple traffic types – OTN or packet.

"It has very high density for a packet-optical system and offers pay-as-you-grow with CFP2-ACO [coherent pluggable] modules," says Schmitt.

Ciena says the T-series has been developed to address new connectivity requirements service providers face. Content is being shifted to the metro to improve the quality of experience for end users and reduce capacity on backbone networks. Such user consumption of content is one factor accounting for the strong annual 40 percent growth in metro traffic.

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