ZTE Corporation, a major international provider of telecommunications, enterprise and consumer technology solutions for the Mobile Internet, has demonstrated its software defined optical network (SDON) solution for the first time at the 2015 WDM & Next Generation Optical Networking in Nice.
ZTE’s SDON solution introduces software defined networking (SDN) into optical transport networks (OTN). This allows operators to build efficient, elastic and open optical networks on the transport, control and application planes. On the transport plane, the SDON solution adopts 100G and beyond-100G oriented programmable optical networking equipment with large crossing capacity, effective transportation performance and complete service types. On the control plane, it takes centralised management and control of the transport capability and switching capability of the programmable optical network equipment at the transport plane. Its hierarchical controller facilitates flexible network expansion. On the application plane, it provides service application cloud-oriented to the operators, tenants and partners to meet maintenance, operation and value-added service demands.
ZTE’s SDON solution suits multiple application scenarios. Bandwidth on demand (BOD) can be adopted for enterprise private service distribution. Private services can be quickly and easily distributed in a complicated network environment. Virtual subnet multi-tenant service abstracts network resources and provides virtual subnet control to the tenants who can implement self-service. Multi-layer and multi-domain network interconnection and cooperation can easily realise the centralised management of equipment from multiple vendors and service oriented end-to-end (E2E) connections. Network management and operation automation can be realised to greatly improve operation and maintenance (O&M) efficiency. Application in multiple scenarios can solve the practical problems that operators are concerned with and help these operators to transform from traditional closed infrastructure providers to IT software providers.
As a leading communication equipment and solution provider, ZTE takes an active role in the promotion of SDN standardisation and commercialisation across the world. In September 2014, ZTE completed its global transport network SDN prototype demonstration and test organised by the Open Networking Foundation (ONF) and the Optical Internetworking Forum (OIF) in Beijing. ZTE’s SDON controller successfully implemented cross-domain BOD service interconnection of major vendors in the industry in Europe, America, and China such as China Telecom, China Mobile, Telus Canada, Deutsche Telekom, and Verizon. The test covered nine domains and eight vendors around the world, which illustrated the cooperation and interconnection capability of ZTE’s SDON controller for multiple vendors around the world.