Ciena Corporation

Satish Mysore Gopalakrishna

Matthew William Connolly

Neena Aluri

Jon Carroll

Goran Bjelcevic

Frederick Nick Genthner

Richard W Conklin

Gustav Larsson

Hongxing Meng

Abhishek Chaudhary

Veena Alevoor

Kelai Shi

Monali Chakrabarty

Simmon Yau

Bryan Freestone

Yossi Joseph Khalon

Systems and methods of coordinating Layer 1 and Layer 2 protection switching include, at a node having a plurality of ports including a first port that is an endpoint of a Layer 1 network and a second port that connects to a Layer 2 network, communicating defects in the Layer 1 network to a local Maintenance End Point (MEP) on the second port and any recovery actions being performed in the Layer 1 network; informing other nodes on the Layer 2 network via the second port of the defects and the recovery actions; and coordinating Layer 2 protection switching in the Layer 2 network based on the defects and based on the recovery actions in the Layer 1 network.

Systems and methods for coordinating layer 1 and layer 2 protection switching techniques for efficient layer 2 traffic recovery

A network system comprising logical work and protect Connection Termination Points. Performance Monitoring (PM) records are provided by generating for each work Connection Termination Point (CTP) a work bit vector and a protect bit vector. The work bit vector keeps track of severely errored seconds (SES) occurrences at the work CTP only when the work CTP is selected. The protect bit vector keeps track of severely errored seconds (SES) occurrences at the protect CTP only when the protect CTP is selected. Processing the work bit vector and the protect bit vector provides accurate PM records.

Correlation of performance monitoring records for logical end points within a protected group

A method, a network, and a node each implement the transmission of Automatic Protection Switching (APS) switching coordination bytes across an OTN network. A working signal and a protection signal are received, one of which is designated as an active signal. The active signal is encapsulated in an Optical channel Data Unit (ODU) signal. APS switching coordination bytes from the working and protection signals are placed in an overhead segment of the ODU signal. The ODU signal is transmitted into and received from an Optical Transport Network (OTN) network. The working and protection signals are recreated based on the active signal encapsulated in the ODU signal and the APS switching coordination bytes in the overhead segment. The recreated working and protection signals are transmitted. In this manner, a single ODU signal may be used to transmit both the working and protection signals.

Methods and systems of preserving client overhead bytes in optical transport network tunneling applications

A switch fabric system and network element based thereon include a N&#xd7;M switch fabric with M Trail Termination Points (TTPs) each with N timeslots there through in a bidirectional manner, a first connection in the switch fabric, wherein the first connection includes a unidirectional asymmetric connection of X timeslots, wherein X&#x3c;N, and a second connection in the switch fabric in an opposite direction as the first connection, wherein the second connection includes a unidirectional asymmetric connection of Y timeslots, wherein Y&#x3c;N, and wherein at least one of the Y timeslots overlaps with one of the X timeslots on a same TTP of the M TTPs, wherein N, M, X, and Y each include an integer. A method includes establishing unidirectional asymmetric connections with overlapping portions therein as well as merging, splitting, and converting connections in-service and minimizing blocking probabilities.

Unidirectional asymmetric traffic pattern systems and methods in switch matrices

The present invention provides systems and methods for programming connections through a multi-stage switch fabric. The present invention utilizes load-balancing, blocking recovery, background rebalancing, and rollback algorithms to select and manage connection balance on center stage switches in the multi-stage switch fabric for new and modified connections. The load-balancing algorithm attempts to spread the multi-connection slices across center stage switches as evenly as possible, to increase the probability that future multi-connection slices can be added without needing to rearrange existing slices. Advantageously, the present invention is efficient by making the best possible local decision for one multi-connection slice at a time, without considering other multi-connection slices that may also need center switch assignments. Additionally blocking recovery, rollback and background rebalancing features are also supported.

Systems and methods for programming connections through a multi-stage switch fabric with blocking recovery, background rebalancing, and rollback

The present disclosure provides methods and systems for automatic carving of Optical channel Data Unit k (ODUk) levels on connection creation as well as the enforcement of an OTN hierarchy policy. In an exemplary embodiment, the present invention provides several methods of automatically carving Optical channel Data Tributary Unit Group (ODTUG) structures down to a desired ODUk layer during end-to-end circuit setup. These methods may include a recursively descending algorithm, an iterative array algorithm, and an ordered linked list algorithm. Additionally, to interoperate with network elements which may have a fixed ODTUG structure within an Optical channel Transport Unit (OTU), a method of policy enforcement describing each ODUk layer mapped into ODTUG structures is used to select a best match of the currently provisioned ODUk layers.

Methods and systems for automatic carving and policy enforcement for optical transport network hierarchy

The present invention provides methods and systems for managing matrices of connections within digital switching fabrics. The methods and systems include means for defining one or more of sources and sinks in a matrix of connections as one or more of unidirectional connection termination points and novel unidirectional virtual connection points, where each of the unidirectional virtual connection points is a logical object that is maintained in software that defines connections between one or more of network resources and logical objects. The virtual connection points selectively act as origination points for one or more of other virtual connection points and termination points in a cross-connect; termination points for one or more of other virtual connection points and origination points in a cross-connect; origination points for a multicast set of connections; intermediate points within a cross-connect for the addition of new connections; selectors for two or more inputs; simultaneously as selectors for two or more inputs and as origination points for a multicast set of connections; one or more of bridges, selectors, and bridge/selectors in a protection application; one or more of origination points and termination points in a signaled network connection; local test access points; and/or remote test access points.

Methods and systems for managing digital cross-connect matrices using virtual connection points

The present invention provides systems and methods for parallel multi-core control plane processing with optical networks. This enables optical switches utilizing control planes, such as G.ASON, to meet scalability and performance requirements of evolving networks. The multi-core processing is configured to handle call control for sub-network connections (SNCs) (e.g., requests for creates, failures, restores, routing). Additional control plane functions, such as signaling and related interfaces, routing connection admission control (CAC), naming and addressing, and the like, can also be processed in parallel.

Systems and methods for parallel multi-core control plane processing

Systems and methods for the implementation of a remote test access feature using virtual connection points and sub-network connections by the merge-and-split of flexible permanent virtual circuits. A sub-network connection is created between a remote test set and a connection termination point of a circuit of interest through the provision of two endpoints of interest. Subsequently, monitoring and management capabilities are established and operation, administration, and maintenance functions are performed at a centralized location using a network management system. The remote tap used may employ any protection scheme and mesh restore, as necessary, either manually or automatically, in the event of signal degrade or failure scenarios. The endpoint of the remote tap may be selectively changed, and the remote tap re-groomed for a different circuit of interest via a simple point-and-click.

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Alpharetta, GA, United States of America

Satish Mysore Gopalakrishna