Since the photonic layer is the cheapest on a per-bit, per-function basis, and since
the key imperative before operator's today is to bridge the yawning gap between
exponentially increasing data traffic on the one-hand, and flat-to-declining revenues
on the other, a tighter coupling between the packet and optical layers to derive
operational, management, and deployment efficiencies, has...
Design Considerations for Converged Optical Ethernet NetworksVishal Sharma, Ph.D.
Transport networks have witnessed two significant trends over the past half decade or so. The first has been an explosion in the bandwidth that these networks can support and the distances over which they can support it. This is due to the advent of cost-effective wavelength division multiplexing (WDM) and dense-WDM (DWDM), as well as a slew of technologies that extend transmission range, such as...more
Enabling 5G X-Haul with Deterministic Ethernet - A TransPacket whitepaperIvar Søvold
Transpacket (www.transpacket.com) explores the concept of Ethernet X-Haul in a newly released whitepaper. Discussed extensively in the mobile industry in connection with 5G, the idea is to have an Ethernet based converged transport network serving multiple purposes including fronthaul and backhaul. The whitepaper presents the RAN architectures under consideration for 5G, and their consequences in terms of requirements for the transport network. It further describes how an innovative Ethernet scheduling mechanism is required to support deterministic Ethernet, and to fully achieve an 5G Ethernet X-Haul. It also introduces two use cases, namely Ethernet Crosshaul, and Indoor Coverage, which demonstrate the added value of deterministic Ethernet for mobile transport applications.
IP-optical convergence: a complete solutionEricsson
Networks with separate IP and optical transport networks suffer from an unnecessary resource overhead, as each network has its own control and management mechanisms. In addition to the extra resources needed to reach a given performance target, separation also makes networks more complex than they need to be. Like many other issues that operators face today, this causes costs to rise and lowers the ability to evolve with changing business environments.
Mpls tp as packet platform for critical services in power transmissionHughCab
Beyond the trend of using IP as the “up to date technology” for SCADA (IEC
60870-5-104) and protections scheme integrated to a centralized management
of the load (Sinchrophasors PMU), there is the need to approach the automatic
switching and intrinsic autonomy of routing algorithms to provide smart
capability to the communications network [1]. For long time IP equipment
manufacturers have been trying to penetrate the electrical utilities with partial
success, they were able to support only added value services as IP Video, VoIP
and corporate IP traffic which is are not “critical” or essential to the electrical
power system operation.
On this paper is presented a theoretical-practical evaluation of the MPLS-TP
protocol which offers an IP platform according to the complimentary services
requirements (high bandwidth) as well for reliable channels features through
the emulation of TDM systems with delay, symmetry and self-healing switching
in order to warrant the correct operation of critical services as Teleprotection,
Differential Relays and Sinchrophasors.
Key time measurements will be presented which certifies the theoretical
reliability of MPLS-TP as main IP communication platform in electrical
transmission systems.
Design Considerations for Converged Optical Ethernet NetworksVishal Sharma, Ph.D.
Transport networks have witnessed two significant trends over the past half decade or so. The first has been an explosion in the bandwidth that these networks can support and the distances over which they can support it. This is due to the advent of cost-effective wavelength division multiplexing (WDM) and dense-WDM (DWDM), as well as a slew of technologies that extend transmission range, such as...more
Enabling 5G X-Haul with Deterministic Ethernet - A TransPacket whitepaperIvar Søvold
Transpacket (www.transpacket.com) explores the concept of Ethernet X-Haul in a newly released whitepaper. Discussed extensively in the mobile industry in connection with 5G, the idea is to have an Ethernet based converged transport network serving multiple purposes including fronthaul and backhaul. The whitepaper presents the RAN architectures under consideration for 5G, and their consequences in terms of requirements for the transport network. It further describes how an innovative Ethernet scheduling mechanism is required to support deterministic Ethernet, and to fully achieve an 5G Ethernet X-Haul. It also introduces two use cases, namely Ethernet Crosshaul, and Indoor Coverage, which demonstrate the added value of deterministic Ethernet for mobile transport applications.
IP-optical convergence: a complete solutionEricsson
Networks with separate IP and optical transport networks suffer from an unnecessary resource overhead, as each network has its own control and management mechanisms. In addition to the extra resources needed to reach a given performance target, separation also makes networks more complex than they need to be. Like many other issues that operators face today, this causes costs to rise and lowers the ability to evolve with changing business environments.
Mpls tp as packet platform for critical services in power transmissionHughCab
Beyond the trend of using IP as the “up to date technology” for SCADA (IEC
60870-5-104) and protections scheme integrated to a centralized management
of the load (Sinchrophasors PMU), there is the need to approach the automatic
switching and intrinsic autonomy of routing algorithms to provide smart
capability to the communications network [1]. For long time IP equipment
manufacturers have been trying to penetrate the electrical utilities with partial
success, they were able to support only added value services as IP Video, VoIP
and corporate IP traffic which is are not “critical” or essential to the electrical
power system operation.
On this paper is presented a theoretical-practical evaluation of the MPLS-TP
protocol which offers an IP platform according to the complimentary services
requirements (high bandwidth) as well for reliable channels features through
the emulation of TDM systems with delay, symmetry and self-healing switching
in order to warrant the correct operation of critical services as Teleprotection,
Differential Relays and Sinchrophasors.
Key time measurements will be presented which certifies the theoretical
reliability of MPLS-TP as main IP communication platform in electrical
transmission systems.
