Cisco beefs up Routed Optical Networking portfolio

June 30, 2022
The new hardware and software elements can enable reductions of up to 45% in power and up to 70% in real estate/space, the company asserts.

Cisco (NASDAQ: CSCO) has expanded its Routed Optical Networking portfolio with several additions. The new hardware and software elements can enable reductions of up to 45% in power and up to 70% in real estate/space, the company asserts.

The Routed Optical Networking portfolio enhancements include:

  • The NCS 1010 Open Optical Line System, which leverages C- and L-Band transmission to double fiber capacity over use of the C-Band alone in greenfield and brownfield applications.
  • The Bright 400G ZR/ZR+ pluggable optical module, which can be plugged in ZR/ZR+ compatible ports of DWDM network elements from multiple vendors.
  • Standardized private line emulation to support legacy bit transparent services over an IP/MPLS infrastructure.
  • Enhanced Cisco Crosswork Network Automation to provide multi-layer automation for assurance and provisioning and optical automation for the company’s complete optical portfolio.
  • New Cisco Customer Experience (CX) Advisory Service that will provide advisory, planning, solution validation, and expanded support services as customers implement Routed Optical Networking.

“Cisco is committed to powering an inclusive future for all, where everyone has access to quality internet, and that requires fundamental changes in networking,” said Bill Gartner, senior vice president and general manager, optical systems and optics, at Cisco. “Cisco Routed Optical Networking takes a less is more approach, offering communication service providers the critical components they need to speed transitions to a more efficient way of building and operating networks, reducing legacy technology and focusing on sustainable components that will save money and save the environment.”

Cisco introduced Routed Optical Networking in April 2021. The approach brings IP over DWDM into the current networking age, with the use of pluggable coherent optics making Routed Optical Networking significantly more appealing than IP over DWDM had been previously (see “Cisco revamps IP over DWDM with Routed Optical Networking”).

“For more than two decades, Cisco has pioneered developments in routing silicon, optics, line systems, circuit emulation, software, and IP-over-DWDM,” commented Kyle Hollasch, lead analyst, optical and packet transport hardware, at market research firm Cignal AI, via a Cisco press release. “The company’s Routed Optical Networking solution and the new enhancements announced today offer a truly novel architecture with the potential to fundamentally improve the performance, economics, and sustainability of service provider networks.”

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