1. Future Networking… … in GÉANT: What next?
Michael Enrico
Network Engineering & Planning Manager
DANTE
TNC 2011, Prague
18th May 2011

2. Agenda GÉANT today Service requirements Architectural deliberations
Procurement activity
Questions
DISCLAIMER:
DANTE is currently in complex procurement activity for transmission and switching equipment and hence this presentation will not (cannot) be as detailed (interesting) as you’d probably like  … however, I’ll do my best… 2 2

3. Who are DANTE?
DANTE (Delivery of Advanced Network Technology to Europe) plans, builds and operates advanced networks for research and education
Owned by Europe’s National Research and Education Networks (NRENs) and works in partnership with them and the European Commission
Established in 1993, approximately 60 employees based in Cambridge at HQ and Network Operations Centre (NOC)
Turnover ~ 40M€ p.a.

4. What is GÉANT?
Project co-funded by Europe’s NRENs and the European Commission (EC) under the Seventh Framework Programme for Research and Technological Development (FP7)
Project Partners are DANTE, TERENA and 32 European NRENs
Approx. 450 participants
Work is grouped into Activities in networking R&D and services including the GÉANT network
Today I will focus on SA1 (Tasks 1 & 2)
The GÉANT network is the high-bandwidth, high-performance pan-European communications infrastructure serving Europe’s research and education community
Together with Europe’s NRENs, GÉANT connects 40 million users in over 8,000 institutions across 40 countries

5. GÉANT: Network (today)
Local campus networks link to national research networks that span specific countries, and these then interconnect via the GÉANT backbone
Offers data transfer speeds of up to 40Gbps across 50,000km of network infrastructure, of which 12,000km is based on owned and managed lit fibre 
25 Points of Presence (PoPs), 44 routes and 18 dark fibre routes
3 main service types:
GÉANT IP
GÉANT Plus
GÉANT Lambda

6. GÉANT Services (today)
GÉANT IP
Long standing, resilient, versatile (mcast, v6, MPLS, QoS, etc)
Access at up to 20G (2x10G LAG), diverse backup
GÉANT Plus
Unprotected sub-λ, pt-pt circuits (opt: diverse routing)
Provides connectivity to European NRENs, Internet/Lightpath Exchanges and trans-Atlantic end points
Currently TDM-based (granularity: 155Mbps), comes in 10G “chunks”, access via 10GbE (LAN), STM-64, STM-16 and 1GbE i/f’s
GÉANT Lambda
Unprotected 10G wavelength connection between 2 NRENs
Direct access to transponder client
10GbE (LAN) [most of them] or STM-64 [decreasing]
Diverse routing option (at install)

7. How today’s services are implemented
Primary IP
Peering
Backup IP
Peering
GÉANT+
instances
GÉANT+
instances
Backup IP
Peering
Primary IP
Peering
Lambdas
Lambdas
To NREN A
To NREN B
IP Router
Switch
Switch
IP Router
Backup IP
Peering for
NREN A
Dark fibre/amplifier chain
GÉANT
POP A
GÉANT
POP B

8. GÉANT architecture and POP typesIE BE SK UK DE ES DK AT HU GR EE LV LT RO BG TR IL MK RS HR SI NL FR CH IT CZ PL MT CY ME
“Routerless”
“Fully featured”
Off fibre net
IP/MPLS only
NREN POPs
Circuits
over GÉANT IP
Leased
circuits
NG-SDH RU PT LU
(Routerless)
DWDM
Fibre
Leased circuits

9. Arch development work to date
Much deliberation: 5 architecture workshops (Q4’08-Q1’10); RFI exercise (1H’10), task work, discussion with SA1 sup committee
Service aspirations
Enhancing the old – how much should the SLS bar be raised?
Bringing in the new – expanding the GÉANT service portfolio
Infrastructure optimisation (one example)
Topological modifications; additional access points (AAPs)
Technological upgrades
Resource sharing (inc use of NREN-owned “CBFs”)
Results published in a weighty GÉANT deliverable DS1.1.1,2

10. GÉANT service aspirations (enhancements considered)
GÉANT Plus
High capacity interfaces: 40/100G
Recovery for the p2p circuits
Rapid on-demand provisioning
Statistically multiplexed service instances
Support for flows >10Gbps
P2MP and E-LAN service instances
GÉANT Lambda
100G lambda
Rapid provisioning of lambdas
wavelengths where some (hopefully modest) pre-deployment of equipment can facilitate faster implementation
Recovery: protection and restoration at the lambda level

11. Advanced Photonic Services (“hot topic” at present)
Support for “Alien Waves” (and more) on production network
e.g. signals from 3rd party coloured optics usually based on an ITU grid but amplified, dispersion compensated (perhaps gain equalized) along with the rest of the channel load
What does “more” mean here?
“Alien Bands” – 3rd party signals spread over >50GHz and again amplified
Unamplified alien channels/bands – channels/bands passively extracted/inserted before/after each ILA and amplified independently (possibly bidirectionally – e.g. frequency metrology application)
Both of these relate to the notion of “fibre sharing”
e.g. shared by two transmission systems