This paper provides a high-level comparison
between LTE and WiMAX. The focus is on two primary areas: System Architecture and Physical Layer. The System Architecture describes the different functional elements in LTE and WiMAX and attempts to map similar functionality (such as mobility, security, access-gateway). We also compare and contrast the various aspects (such as transmission modes, duplexing types) of the physical layer.
White Paper-Evolution from 10Gbps to 100Gbps for a Metro Network-hsSusmita Adhikari Joshi
Overlaying flourishing 10 Gb/s services with additional co-propagating 10 Gb/s channels in different colors, or wavelengths, is already common practice. Network operators eager to increase capacity have begun overlaying 40 Gb/s channels onto available fiber without leasing more dark fibers as the best pragmatic approach. With the advent of 100G technology, the interest is now shifting from 40G to 100G installations.
Qualcomm is elevating its role as a market leader by bringing breakthrough concepts to LTE’s evolution. We believe that the next significant performance leap will come from heterogeneous networks, or HetNets, which bring the network closer to the user through low-power nodes such as pico and femto-cells. LTE Advanced uses adaptive interference management techniques to further improve the capacity and coverage of these HetNets. There by, ensuring fairness among users and an enhanced mobile experience, especially for those users at the cell edge. LTE Advanced also introduces multicarrier to leverage ultra wide bandwidths up to 100 MHz, supporting very high data rates.
Some of the key driving forces behind the transition from the UMTS based cellular system to the Long Term Evolution Advanced (LTE-A) are to improve the mean and the cell-edge throughput, improve the user fairness, and improve the quality of service (QoS) satisfaction for all users. In the latter system, relays appear as one of the most prominent enabler for improving the cell-edge user experience while increasing the system’s fairness.
In this white paper, we present the basics of relay deployments in LTE-A networks. Moreover, we analyze resource allocation problem for Relay Nodes (RN) deployments and present some of the solutions for improvement in system resource usage and QoS satisfaction. Afterwards, we introduce the capabilities of NOMOR’s LTE-A system level simulator and evaluate the performance of LTE-A relay systems under the described solutions.
PERFORMANCE ANALYSIS OF CARRIER AGGREGATION FOR VARIOUS MOBILE NETWORK IMPLEM...ijwmn
Carrier Aggregation (CA) is one of the Long Term Evolution Advanced (LTE-A) features that allow mobile network operators (MNO) to combine multiple component carriers (CCs) across the available spectrum to create a wider bandwidth channel for increasing the network data throughput and overall capacity. CA has a potential to enhance data rates and network performance in the downlink, uplink, or both, and it can support aggregation of frequency division duplexing (FDD) as well as time division duplexing (TDD). The technique enables the MNO to exploit fragmented spectrum allocations and can be utilized to aggregate licensed and unlicensed carrier spectrum as well. This paper analyzes the performance gains and complexity level that arises from the aggregation of three inter-band component carriers (3CC) as compared to the aggregation of 2CC using a Vienna LTE System Level simulator. The results show a considerable growth in the average cell throughput when 3CC aggregations are implemented over the 2CC aggregation, at the expense of reduction in the fairness index. The reduction in the fairness index implies that, the scheduler has an increased task in resource allocations due to the added component carrier. Compensating for such decrease in the fairness index could result into scheduler design complexity. The proposed scheme can be adopted in combining various component carriers, to increase the bandwidth and hence the data rates.
Towards achieving-high-performance-in-5g-mobile-packet-cores-user-plane-functionEiko Seidel
White Paper Intel SK Telekom
This paper presents the architecture for a user plane function (UPF) in the mobile packet core (MPC) targeting 5G deployments.
Motivation and results coverage enhancment for 3GPP NR Rel.17 Eiko Seidel
In this paper we would like to emphasize once again the need to look at large coverage scenarios for 5G NR and express our support for the creation of a Rel.17 work item. Furthermore, we provide first system-level simulation results to further motivate work on coverage enhancements and prove our commitment to contribute to a study item in the working groups in Rel.17 with independent performance evaluation.
This paper provides a high-level comparison
between LTE and WiMAX. The focus is on two primary areas: System Architecture and Physical Layer. The System Architecture describes the different functional elements in LTE and WiMAX and attempts to map similar functionality (such as mobility, security, access-gateway). We also compare and contrast the various aspects (such as transmission modes, duplexing types) of the physical layer.
White Paper-Evolution from 10Gbps to 100Gbps for a Metro Network-hsSusmita Adhikari Joshi
Overlaying flourishing 10 Gb/s services with additional co-propagating 10 Gb/s channels in different colors, or wavelengths, is already common practice. Network operators eager to increase capacity have begun overlaying 40 Gb/s channels onto available fiber without leasing more dark fibers as the best pragmatic approach. With the advent of 100G technology, the interest is now shifting from 40G to 100G installations.
Qualcomm is elevating its role as a market leader by bringing breakthrough concepts to LTE’s evolution. We believe that the next significant performance leap will come from heterogeneous networks, or HetNets, which bring the network closer to the user through low-power nodes such as pico and femto-cells. LTE Advanced uses adaptive interference management techniques to further improve the capacity and coverage of these HetNets. There by, ensuring fairness among users and an enhanced mobile experience, especially for those users at the cell edge. LTE Advanced also introduces multicarrier to leverage ultra wide bandwidths up to 100 MHz, supporting very high data rates.
Some of the key driving forces behind the transition from the UMTS based cellular system to the Long Term Evolution Advanced (LTE-A) are to improve the mean and the cell-edge throughput, improve the user fairness, and improve the quality of service (QoS) satisfaction for all users. In the latter system, relays appear as one of the most prominent enabler for improving the cell-edge user experience while increasing the system’s fairness.
