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understand the QoStream™ product family is to understand
how tomorrow's services can be deployed today in a highly
cost-effective way. Implementing an ESON architecture with
Amedia's QoStream™ products provides the scalability,
reliability, security, and flexibility to meet the needs of
the most demanding customer. |
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The QoStream™
Operations Plan provides for a Network Operations Center (NOC)
that can be at a site that can co-reside at a site with QoStream
network elements or can reside remote from any network elements
in the QoStream network. The NOC is generally owned and operated
by the Network Operator or outsourced by the Network Operator
to a third party. Generally, the NOC operations group configures
and provisions VLANs, manages nodal and fiber failures and
restorals, prepares billing records from PG100 connection
records, manages VLAN and network element performance, and
provides a security infrastructure. In addition, the NOC operations
group generally coordinates and controls installation and
repair activity and is responsible for dispatching installers
and repair personnel efficiently to the appropriate location
for the installation or repair. The NOC is the nexus for network
operations, providing southbound communication links to the
network elements and northbound links to customer higher level
network management systems or to third party systems, such
as billing systems. The NOC also prepares reports on a demand
or time scheduled basis for overall management of the QoStream
Network.
The QoStream operations philosophy is to provide remote, single
person, end-to-end operations from the NOC location such that
no operations handoffs or multiple workstations are required
to provision, maintain, or operate a QoStream network. The
NOC network management system must assemble all network information
into a Resource Management database to provide data for operations
functions and for network inventory purposes. The assembly
of this data must be efficient, with as much data as possible
automatically gathered from the network itself. The Resource
Management database must be automatically updated during node
installation or equipage changes without direct involvement
of the NOC craft. Some additional information, such as network
element and sub-network names or interconnection information
must be customized to the particular Network Operator, and
this customizing information must be entered into the database
by the NOC craft. It is usually most convenient for the NOC
craft to refer to identify names of network elements or sub-networks
rather than IP addresses to include them in a GUI display.
The NOC network management system must also provide a GUI
network configuration to represent the sub-network of interest
to the NOC craft. It is convenient for the craft to partially
specify the subnetwork of interest by entering a network element
name or alternatively selecting a network element name from
a listing of existing network elements. Once a network element
is selected, it is convenient for GUI to draw the nodes and
connections that terminate on that network element automatically.
Accordingly, the network management system must have a topology
manager to link Resource Management database NE interconnection
information into a logical map that is organized into the
tiers of network elements required for the sub-network of
interest.
This network logical map serves as a convenient starting point
for branching into provisioning, configuration, fault isolation,
performance management, and other activities using the GUI.
These activities are best handled with a nodal view, showing
a view of the chassis for the network element of interest. However,
there are occasions for which a tables or listing view of network
information is most appropriate and convenient, and the network
manager must provide those as well.
Where feasible, a GUI point-and-click operation is preferred
over tables, listings, or manual data entry. It is convenient
to facilitate entry from a network logical map into a view of
a network element for Fault, Configuration, Accounting, Performance,
or Security Management using a network dashboard. This arrangement
allows a direct point-and-click selection into the specific
desired application, a point-and-click selection of a network
element icon into a front chassis network element view, customized
responses to point-and-click applications onto the chassis view,
pop-up windows that are customized for that application, and
point-and-click selection among the pop-up window alternatives.
It is convenient for the network dashboard to also organize
access to on-line help, on-line documentation, and GUI references.
While the NOC is the primary point of operations control, simultaneous
installation and repair operations for the fiber and nodes go
on at field locations. Since these local operations are not
synchronized with NOC activities, it is important that they
be independent of NOC operations. If independent simultaneous
local and remote activities into a single network element are
non-interfering, they must both complete normally, independently
of each other. If independent simultaneous local and remote
activities into a single network element are interfering, a
denial or delay indication must be issued by the network element
to the operations craft that initiated the latest (interfering)
access command, with the earliest operation continuing to completion
or termination.
At a high level, Operations are controlled and coordinated from
the NOC, with northbound interfaces to a higher level NMS and
southbound interfaces to the network elements through a Data
Communications Network (DCN). The QoStream Director interfaces
with network elements in band by providing Ethernet connections
to the DCN with the AS5000 (GbE or 100 Base
FX). Controllability and availability make an Intranet preferred
for the primary DCN connection, rather than the Internet, but
the customer may utilize the Internet for a the primary connection
or backup connection. Additionally, an Intranet DCN NOC could
access the AS5000 out of band using the SERVICE
ports on the network element chassis. All NOC PG1000 access
is in band over the WAN port since no additional DCN access
point is available at the customer premises.
In-band QoStream network access is available via the a compatible Ethernet core switch
by connecting one or more GbE ports to the DCN utilized by the
QoStream Director. Since it is desirable to maintain QoStream
network element data plane interconnections as direct point-to-point
links, such a GbE connection would be dedicated to operations
or content traffic for the QoStream network. The NOC operations packets may
utilize the SERVICE port via the DCN as the primary or backup
access for the operations transactions. In addition, the local
CO/DNC craft may independently utilize the SERVICE port for
local installation or maintenance (such as growing another PPC
or running diagnostics on the out-of-service SWF circuit pack).
In-band QoStream network access is also available via the AS5000
by connecting one or more GbE uplink and/or 100 Base FX ports
to the DCN utilized by the QoStream Director. The AS5000 differentiates
operations transactions for itself or for other network elements
by means of the MAC address incorporated in the packet header,
forwarding operations packets to other network elements and
executing packets for itself. The NOC operations packets may
also utilize the SERVICE port via the DCN as the primary or
backup access for the operations transactions. In addition,
the local craft (craft at an inside location or craft at an
OSP cabinet) may independently utilize the SERVICE port for
local installation or maintenance (such as growing another Line
Card or running queries on the Controller). Accordingly, both
in-band and out-of-band AS5000 operations access are simultaneously
available, non-interfering in-band and out-of-band transactions
complete normally, and any interfering transaction is denied
or delayed to prevent such interference.
In-band QoStream network access is available to a PG1000 via
AS5000 as forwarded packets over the 100 Base FX WAN connection.
No out-of-band NOC access is available at the PG1000; however,
a local installer at the customer premises has access to the
PG1000 SERVICE port, which can support installation activities
at the business or residence.
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