Gaining the Ethernet Edge

New OAM protocols enhance a carrier’s service deployments and make managing and monitoring Metro Ethernet networks easier.

Ethernet is a widely deployed technology not only in LANs but also increasingly in metropolitan- and wide-area networks (MANs and WANs). Ethernet in the MAN/WAN has amplified the need for flexible, comprehensive management and monitoring functionalities to increase end-to-end service operational efficiency. To foster wide-scale adoption of Metro Ethernet and broadband services, equipment vendors and service providers must jointly consider ways to facilitate and expedite service deployment. Some of these ways can be found within protocols such as Ethernet Operations, Administration, and Maintenance (Ethernet OAM) and Ethernet Local Management Interface (E-LMI).

The Ethernet OAM standard brings to Ethernet much of the OAM functionality found in traditional carrier network technologies. Advanced capabilities such as link monitoring, fault detection/isolation, and remote loopback control give carriers the end-to-end OAM tools required to maintain and monitor their Metro Ethernet networks in a manner consistent with other carrier technologies.