Ethos-Networks

Market Needs

An increasing number of Enterprise applications rely on high speed Ethernet connectivity to the service provider’s network. The legacy E1/T1 connections cannot appropriately scale and support demanding expectations of applications that become critical to the enterprises’ daily business flow, such as:

• Transparent LAN Services
• Layer 2 Ethernet VPN
• Storage area networks (SAN)
• Distributed File Systems
• Grid/Cloud Computing
• Website/e-commerce server hosting

Service providers deliver such services to the enterprises, who expect high reliability and service continuity. Committing to demanding service level agreements (SLAs), service providers promise their customers a safe and smooth migration to Carrier Ethernet services, however meeting such demands is not a simple task. The carrier Ethernet transport network must able to deliver the service attributes enterprises learned to appreciate in the legacy SONET/SDH network, such as 50ms service restoration time and carrier-grade five 9s (99.999%) availability, translated to no more than 5.3 minutes of downtime a year. Service providers must deploy solutions that would meet such requirements in order to stay competitive in the marketplace.

Service Providers’ Challenges

• How can Ethernet service quality be guaranteed in a pure-packet network?
• Which technology could preserve simplicity in service provisioning and network design, to reduce operational expenses (OPEX)?
• How can the packet transport network maintain its Layer 2 simplicity and low cost while supporting “TDM-like” service availability and transmission quality?
• How to maintain full control on the network, enabling network optimization and deterministic behavior expected by the premium SLA promised to the Enterprise customers?

Ethos Networks’ Solution

Ethos Networks Carrier Ethernet transport (CET) solution allow service providers enjoy the benefits of pure-packet networks while maintaining the attributes of simplicity, determinism and cost effectiveness they experienced in the legacy TDM networks. Ethos Networks’ unique combination of high quality-of-service (QoS) CE switches and a comprehensive, yet simple to use Domain Management System (DMS), allows SPs to simply plan, provision, maintain and optimize Ethernet transport with guaranteed, pre-defined transmission characteristics, including bound delay, jitter and packet-loss and five 9s (99.999%) service availability. The flexibility of Ethos Networks’ CET solution enables simultaneous delivery of multiple types of traffic, at different SLAs. SP are able to deliver differentiated services at various rates/plans to accommodate the needs of their customers. While maintaining Layer 2 simplicity and transparency to customers’ IP and Ethernet layers (using Provider Backbone Bridging encapsulation), Ethos Networks’ E-series switches support multiple methods of classification of user traffic and mapping into different flows with individual SLAs. The simplicity of a Layer 2 switch enables mass deployment within SP network without the need to train field engineers on complex MPLS/IP protocols. Ethos Networks’ DMS preserves the experience of simple point-and-click service provisioning used in legacy networks, enabling simple and straightforward deployment of Ethernet services in a previously SONET/SDH-dominated environment.

Solution Benefits:

• High-quality Ethernet transport, with transmission attributes equivalent to SONET/SDH
• Enhanced QoS capabilities allowing differentiated service offering
• Guaranteed service - five 9s availability (99.999%)
• 50ms Service restoration in case of network failure
• Simple service provisioning and service assurance – as simple as experienced in legacy TDM networks – reducing operational and training costs.
• Network optimization to maximize assets utilization
• Cost effective and simple solution; pure Ethernet without the limitations of legacy design or the burden of complex routing protocols.