In this white paper, we present the basics of relay deployments in LTE-A networks. Moreover, we analyze resource allocation problem for Relay Nodes (RN) deployments and present some of the solutions for improvement in system resource usage and QoS satisfaction. Afterwards, we introduce the capabilities of NOMOR’s LTE-A system level simulator and evaluate the performance of LTE-A relay systems under the described solutions.
PERFORMANCE ANALYSIS OF CARRIER AGGREGATION FOR VARIOUS MOBILE NETWORK IMPLEM...ijwmn
Carrier Aggregation (CA) is one of the Long Term Evolution Advanced (LTE-A) features that allow mobile network operators (MNO) to combine multiple component carriers (CCs) across the available spectrum to create a wider bandwidth channel for increasing the network data throughput and overall capacity. CA has a potential to enhance data rates and network performance in the downlink, uplink, or both, and it can support aggregation of frequency division duplexing (FDD) as well as time division duplexing (TDD). The technique enables the MNO to exploit fragmented spectrum allocations and can be utilized to aggregate licensed and unlicensed carrier spectrum as well. This paper analyzes the performance gains and complexity level that arises from the aggregation of three inter-band component carriers (3CC) as compared to the aggregation of 2CC using a Vienna LTE System Level simulator. The results show a considerable growth in the average cell throughput when 3CC aggregations are implemented over the 2CC aggregation, at the expense of reduction in the fairness index. The reduction in the fairness index implies that, the scheduler has an increased task in resource allocations due to the added component carrier. Compensating for such decrease in the fairness index could result into scheduler design complexity. The proposed scheme can be adopted in combining various component carriers, to increase the bandwidth and hence the data rates.
Towards achieving-high-performance-in-5g-mobile-packet-cores-user-plane-functionEiko Seidel
White Paper Intel SK Telekom
This paper presents the architecture for a user plane function (UPF) in the mobile packet core (MPC) targeting 5G deployments.
Motivation and results coverage enhancment for 3GPP NR Rel.17 Eiko Seidel
In this paper we would like to emphasize once again the need to look at large coverage scenarios for 5G NR and express our support for the creation of a Rel.17 work item. Furthermore, we provide first system-level simulation results to further motivate work on coverage enhancements and prove our commitment to contribute to a study item in the working groups in Rel.17 with independent performance evaluation.
ASON – Automatically Switched Optical Networks
Dynamically switch the light path
Enabler for many applications
Controlled by UNI and NNI – Allow applications to set the light path
Allow to add the intelligence into the optical core
ASON:
The Automatic Switched Optical Network (ASON) is both a framework and a technology capability.
As a framework that describes a control and management architecture for an automatic switched optical transport network.
As a technology, it refers to routing and signalling protocols applied to an optical network which enable dynamic path setup.
Recently changed names to Automatic Switched Transport Network (G.ASTN)
Mpls tp as packet platform for critical services in power transmissionHughCab
Beyond the trend of using IP as the “up to date technology” for SCADA (IEC 60870-5-104) and protections scheme integrated to a centralized management of the load (Sinchrophasors PMU), there is the need to approach the automatic switching and intrinsic autonomy of routing algorithms to provide smart capability to the communications network [1]. For long time IP equipment manufacturers have been trying to penetrate the electrical utilities with partial success, they were able to support only added value services as IP Video, VoIP and corporate IP traffic which is are not “critical” or essential to the electrical power system operation.
On this paper is presented a theoretical-practical evaluation of the MPLS-TP protocol which offers an IP platform according to the complimentary services requirements (high bandwidth) as well for reliable channels features through the emulation of TDM systems with delay, symmetry and self-healing switching in order to warrant the correct operation of critical services as Teleprotection, Differential Relays and Sinchrophasors.
Key time measurements will be presented which certifies the theoretical reliability of MPLS-TP as main IP communication platform in electrical transmission systems.
Throughput Performance Analysis VOIP over LTEiosrjce
IOSR Journal of Electronics and Communication Engineering(IOSR-JECE) is a double blind peer reviewed International Journal that provides rapid publication (within a month) of articles in all areas of electronics and communication engineering and its applications. The journal welcomes publications of high quality papers on theoretical developments and practical applications in electronics and communication engineering. Original research papers, state-of-the-art reviews, and high quality technical notes are invited for publications.
The optical backbone evolution in the TLC operator infrastructuresOvidio Michelangeli
Starting from the current photonic infrastructures the paper illustrates the evolution of the backbone transport network in order to face the continuous bandwidth request for the coming multimedia services both in fixed and mobile services
A presentation given at the IoT World, May 2016 discussing why IoT innovation has significant economic impact, the legal and commercial challenges to the IoT Ecosystem, and the impact of new IP regulations (AIA, Banks, open-source models). We also assess the IP landscape for IoT looking the a taxonomy of technologies involved, the key owners, and areas ripe for licensing, and conclude with a look to the future.
Network Infrastructure Security in Cellular Data Networks: An Initial Invest...Vishal Sharma, Ph.D.
Network Infrastructure Security in Cellular Data Networks: An Initial Investigation - a presentation of the research by the Wireless Networks Research Group at IIT Bombay at SANOG (The South-Asian Network Operators Group) in January 2006.
A New Analysis for Wavelength Translation in Regular WDM NetworksVishal Sharma, Ph.D.
