OIF has opened a survey that seeks industry input on its Common Management Interface Specification and optical module management interfaces in general. The results will be used to help OIF plan future work on Implementation Agreements in this area.
The industry group sees optical module management interfaces as encompassing physical interfaces, communication protocols and management applications layers. OIF released its Coherent Common Management Interface Specification (C-CMIS) Implementation Agreement, aimed at modules such as those based on 400ZR, this past March. The specifications followed on from the previous CMIS (QSFP-DD/OSFP/COBO) management specification.
OIF now wants input on where it should turn next. “The OIF 400ZR specification covers interoperability on the network fiber and also at the host by defining the electrical interface and software management interface,” said Jeffery J. Maki, distinguished engineer II, Juniper Networks and OIF Physical Layer User Group Working Group Chair. “All of this is done to drive a true multi-sourcing opportunity for the module. Beyond 400ZR, support of the software management interface is an area OIF would like to continue to address and seeks, through the use of a survey, to gauge industry interest and the potential solution approach.”
OIF invites stakeholders from module vendors, system vendors, and network operators to participate in the survey. There are no limits on how many people per company can take the survey. OIF will collate the survey responses anonymously; a dedicated survey evaluation team will then review them. The deadline to participate is midnight PDT on July 21, 2020. OIF plans a webinar to review the survey results on July 30, 2020 at 7 AM PDT.
Information about the survey, the webinar, and other aspects of the initiative are available on the OIF’s survey webpage.
For related articles, visit the Optical Technologies Topic Center.
For more information on optical modules and suppliers, visit the Lightwave Buyer’s Guide.
To stay abreast of optical communications technology, subscribe to Lightwave’s Enabling Technologies Newsletter.