Ciena is excited to once again be a very active participant at SCTE Cable-Tec Expo. The virtual format this year creates an opportunity for more people to learn from cable industry experts. Ciena will be speaking on several exciting topics in the areas of edge computing and Distributed Access Architectures (DAA); network slicing and the convergence of services on MSO networks; scaling optical networks to keep pace with unrelenting bandwidth growth; and automation for managed SD-WAN. Our experts will be available to discuss these topics with attendees throughout the digital event.
Speaking Engagements
- +Unleashing Managed SD-WAN with Closed-Loop Automation
- Title of Paper: Tom Dimicelli, Blue Planet Product Marketing
- SCTE Technical Forum Session: Creative Ways to Create Value for Lit Services: Enterprise Cloud, Beyond the Pipe, with SD-WAN
- Time: Tuesday Oct 13, 1:00pm ET
- Abstract: Managed SD-WAN adoption continues unabated, taking a preeminent role in enterprise SaaS, cloud and digital transformation initiatives. In order to capture this high-growth market opportunity, many cable operators are expanding their SD-WAN portfolio to improve their market appeal, increase service differentiation, and better address diverse customer requirements. Introducing new and enhanced features to current SD-WAN offerings challenges operational scale, however. Technicians already spend countless hours interrogating inventory systems, configuring SD-WAN controllers and edge routers, and troubleshooting transient performance issues; each new VNF and SD-WAN infrastructure vendor introduces even more proprietary user-interfaces and procedures that multiply these burdens and result in increased order fallout and OPEX. Automation—and especially closed-loop life-cycle automation—provides the way forward by eliminating manual intervention from SD-WAN service design, activation and management processes, allowing cable operators to add new vendors and services without operational penalty. Based in part on the significant progress that has been made in industry bodies, cable operators can now implement an open, modular and standards-based automation framework that addresses the entire SD-WAN service life-cycle. This paper will provide details on how automation unleashes the full potential of managed SD-WAN investments, with a focus on key considerations for implementing closed-loop automation that improves the order-to-service and trouble-to-resolve processes. Additionally, the paper will provide an overview of related standards initiatives and reference architectures from the MEF, ETSI, and the TM Forum, and offer practical guidance based on operator experiences with catalog-driven order management, policy-based orchestration, zero-touch flow-through provisioning, and service assurance with closed loop remediation.
- +Addressing Unrelenting Growth in Backbone Fiber Systems Using Next Generation Photonics and Automation
- Title of Paper: Tim Maenpaa, Consulting Regional Field Systems Engineer
- SCTE Technical Forum Session: Adventures in Fiber Operations: Switched Optics, Automation and DevOps
- Time: Wednesday Oct 14, 9:30am ET
- Abstract: As core backbone bandwidth requirements continue to increase and as photonics and transponder capacities “ride the curve” due to the realities of Shannon’s limit, this paper will address how cable MSOs are using deployment principles, hardware innovation, and software automation to make the most of their fiber assets. Deployment principles include: deploying newer, economical, flexible grid photonic systems that can replace operators’ aging, inefficient fixed grid systems to maximize limited fiber assets; deploying purpose-built networks, such as Core-to-Core only or Core-to-Access only networks, that focus hardware deployments towards specific network needs; deploying high bandwidth networks by adding multiple, purpose-built systems during a single physical installation to increase deployment efficiency and reduce time to market. Hardware innovations include: next generation flexible grid photonics, including C and L band, to double the utilization of fiber resources and reduce both CAPEX and OPEX ; higher bit rate modems to permit greater efficiency in the transport of high bandwidth applications and reduce cost per bit; highly granular, variable-capacity modems (selectable in 50Gb/s increments) that allow the maximization of bandwidth to available signal-to-noise ratio margin; integrated instrumentation such as OTDRs that reduce the need for fiber characterization permitting highly accurate, automated, timely network turn-ups. Software automation includes: Zero Touch Provisioning (ZTP), to permit rapid, highly efficient equipment deployments, maximizing system performance while limiting manual involvement; real-time planning tools, to permit planning of both physical and service layer requirements that when synchronized with the network, will reduce touch and increase accuracy and efficiency; margin mining, to allow the software to analyze the network, find available margin, and then increase bit rates accordingly to maximize bandwidth resource efficiency.