We present a new analysis of wavelength translation in
regular, all-optical WDM networks, that is simple, computationally
inexpensive, and accurate for both low and high
network loads. In a network with
k
wavelengths per link,
we model the output link by an auxiliary
M/M/k/k
queueing
system. We then obtain a closed-form expression for
the probability
P succ
that a session arriving at a node at a
random time successfully establishes a connection from its
source node to its destination node. Unlike previous analyses,
which use the link independence blocking assumption,
we account for the dependence between the acquisition of
wavelengths on successive links of the session’s path. Based
on the success probability, we show that the throughput per
wavelength increases superlinearly (as expected) as we increase
the number of wavelengths per link; however, the
extent of this superlinear increase in throughput saturates
rather quickly. This suggests some interesting possibilities
for network provisioning in an all-optical network. We verify the accuracy of our analysis via simulations for the torus
and hypercube networks.
Architectural Options for Metro Carrier-Ethernet Network Buildout: Analysis &...Vishal Sharma, Ph.D.
This workshop is one of the first that we're aware of to give a detailed taxonomy & analysis of deployment options for Carrier Ethernet-based metro/access networks, in one place. We elaborate each option addressing questions like: network architectures possible? Is other supporting technology needed? Or, is it standalone for the applications/services a provider might run, and so on.
A carrier-oriented panel conceived, co-ordinated, moderated/chaired by me (with great inputs from the NANOG Program Committee, and our PC Liason, Tony Tauber of Comcast), as part of our "Network Health Assessment to Lower TCO!" initiative, where our focus is to gather carrier eco-system thinking around contemporary carrier issues/challenges, to explore what we are doing well, what the needs of the...
Capacity Planning Panel - Operator and Eco-System Player DiscourseVishal Sharma, Ph.D.
This is a service-provider oriented panel hosted at NANOG52 in Denver, CO, that I coordinated (with Nina Bargisen of TDC with help from Phil Griston, Cariden, and Timothy Hu, WANDL) and moderated/Chaired. The panel involved excellent presentations by Tom Lundstrom (Qwest) and Duke Fisher (Verizon) on how they were using network planning and design tools to effectively handle large-scale design..
The goal of the carrier today is to offer manageable end-user data services with a measurable QoS (Quality-of-Service) at the minimum cost per bit, using the smallest footprint systems, with the simplest implementation that allows for service-level agreements, operational efficiency, and traffic scalability. This has lead to the emergence of two design principles: the lower the layer at which...
Internet Routing Protocols: Fundamental Concepts of Distance-Vector and Link-...Vishal Sharma, Ph.D.
An easy to follow basic presentation designed to explain the core operating principles of link-state and distance-vector routing protocols, which form the basis of OSPF/IS-IS and BGP routing protocols for the Internet, respectively. Adapted and summarized from Christian Huitema's "Routing in the Internet," bringing some of his examples "to life" as it were.
This talk/presentation is useful for...
This classic talk from 2002-03, captures some of the key traffic engineering and core network design strategies deployed by carriers from the early 1990's to early 2000's, and (now, in 2011!) provides a great historical perspective on how network cores have evolved. It will prove valuable for those looking to understand network evolution, and the operational principles and considerations behind it...
This talk/tutorial was one that I delivered to multiple organizations -- ranging from semiconductor houses, to start-up system vendors, to research and academic institutions, back in the 2002 time frame. As the abstract below illustrates, it captures the key essence & principles behind the router designs of two of the most popular and landmark switch/routers in our industry -- the Cisco...
Multi-Protocol Lambda Switching: The Role of IP Technologies in Controlling a...Vishal Sharma, Ph.D.
This is an early short tutorial from back in 2001 that focuses on the control of dynamic (or agile) optical networks. We begin by highlighting the motivation for such networks, their basic requirements, and the advantages of agility. We examine the functionality needed for routing and connection establishment in such dynamic networks, and compare possible candidates for the design of such a...
Elements of Cross-Layer System & Network Design for QoS-Enabled Wi-Max Networks Vishal Sharma, Ph.D.
The main theme of this workshop is to elucidate medium access control (MAC) layer operation and cross-layer system and network design techniques for providing Quality-of-Service (QoS) in wireless broadband networks, and to put it in the context of military communications. We will use the IEEE 802.16 standard as an example for the rich feature set it presents, and the flexibility it provides for...
Today’s emerging metro Ethernet networks represent a significant shift in the way in which data services are offered to enterprise and residential customers. With Ethernet emerging as the access interface of choice, services such as packet-leased line and virtual private LAN service are being delivered over a wide mix of transport technologies – SONET/SDH, next-gen SONET/SDH, Ethernet/WDM, and...
Packet-Optical Integration: The Key to Evolving Towards Packet Enabled Agile ...Vishal Sharma, Ph.D.
The operator's paradox, for the past several years now, has been that while there is an explosion in data traffic volumes to the tune of 45-65% yearly, the corresponding revenue growth is in the single digits at best. To bridge this gap between rising operating costs (spurred by increased network capacity demands) and relatively flat revenues, providers must assess how to better architect their...
Understanding Intelligent Military-Grade Optical Ethernet Networks: A Versati...Vishal Sharma, Ph.D.
Ethernet technology has emerged as a cost-effective, mature, robust, high-speed, & versatile choice for MAN/WAN networking of critical defense establishments and military installations – for e.g., army, navy, & air force bases, mission commands, remote war centers, the Pentagon, and other security agencies. Intelligent Ethernet helps to achieve IP-centric service requirements, while...
A Survey of Recent Advances in Network Planning/Traffic Engineering (TE) ToolsVishal Sharma, Ph.D.