12. Example: Fibre infrastructure optimisation
“Tubemap” shows...
...reality is... BA CH LY LY
= ROADM

13. Placing ROADMs in “fibre junction” sites
Situation today
ROADM in “fibre junction” site

14. Technological upgrades (transmission network)
Reminder of situation today:
~12,000km of fibre
G.655 (Corning LEAF) on “Western Ring” (UK-BE-NL-DE-CH-FR-UK) and CH-ES, CH-IT-Fink-AT, London-Bude (IE)
Most of the rest is G.652 (SMF): NL-DK-DE (very long), DE-CZ-SK-AT, SK-HU-HR-SI-Fink
Just about all “point-to-point” (2 static OADMs: BE and Barcelona)
Designed for up to 40 channels in 50GHz grid (all links)
But many links mandate 100GHz spacing for 1st 20 channels
All discrete 10G NRZ transponders except for two 40G (pDPSK) wavelengths on NL-DE-CH
Highest channel count today is 18 channels

15. Fibre route and span lengths
“Routes” are POP-to-POP
“Spans” are ILA-to-ILA
(ILA = optical amp)

16. Planning for 100G transmission (choices, choices…)
How about reach (for 100G λ’s)?  
100G λ
100G λ R
€€
= ILA with DC
= (R)OADM/
DGE
= 100G regen R

17. Planning for 100G transmission (choices, choices…)
How about reach (now with 10G λ’s as well)?
10G λ 
10G λ 
“Guard Bands”
May or may not need them…???
→ inefficient use of spectrum,
more rack/floor space consumption
100G λ
= ILA with DC
= (R)OADM/
DGE
= 100G regen R

18. Reference network (for transmission part of RFI in 2010)
Apply to this reference network:
Full mesh of 3x10G (excl. Bru & Lux)
Full mesh of 1x 40G (ditto)
Full mesh of 1x100G (ditto)
Combination of these
COP
G.652
1122km
G.652
1241km
G.655
290km
BRU
AMS
G.655
441km
G.655
641km
LUX
FRA
LON
PAR
GEN
G.655
737km
G.655
658km
G.655
818km
17 traffic relationships/reaches with (shortest) transmission paths ranging from 300km to 2600km
(up to 3450km for next shortest diverse paths)

19. RFI update All coherent transmission?
Nice idea if reach benefits justify extra cost (mainly of upgrading photonic layer and disposing of legacy 10G transponder base)
Easier for green field rollout
No discrete 10G coherent! Mostly 4/10x10G muxponders so 10G traffic matrix needs to be commensurate
How will this fit in with GÉANT fibre footprint? How about Alien Waves?
Also used Raman!

20. Planning for 100G transmission (choices, choices…)
Optimising for 100G transmission (“all coherent”)  
100G λ
100G λ 
10G λ
with EDC
10G λ 
€€
= ILA without DC
= POP with
(R)OADM

21. Planning for 100G transmission (choices, choices…)
Still “all coherent”… but what about 10G alien waves?  
100G λ
100G λ
10G λ
10G λ
with EDC 
= ILA without DC
= POP with
(R)OADM

22. Planning for 100G transmission (choices, choices…)
Coherent 4x and 10x muxponders with ROADMs?  
4/10x10G
100G λ
40/100G λ
40/100G λ
Need electrical processing anyway
to access one of the mux
10G
4/10x10G
= ILA without DC
= POP with
(R)OADM

23. In Summary (requirements entering procurement)
Not all requirements and/or technological preferences are absolutely clear at the point of commencing procurement – hence the need to use a Competitive Dialogue process however…
Firm requirements for:
Ongoing support of existing services
100Gbps (and 40Gbps) “lambdas” from day-one
GÉANT Plus service instances/accesses >10G
P2MP/E-LAN services
Optionally (“nice-to-haves” if practical and affordable):
“Lambda” restoration/rapid provisioning
Support for (TDM-based) sub-lambda P2P services
“Advanced photonic services”

24. In Summary (procurement structure)
“Routerless”
“Fully featured”
Off fibre net
IP/MPLS only
NREN POPs
Circuits
over GÉANT IP
Leased
circuits
GÉANT Plus
Lot 2
Lot 3
DWDM
Lot 1
Fibre
Leased circuits

25. In Summary (where are we now with procurement)
GÉANT TX & SW equipment procurement: a work very much in progress…
Started at beginning of February (contract notice in OJ)
Competitive Dialogue procedure being used
First “read-through” of initial responses to (first) “descriptive document” now almost complete ← we are here!
Clarifications will be sought this week; initial meetings in June
Then the outstanding technology decisions will be taken
Another descriptive document, shortlisting & lab testing
Expect to conclude dialogue phase (and issue ITT) by end of year
Hope to select and sign in Feb/March 2012
And complete roll-out by Feb/Mar 2013

26. Thank you for listening Questions?