29 May 2003 Paris--Alcatel has announced the industry's first complete carrier-class metropolitan Ethernet solution incorporating the Alcatel OmniSwitch 7000 and 8000 series of products.
OmniSwitch features Smart Continuous Switching - a feature that provides industry-leading availability which, when combined with high-density, carrier-test-lab-proven hardened software, and cost-optimised Ethernet connectivity, makes the Alcatel OmniSwitch the industry's only carrier-grade metro Ethernet switch.
"Alcatel is one of few vendors close enough to the customer to build products for the metropolitan Ethernet network, and experienced enough to incorporate all the required carrier-class features," says Michel Rahier, president of Alcatel's fixed networking activities.
"The OmniSwitch's impressive reliability and ease of management help carriers slash costs while attacking the high-growth Ethernet market with profitable services such as virtual private networks. OmniSwitch cuts costs while increasing revenues."
SCS distributes intelligent functions throughout network interface modules, rather than through a central engine, so there is no interruption of services or performance during the loss of a critical network element. This Alcatel-pioneered capability ensures continuous data flow despite network disruption or failure, distinguishing the OmniSwitch from competitors' offerings.
The Alcatel OmniSwitch also features a distributed ASIC (application-specific integrated circuit) and network processor architecture that provides wire speed performance with quality of service. Featuring 10 Gbit/s bi-directional slot capacity, the scalable design protects a carrier's investment by ensuring support for Ethernet services now and well into the future. The industry-leading Alcatel 5620 Network Manager (NM) enhances the OmniSwitch by centralizing tasks to reduce operating costs and providing one-touch provisioning of virtual local area networks (VLANs).
The carrier-class OmniSwitch can be combined with VPN functionality on the Alcatel 7670 Routing Switch Platform (RSP) and advanced VPN management features on the Alcatel 5620 NM to future-proof carrier infrastructure. This combination enables customers to interwork all flavors of VPNs from a consolidated point of presence (PoP).
A single PoP provides multiple advantages: it leverages existing infrastructure to generate new business opportunities; controls operating expenses; and, simplifies the delivery of frame, cell, Internet Protocol (IP), and Ethernet VPN services.
The OmniSwitch is a participant in the Metro Ethernet Forum's (MEF) first-ever public multi-vendor interoperability demonstration between 3-5 June at Supercomm, in Atlanta, GA.
The network demonstration comprises equipment from 28 MEF member companies. As a founding member of the MEF, Alcatel works with service providers and other vendors to advance metro Ethernet service adoption and vendor interoperability in this important market.
The Alcatel metro Ethernet solution will be demonstrated at Supercomm in Booth # 21923.
For more information, visit www.alcatel.com