Designing & managing operational IP networks is a complex, multi-dimensional
task. A fundamental problem before carriers today
is to optimize network performance by better resource allocation to traffic demands.
This requires a systematic evaluation of options, a thorough scenario analysis,
and foolproof verification of network designs, all of which are increasingly
possible only with help from automated TE and planning tools.
In the past few years, significant advances have been made in enhancing existing
tools and developing new ones that help providers rapidly identify potential
performance problems, experiment with solutions, and develop robust designs.
Several techniques from optimization theory, linear programming, and
models of effective bandwidth calculation have been incorporated in such
tools, as have detailed models of several vendor systems.
We present a comparative analysis and an overview of key features of some key
commercially available network planning/TE tools, and outline how
they could be leveraged by carrier network engineering/planning
organizations to perform detailed network analysis, proactive/reactive
TE, and network design.
We first give an overview of the architecture, design philosophy, and canonical
features of modern design tools, and then focus on new enhancements to some
popular tools
as well as key distinguishing features of some newly developed ones.
In particular, we focus on decision support tools for IP network planning
and network analysis, including the latest versions from
WANDL, OPNET, Cariden..
We also present a perspective on current outstanding carrier requirements
for TE/planning tools that was synthesized by our conversations with
several leading Tier 1 and Tier 2 carriers.
A fundamental problem before carriers today is to optimize network cost
and performance by better resource allocation to traffic demands. This is especially
important with the packet infrastructure becoming a critical business resource.
The key to achieving this is traffic engineering (TE), the process of
systematically putting traffic where there is capacity, and backbone
capacity management, the process of ensuring that there is enough network
capacity to meet demand, even at peak times and under failure conditions,
without significant queue buildups.
In this talk, we first focus on the TE techniques and approaches used
in the networks of two large carriers: Global Crossing and
Sprint, which represent the two ends of the traffic engineering spectrum.
We do so by presenting a snapshot of their TE philosophy, deployment strategy,
and network design principles and operation.
We then present the results of an empirical study of backbone traffic
characteristics that suggests that Internet traffic is not self-similar at
timescales relevant to QoS. Our non-parametric approach requires minimal
assumptions (unlike much of the previous work), and allows
us to formulate a practical process for ensuring QoS using backbone
capacity management.
(This latter work is joint with Thomas Telkamp, Global Crossing Ltd. and Arman
Maghbouleh, Cariden Technologies, Inc.)
With the rapid growth of IP networks in South-Asia in the past
few years, and the advent of new services and applications -- be they
wireless/wireline broadband Internet access, cable telephony, VoIP, remote
teleconferencing, e-governance, or mobile entertainment -- a key
issue before carriers is how to design and operate their networks as
methodically and as efficiently as possible to maximize both customer
retention and profits.
While several best practices typically emerge from each provider\'s
unique situation and cumulative experience (the "art" of network design), there
are certain operational precepts that systematize and streamline the
complex, multi-dimensional task of designing and managing modern, operational
IP networks (the "science" of network design).
In this talk, we first discuss the overall network design process and the
manner in which control over the network must be exercised at varying
timescales to achieve efficient operation. Next we discuss the
functions that the operational, engineering, and planning teams at a
carrier must typically execute, their inter-relationships, and
the importance/rationale for performing them to optimize network
performance.
We then outline some network design best practices that have evolved
over the past decade, drawing upon examples of carriers such as
Sprint, Global Crossing, AT&T, NTT, and Reliance. We conclude with
a look at some automated traffic engineering and planning tools,
and how they enable carriers to rapidly identify potential
performance problems, rigorously experiment with/evaluate design
options, perform thorough scenario and network analysis, and
develop robust designs.
Neuro-symbolic is not enough, we need neuro-*semantic*Frank van Harmelen
Neuro-symbolic (NeSy) AI is on the rise. However, simply machine learning on just any symbolic structure is not sufficient to really harvest the gains of NeSy. These will only be gained when the symbolic structures have an actual semantics. I give an operational definition of semantics as “predictable inference”.
All of this illustrated with link prediction over knowledge graphs, but the argument is general.
UiPath Test Automation using UiPath Test Suite series, part 3DianaGray10
Welcome to UiPath Test Automation using UiPath Test Suite series part 3. In this session, we will cover desktop automation along with UI automation.
Topics covered:
UI automation Introduction,
UI automation Sample
Desktop automation flow
Pradeep Chinnala, Senior Consultant Automation Developer @WonderBotz and UiPath MVP
Deepak Rai, Automation Practice Lead, Boundaryless Group and UiPath MVP
Key Trends Shaping the Future of Infrastructure.pdfCheryl Hung
Keynote at DIGIT West Expo, Glasgow on 29 May 2024.
Cheryl Hung, ochery.com
Sr Director, Infrastructure Ecosystem, Arm.
The key trends across hardware, cloud and open-source; exploring how these areas are likely to mature and develop over the short and long-term, and then considering how organisations can position themselves to adapt and thrive.
Accelerate your Kubernetes clusters with Varnish CachingThijs Feryn
A presentation about the usage and availability of Varnish on Kubernetes. This talk explores the capabilities of Varnish caching and shows how to use the Varnish Helm chart to deploy it to Kubernetes.
This presentation was delivered at K8SUG Singapore. See https://feryn.eu/presentations/accelerate-your-kubernetes-clusters-with-varnish-caching-k8sug-singapore-28-2024 for more details.
