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Hybrid Microwave For Smooth Network Evolution
Hybrid Microwave For Smooth Network Evolution
SEPTEMBER 2010
INTRODUCTION
The growth of next-generation broadband services and the pressure to reduce network operational costs, increase flexibility and boost backhaul capacity is driving operators around the world to plan the migration of their backhaul networks from traditional circuit-switched time division multiplexed (TDM) over to allpacket-based Ethernet/IP. However, the pace of this migration will differ with the individual operators circumstances, including their CAPEX constraints, legacy installed base and the volume of TDM traffic that needs continued support. The fact is that TDM still dominates most mobile backhaul networks and, as shown in Figure 1, is not going away anytime soon. Operators must remain focused on preserving the voice-based traffic that is reliant on reliable and stable TDM networks to preserve existing revenues and minimize customer churn that can result from network disruptions and a complicated transition to Ethernet/IP.
Figure 1: The migration from existing TDM backhaul networks to Ethernet/IP has only just started.
TDM backhaul, whether low-speed PDH connections in the last mile or high-speed SDH/SONET in the metro and core, is subject to significant sunk investment by operators and is well understood. In contrast, moving from essentially a Layer 1 transport technology to Layer 2 or 3 Ethernet/IP is a complicated step, and many operators will need to develop the skills and resources to execute this migration with a minimum of risk and expense.
1 Heavy Reading recently reported that many operators have had significant difficulty scaling their Ethernet backhaul deployments due to a number of factors, ranging from the need to optimize TDM and introduce IP/Ethernet backhaul without succumbing to sharp spikes in CAPEX or OPEX; sub-optimal performance of the chosen architecture or technologies; and generating the operational processes to rapidly turn up Ethernet backhaul service at thousands of cell sites.
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Several recent Industry reports found that the most common approach is to move from TDM to hybrid. 2 Infonetics found that Operators report that they are turning up an increasing proportion of Ethernet connections using hybrid equipment, while EJL Wireless Research also revealed3 that PDH technology has quickly given way to Hybrid TDM/Ethernet-based solutions.
Operators report that they are turning up an increasing proportion of Ethernet connections using hybrid equipment. Infonetics
Infonetics Report on Microwave Equipment. Quarterly Worldwide and Regional Market Size, Share, and Forecasts, March 1, 2010.
EJL Wireless Research, 6th Edition Global Digital PTP Radio Market Analysis and Forecast, 2009-2014, July 2010.
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As a result, EJL Wireless found that there is still a preference for TDM's synchronization capabilities to support growing voice-only mobile traffic, though this is changing. Heavy Reading also states that leaving at least one T1/E1 at the cell site remains by far the preferred solution for synchronization of Ethernet backhaul and will continue to remain the single most popular solution through to the end of 2012. Of course, this approach is supported inherently by Hybrid microwave systems. Aviat Networks has developed an improved method of maintaining TDM synchronization with its unique Distributed Sync solution. With Distributed Sync, instead of having to maintain a dedicated E1/T1 circuit for every base station back to the synchronization source, a single omnibus E1/T1 can be utilized to provide TDM timing to a complete sub-network of base stations, reducing the demand on backhaul capacity that would otherwise be needed.
MARKET FORECASTS
Heavy Reading forecasts that by the end of 2011 TDM backhaul will still be present at 93 percent of the worlds cell sites. Further, the publication predicts that TDM will be the exclusive backhaul technology deployed at 86 percent of the worlds cell sites. Even by the end of 2013, 66 percent of cell sites will still have exclusively TDM backhaul. Heavy Reading explains that this is due, in part, to operator anxiety about putting voice over Ethernet in the backhaul. Another explanation is that in many markets operators simply do not want to discard the capacity in which they have already invested. In this case, operators may deploy Ethernet microwave in parallel to their old TDM microwave, keeping the latter in place for voice.
Figure 2: Ethernet Microwave Sites by Implementation, Heavy Reading's Ethernet Backhaul Quarterly Market Tracker, August 2010.
Alternatively, if spare capacity is available, carry the new IP traffic over the existing TDM legacy link using an encapsulation method, such as ML-PPP.
Most of the known deployments in Africa, South America, Europe, and parts of Asia consist of this hybrid model, with operators preferring to carry their voice and low-speed data natively over TDM rather than invest in Pseudowire emulation for legacy services. Heavy Reading
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According to Heavy Readings estimates, there were only 65,000 cell sites (out of more than 2 million sites worldwide) in live service with Ethernet backhaul at the end of 2009. Of these, at least two thirds are hybrid deployments in which T1/E1s are still used for voice traffic. Even in the small number of pure Ethernet backhaul links, some retain a T1/E1 just for synchronization. Heavy Reading also expects the hybrid TDM/Ethernet model to account for 85 percent of live Ethernet microwave sites by the end of 2010 and 51 percent by the end of 2013. Worldwide, most operators prefer to carry their voice and low-speed data natively over TDM rather than invest in Pseudowire emulation for legacy services. Compared with maintaining legacy traffic on native TDM, Pseudowires are a complex solution where significant TDM traffic remains, causing scalability and management issues, as well as potential additional latency and wasting valuable backhaul bandwidth.
Hybrid radio offers future proofing in both capacity as well as in transport technologies. It is becoming a "catch all" all-in-one radio solution for the industry. EJL Wireless
Infonetics also noted in its recent report that dual Ethernet/TDM microwave is hybrid equipment that can operate native TDM and native Ethernet links, enabling operators to keep legacy TDM microwave for 5 to 10 years, transition to a combination of both, and gradually deploy more Ethernet. Some hybrid multi-mode solutions can operate as an all-IP system by configuration. Indeed, Hybrid microwave systems, like Eclipse Packet Node from Aviat Networks, can be simply configured for all-packet transport, with all the Ethernet features operators expect from an IP-only platform. This includes Adaptive Modulation, co-channel operation using XPIC, integrated Layer 2 Ethernet Switching, QoS, traffic prioritization, control and monitoring, and support for synchronization over packet networks. With Hybrid, you still get a first-class Ethernet/IP transport solution, but with the benefit of continued smooth support for TDM.
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CONCLUSION
There is no one-size-fits-all solution that meets the needs of all these operators, which takes into account the technologies they have deployed in their network and their desired pace to migrate to all-IP. Many microwave solutions force operators to make a risky leap to all-IP, because they do not provide continued support for native TDM. Recent industry reports have shown that Hybrid microwave solutions continue to be the favored backhaul solution for operators around the world, and that they offer the best of both worlds when it comes to maintaining legacy TDM while also introducing new high-speed IP, with a minimum of cost, complexity and risk.
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