- +Framework for Convergence of Services on the MSO Network Using the Principles of Network Slicing
- Speaker: Fernando Villarruel, Chief Architect, MSO Practice, Ciena
- SCTE Technical Forum Session: I’d Like a (Network) Slice, Please: Current Events in Multi-Network Convergence
- Time: Thursday Oct 15, 1:00pm ET
- Abstract: The digitization of the cable access network enables the promise of end-to-end convergence for different lines of service over shared resources. The promise, however, does not come with a framework and this leads to trepidation on how to proceed. A framework for service convergence must address three key principles. The first is that each line of service will have unique prioritization, throughput and latency requirements that need to be met. The second is that within a service there will be distinctions of tenants and applications that will eventually need a granular treatment through the network, in both time and space for compute and storage. The third is that the principles mentioned above are transitional over the lifecycle of the service and automation mechanisms to adapt and coexist are necessary to maintain viability over the long term. In this paper we propose a framework for service convergence using network slicing for MSO networks. We review the network slicing principles for 5G and point to possible analogies and key differences that aid in developing a framework for MSO slices including residential (DOCSIS and video), business services (SLA and non-SLA), and mobile (macro and small-cell). We cover the concept of a policy engine which organizes and partitions network resources available to each service. We describe hard and soft slicing mechanisms and the implementation of slice-aware logical networks which leverage capabilities of protocols including MPLS or IP Segment Routing, service layer VPN technologies, and Flexible-Ethernet. We also describe the management tools necessary to maintain end-to-end slice visibility and usability with on/off-boarding at compute edges along the network. Finally, we describe the toolkit necessary to automate and assure MSO slices have flexibility and can be optimized over their lifetime.
- +Delivering Cloud-Native Operations Agility in Compute-enabled Distributed Access Architectures
- Title of Paper: Marco Naveda, Senior Director, Network Architecture
- SCTE Technical Forum Session: I’d Like a (Network) Slice, Please: Current Events in Multi-Network Convergence
- Time: Thursday Oct 15, 1:00pm ET
- Abstract: The networking software industry is experiencing an accelerating technology shift from centralized, cloud application delivery models to a distributed edge computing paradigm. The drivers for this shift are the emergence of advanced use cases, digital transformation initiatives and business applications that require deterministic proximity and ultra-fast response times, distributed processing of large volumes of data near the source and flexible scalability across network and computing ecosystems. This new software paradigm is enabled by cloud-native application containerization and orchestration technologies. Existing cloud-based management and control systems were not designed for network distributed cluster computing. Containerization of embedded real-time network software and new business applications can greatly benefit from agile DevOps application delivery methods on a foundation of scalable, adaptive and self-optimizing infrastructure. This technical paper will delve into emerging edge computing infrastructure architectures, available open-source software to enable network distributed edge computing, and key technical considerations to accelerate adoption of new operational methods. This paper evaluates the use of open-source projects from the Linux Foundation Edge (LF Edge) and Cloud Native Computing Foundation (CNCF), such as Akraino Edge Stack and Kubernetes, to build and operationalize distributed edge computing networks. This paper will also explore how hyperscale cloud platforms such as Amazon Web Services, Microsoft Azure and Google GCP are addressing this technical challenge and how cable MSOs can leverage a rich technology ecosystem to architect open edge technology systems, implement software defined network operations, and monetize new edge-based business services.
Tom DiMicelli is a senior member of the Blue Planet (division of Ciena) Product Marketing team where he is focused on SD-WAN orchestration and automation solutions. Prior to joining Ciena, Tom held product marketing and management positions at Juniper Networks, Sycamore Networks, Integral Access and Cabletron (now Extreme Networks).
25+ years as an optical systems/sales engineer providing technical sales support to customers in a variety of communications markets with an emphasis on key North American multi service (cable) operators.
Marco Naveda is a senior member of the network architecture team of the CTO Office at Ciena. Marco is responsible for developing and executing incubation initiatives with a focus on cloud and network intelligence convergence among other areas. Marco has a diverse technology perspective of the communications industry with a variety of roles in optical networks, wireless and broadband access.