UiPath Test Automation using UiPath Test Suite series, part 4DianaGray10
Welcome to UiPath Test Automation using UiPath Test Suite series part 4. In this session, we will cover Test Manager overview along with SAP heatmap.
The UiPath Test Manager overview with SAP heatmap webinar offers a concise yet comprehensive exploration of the role of a Test Manager within SAP environments, coupled with the utilization of heatmaps for effective testing strategies.
Participants will gain insights into the responsibilities, challenges, and best practices associated with test management in SAP projects. Additionally, the webinar delves into the significance of heatmaps as a visual aid for identifying testing priorities, areas of risk, and resource allocation within SAP landscapes. Through this session, attendees can expect to enhance their understanding of test management principles while learning practical approaches to optimize testing processes in SAP environments using heatmap visualization techniques
What will you get from this session?
1. Insights into SAP testing best practices
2. Heatmap utilization for testing
3. Optimization of testing processes
4. Demo
Topics covered:
Execution from the test manager
Orchestrator execution result
Defect reporting
SAP heatmap example with demo
Speaker:
Deepak Rai, Automation Practice Lead, Boundaryless Group and UiPath MVP
Kubernetes & AI - Beauty and the Beast !?! @KCD Istanbul 2024Tobias Schneck
As AI technology is pushing into IT I was wondering myself, as an “infrastructure container kubernetes guy”, how get this fancy AI technology get managed from an infrastructure operational view? Is it possible to apply our lovely cloud native principals as well? What benefit’s both technologies could bring to each other?
Let me take this questions and provide you a short journey through existing deployment models and use cases for AI software. On practical examples, we discuss what cloud/on-premise strategy we may need for applying it to our own infrastructure to get it to work from an enterprise perspective. I want to give an overview about infrastructure requirements and technologies, what could be beneficial or limiting your AI use cases in an enterprise environment. An interactive Demo will give you some insides, what approaches I got already working for real.
PHP Frameworks: I want to break free (IPC Berlin 2024)Ralf Eggert
In this presentation, we examine the challenges and limitations of relying too heavily on PHP frameworks in web development. We discuss the history of PHP and its frameworks to understand how this dependence has evolved. The focus will be on providing concrete tips and strategies to reduce reliance on these frameworks, based on real-world examples and practical considerations. The goal is to equip developers with the skills and knowledge to create more flexible and future-proof web applications. We'll explore the importance of maintaining autonomy in a rapidly changing tech landscape and how to make informed decisions in PHP development.
This talk is aimed at encouraging a more independent approach to using PHP frameworks, moving towards a more flexible and future-proof approach to PHP development.
Search and Society: Reimagining Information Access for Radical FuturesBhaskar Mitra
The field of Information retrieval (IR) is currently undergoing a transformative shift, at least partly due to the emerging applications of generative AI to information access. In this talk, we will deliberate on the sociotechnical implications of generative AI for information access. We will argue that there is both a critical necessity and an exciting opportunity for the IR community to re-center our research agendas on societal needs while dismantling the artificial separation between the work on fairness, accountability, transparency, and ethics in IR and the rest of IR research. Instead of adopting a reactionary strategy of trying to mitigate potential social harms from emerging technologies, the community should aim to proactively set the research agenda for the kinds of systems we should build inspired by diverse explicitly stated sociotechnical imaginaries. The sociotechnical imaginaries that underpin the design and development of information access technologies needs to be explicitly articulated, and we need to develop theories of change in context of these diverse perspectives. Our guiding future imaginaries must be informed by other academic fields, such as democratic theory and critical theory, and should be co-developed with social science scholars, legal scholars, civil rights and social justice activists, and artists, among others.
Transcript: Selling digital books in 2024: Insights from industry leaders - T...BookNet Canada
The publishing industry has been selling digital audiobooks and ebooks for over a decade and has found its groove. What’s changed? What has stayed the same? Where do we go from here? Join a group of leading sales peers from across the industry for a conversation about the lessons learned since the popularization of digital books, best practices, digital book supply chain management, and more.
Link to video recording: https://bnctechforum.ca/sessions/selling-digital-books-in-2024-insights-from-industry-leaders/
Presented by BookNet Canada on May 28, 2024, with support from the Department of Canadian Heritage.
GraphRAG is All You need? LLM & Knowledge GraphGuy Korland
Guy Korland, CEO and Co-founder of FalkorDB, will review two articles on the integration of language models with knowledge graphs.
1. Unifying Large Language Models and Knowledge Graphs: A Roadmap.
https://arxiv.org/abs/2306.08302
2. Microsoft Research's GraphRAG paper and a review paper on various uses of knowledge graphs:
https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/research/blog/graphrag-unlocking-llm-discovery-on-narrative-private-data/
State of ICS and IoT Cyber Threat Landscape Report 2024 previewPrayukth K V
The IoT and OT threat landscape report has been prepared by the Threat Research Team at Sectrio using data from Sectrio, cyber threat intelligence farming facilities spread across over 85 cities around the world. In addition, Sectrio also runs AI-based advanced threat and payload engagement facilities that serve as sinks to attract and engage sophisticated threat actors, and newer malware including new variants and latent threats that are at an earlier stage of development.
The latest edition of the OT/ICS and IoT security Threat Landscape Report 2024 also covers:
State of global ICS asset and network exposure
Sectoral targets and attacks as well as the cost of ransom
Global APT activity, AI usage, actor and tactic profiles, and implications
Rise in volumes of AI-powered cyberattacks
Major cyber events in 2024
Malware and malicious payload trends
Cyberattack types and targets
Vulnerability exploit attempts on CVEs
Attacks on counties – USA
Expansion of bot farms – how, where, and why
In-depth analysis of the cyber threat landscape across North America, South America, Europe, APAC, and the Middle East
Why are attacks on smart factories rising?
