RAD is First to Market with Pre-Standard Implementation of ITU and IEEE Carrier-Class Ethernet OAM

LAS VEGAS, March 21, 2006 – RAD Data Communications today unveiled at the TelecomNEXT conference and trade show here the world’s first-to-market pre-standard implementation of ITU Y.1731 and IEEE 802.1ag, which allow for end-to-end Ethernet Operations, Administration, and Maintenance (OAM). RAD is in Booth 719.

The OAM network management functions provide for network fault and performance monitoring, diagnostics, and fault isolation. First developed for carrier-class TDM and ATM legacy networks, implementation of OAM in Next Generation packet-switched networks will provide carriers with the basic tools to monitor, diagnose, and troubleshoot Ethernet services end-to-end.

“OAM is a cornerstone in the transformation of Ethernet into a carrier-class technology,” said Joshua Etkin, Sr. Director, Network Architecture for RAD Data Communications, Inc. “By providing end-to-end fault monitoring, OAM enables Ethernet service providers to proactively monitor their service end-to-end, an advantage that minimizes operational expenses.”

Y.1731 and 802.1ag specifically define the end-to-end OAM capabilities intrinsic to Ethernet technology, enabling service providers to monitor the Ethernet service the customer receives. The IEEE’s 802.3ah OAM, in contrast, is not capable of end-to-end monitoring of Ethernet services because it allows for monitoring capabilities such as remote failure indication and loopback only over a single segment. It is commonly used, therefore, between the customer premises and the next hop.

RAD’s pre-standard implementation of Y.1731 provides performance measurements with parameters such as frame delay, frame delay variation (“jitter”), frame loss, and availability. These parameters can be collected on a continuing basis and reported periodically, or they can be uploaded to a dedicated website that can be accessed by selected customers at the service provider’s discretion.

“End-to-end performance measurements provide the service provider with an essential tool to guarantee that the customer receives the service level agreement that has been contracted,” Etkin said.

The RAD concept is based on the deployment of carrier-owned intelligent Ethernet Network Termination Units (E-NTUs) at the customer premises. An intelligent E-NTU focuses on the carrier’s needs by providing clear demarcation and service control up to the customer premises.

“The more sophisticated that Ethernet services become, the greater the need for an intelligent demarcation unit to enable advanced monitoring of those services,” Etkin said. “By owning the termination equipment at the customer premises, service providers can ensure reliable service delivery at the formal handoff to the customer.”

RAD has incorporated this intelligent demarcation concept into its ETX series of carrier-class E-NTUs, which deliver managed Ethernet services end-to-end over the fiber local loop, enabling the provision of services such as inter-office LAN connectivity, Internet access, and virtual private networks. The concept has also been incorporated into the company’s RIC line of Ethernet-over-PDH/SDH/SONET NTUs. RAD’s unique portfolio of OAM-empowered Ethernet access product solutions ranges from customer-located demarcation devices to channelized Ethernet gateways, integrated access devices, multiservice concentrators, wireless multiplexers, and media converters.