The Optical Internetworking Forum (OIF) unveiled plans for its 2018 software-defined networking (SDN) transport application programming interface (T-API) interoperability demonstration, advancing the global commercialization of transport SDN. The 2018 event will be a collaboration with MEF. It will aim to deliver new behavior use cases and deployment scenarios into network operator labs worldwide to test and validate the T-API 2.0 northbound interface (NBI) from the Open Networking Foundation (ONF).
This year's event is founded on the OIF's previous 2016 interoperability test and demonstration, addressing multi-layer and multi-domain environments (see "OIF, ONF plan SDN T-API transport API interoperability demonstration"). The event also builds on the 2014 demonstration, which prototyped the use of Northbound APIs and accelerated transport SDN standardization (see "OIF and ONF enjoy joint Transport SDN demonstration success").
Additionally, the event will combine service provisioning scenarios at the lifecycle service orchestration (LSO) Presto reference point in the MEF LSO architecture by leveraging the MEF NRP Interface profile specification (MEF 60), which defines T-API extensions in support of MEF Carrier Ethernet services.
With plans to enable customers and their applications to control services in real-time, eliminating the need to wait for service changes, network operators require the ability to rapidly move capacity in open networks to accomplish this, bypassing network congestion and offering improved customer service.
"With network operators leading the charge for more dynamic and open networks, there has to be widespread adoption of transport SDN. Through working through the specifications, rigorous interoperability testing and validation, this year's demo is intended to substantiate T-API as the NBI of choice," said OIF President Dave Brown of Nokia. "We also look forward to our collaboration with MEF and the depth of expertise the organization brings to this demonstration."
The international joint-network operator, multi-vendor optical networking interoperability demonstration includes network operator hosts CenturyLink, China Telecom, SK Telecom, and Telefonica. Participating vendors include ADVA Optical Networking SE, Coriant, NEC/Netcracker, Nokia, SM Optics, and ZTE Corp. The participating academic and/or research institution is Centre Tecnologic Telecomunicacions Catalunya, and the participating consulting network operator is TELUS Communications.
Regional demonstration "read-out" events will be held in June/July of 2018, and an event whitepaper will be available to the public after OIF announces demonstration results.
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