Cyber risk predictions
Axis of attacks – Europe
Systemic attacks in the Middle East
Download the full report from here:
https://sectrio.com/resources/ot-threat-landscape-reports/sectrio-releases-ot-ics-and-iot-security-threat-landscape-report-2024/
1. PTB >>Packet-Optical Integration
The operator’s paradox for the past several years has been that while there is an explosion in data
traffic volumes to the tune of 45-65% yearly, the corresponding revenue growth is in the single digits at
best. To bridge this gap, providers must assess how to better architect their networks to reduce the
transport-cost per bit, conserve space and power, and improve network performance to lower the opex.
(Statistics show that service providers spend almost 5 opex dollars for each capex dollar![1]). They must
also optimize their networks to efficiently carry high growth services like Internet access, packet traffic
from 3G/4G wireless networks, and video. Achieving this efficiency entails a tighter integration between
the packet and the optical/photonic layers, since the photonic layer is the cheapest perbit, per function, thus
motivating the packet-optical
integration.
Major Solution Drivers Figure 1. Neilsen’s Law of Internet Bandwidth,
Technological advances (e.g. cloud predicted in 1998, has shown accurate and consistent for
computing, remote diagnostics, over a decade (From Jakob Neilsen’s Alertbox
multimedia collaboration), http://www.useit.com/alertbox/980405.html ).
bandwidth in tensive applications
(e.g. video services with HD,
Carrier Ethernet enterprise
services, remote data backup and
disaster recovery), and fast
connection speeds, which
according to Nielsen’s Law
double every 21 months (Figure 1),
lead to a proliferation of data
packets and drive the demand for a
better networking solution. In
addition, some key enterprise
trends contribute to this traffic. For
instance, almost 95% of enterprise
traffic is now Ethernet-based.
Indeed, business Ethernet port
demand was up 43% in 2008
alone. Further, almost 80% of
traffic now leaves the enterprise
(the reverse of what it was just a
little over a decade ago) implying a much greater load in the metro and core[2]. Thus, a key impetus for
carriers is to increase the effectiveness and efficiency of transporting these packets over an optical transport
network in the WAN environment.
Today, the IP/Ethernet packets are wrapped into SONET/SDH or G.709 TDM circuits, and transported
over wavelengths on an optical infrastructure. One disadvantage of this is that when all switching occurs in
a Layer 3 router/switch rather than judiciously leveraging Layer 2 Ethernet or Layer “2.5†MPLS
switching, the cost of the network begins to increase. Con sequently, control layer mechanisms, such as
Multi- Protocol Label Switching-Transport Profile, MPLS-TP (e.g. RFCs 5654, 5317, 5718, 5860;[3]), or
Provider-Backbone Bridging-Traffic Engineering, PBB-TE (IEEE 802.1Qay standard), are becoming
2. important. Plus, the transport of IP/Ethernet over optical infrastructure is moving to sending native
IP/Ethernet over wavelengths via WDM, which requires newer packet-optical solutions. The particular
solution adopted will be dictated by a number of factors. For example, the balance between the extent of
connection-oriented (TDM) traffic and pure datagram traffic; the exist ing capital investment in
SONET/SDH ADMs, ROADMs, switches and routers; the degree of equipment consolidation
needed/desired to reduce opex; desire to use the wavelengths better; the OAMP&T (operations,
administration, maintenance, performance and troubleshooting) provided by the deployed technologies; and
whether IP/MPLS expertise and transport expertise resides in a common team or in different parts of the
Figure 2. Conceptual Operation of a Wavelength Selective Switch.
providers’ organization.
Characteristics of a Packet- Optical Solution
So what are the key ingredients being looked upon by operators in a packetoptical solution? It turns out that
the following 4 elements are becoming table stakes:
• Reconfigurable Optical Add/Drop Multiplexer (ROADM) infrastructure with support for routing
wavelengths at multi-degree junctions, as well as the simpler two degree nodes [4].
• The ability to efficiently carry existing SONET/SDH services without compromising support for high-
growth packet and OTN traffic.
• Connection-oriented Layer 2 Ethernet switching and aggregation.
• Carrier-grade OAM — merging what exists in the optical domain with what exists in the packet
domain to give an operator a comprehensive view of the network. Thus a general industry consensus is
emerging on the requirements of a Packet-Optical Transport System (POTS).
3. Three Key Areas of Advancement
The development of packet-optical solutions has involved advancements in 3 key areas: subsystems such as
ROADMs and PICs; systems and ASICs (such as Packet-Optical Transport Systems); and control and
management plane software.
1) ROADMs & PICs
ROADMs have played a key role in moving the transport network toward greater agility/flexibility by
reducing the manual intervention needed to set up new lightpaths. A ROADM is composed of a number of
sub-systems such as Wavelength Selective Switches (WSSs), optical amplifiers, optical channel monitors,
transponders, and control and management software. A ROADM eliminates costly optical-to-electrical
conversions at intermediate nodes by allowing wavelengths to pass intermediate nodes in the optical
domain. First generation ROADM’s allowed a lightpath’s direction to be changed, while its
wavelength remained fixed. They were typically 2-dimensional nodes that enabled ring architectures. Sub
sequent ROADMs had higher degrees of between 4-8, allowing for mesh architectures. Second generation
ROADM’s used tunable lasers and wavelength selective switches (WSSs), allowing both the direction
and the wavelength of a lightpath to be changed. WSS modules are the building blocks for ROADMs that
can handle any wavelength on any port (and so are known as ‘colorless’) and can connect signals
flowing in any direction on any port to any other port (hence ‘directionless’).
The next-generation of ROADMs will be gridless and contentionless. A contentionless ROADM allows
multiple copies of a given wavelength (coming from different directions) to be dropped at a node, while a
gridless ROADM has the capability to accommodate wavelengths that do not fit on the ITU 50 GHz or 100
GHz grid, but will utilize a flexgrid with a less rigid channel spacing (where some or all of the channels
could use more than the standard 50GHz bandwidth). This allows for variable channel widths and enables
operators to efficiently use spectrum to maximize fiber capacity. They will also incorporate fast switching
speeds to decrease latency, and superior optical channel monitoring at the ROADM ports to better regulate
signal power.
Photonic Integrated Circuits (PICs) have shown to be very effective in reducing the cost of the DWDM
systems deployed by operators [5]. For example, Infinera’s PIC-based transport system is the #1 most
widely deployed DWDM system in North America and includes a PIC-based Line Module with more than
100 optical components (lasers, modulators, wavelength lockers, etc.) integrated on a single monolithic
Indium Pho - sphide chip approximately 5mm square. Next generation PICs are now under development to
incorporate more complex modulation schemes such as QPSK and QAM, which are required to achieve
100Gbps per wavelength and higher and achieve aggregate capacities of 500Gbps or 1Tbps per PIC, and
more than 10Tbps per fiber over long-haul networks.
2) Packet-Optical Transport Systems Figure 3. Packet-Optical Transport Systems (P-
Packet-optical transport systems/ platforms (P-OTS or P- OTS): Architectures in use today.
OTP) are a new class of networking platforms that
combine the functions and features of SONET/SDH/OTN ADMs or cross-connects, Ethernet switching and
aggregation systems, and WDM/ROADM transport systems into either a single network element or a small
set of network elements. The goal of a Packet-Optical Transport System is to combine the best features of
4. all of the legacy technologies, such as SONET/SDH, IP, ATM, and Ethernet. As a result, the requirements
can be thought of as drawing upon the features of each technology in the following way:
a) From SONET/SDH: Resilience — 50 ms recovery, path provisioning, and OAM.
b) From ATM: Sophisticated Traffic Management and QoS as in ATM, including traffic engineering and
guaranteed QoS.
c) From IP/Ethernet: Very high efficiency from statistical multiplexing of packets/frames, and packet-flow
control that are key for multimedia traffic.
d) Flexible grooming or the ability to efficiently map a rich service mix onto the underlying transport layer
by switching at the wavelength (lambda) level, sub-wavelength (ODU) level, port (TDM or SONET/SDH)
level, and sub-port/packet (Ethernet, MPLS) level.
P-OTS architectures may be divided into three broad types:
a) IP-over-Glass or Layer 3 routers with integrated transponders connected to a DWDM system. These rely
on the router to perform switching function and eliminate O-E-O interfaces. Network architecture is
simplified by eliminating SONET/SDH, thus reducing Capex and Opex.
b) Carrier Ethernet Switch Routers with Connection-Oriented Ethernet (COE) controlled using PBB-TE or
MPLS-TP plus a DWDM layer. The goal here is to leverage the low cost points of Ethernet, while getting
the advantage of its traffic management and traffic engineering capabilities.
c) Packet-Optical Devices combining SONET/SDH and IP/Ethernet switching/ aggregation with DWDM
transport. They emphasize a modular architecture, where sub-wavelength multiplexing and packet
switching are done and traffic is groomed onto DWDM transport. These systems permit router bypass of
non-IP traffic (e.g. L2 traffic, TDM traffic, and transit traffic), and minimize wavelength requirements by
integrating SONET/SDH, MPLS, and OTN switching onto a single system. The best alternative will
depend on the existing and projected traffic mix (TDM to packet balance in the operator’s network),
existing capital investment in network assets (SONET/SDH ADMs, ROADMs, switches/routers), need for
efficient utilization of optical resources (wavelengths), and the carrier’s operations model (i.e., whether
the IP/MPLS and transport teams are separate or common).
3) Photonic Control-Plane Software
The data plane, comprising flexible ROADMs and packet-optical transport systems, must be complemented
by a highly integrated management and control plane that spans the packet, TDM, and optical domains.
This control plane software is critical for future agile optical networks. The control plane, which uses
routing and signaling to set up the connections between nodes, coupled with an efficient management
plane, is essential to orchestrate the operations of the data plane. Developments in the control plane are
occurring within the IETF, which has developed the GMPLS control plane that is now being refined to
include wavelength switched optical network (WSON) requirements. This will allow the control plane to
have simplified knowledge of the optical parameters (such as chromatic dispersion and polarization mode
dispersion) and simple rules that can be used to decide whether an optical path is adequate or requires
signal regeneration. The ITU-T has developed control plane requirements and architecture, under the
umbrella of ASON (Auto - matically Switched Optical Networks).
The GMPLS/ASON control plane comprises a common part and a technologyspecific part to include
technologies such as SONET/SDH, OTN, wavelengths, and MPLS-TP. By combining electrical and optical
switching and an integrated control plane, the operators will be able to continually optimize their networks,
and devolve them to the lowest-cost and most power-efficient solutions. The User-to-Network Interface
(UNI) and the External Network-to-Network Interface (E-NNI) implementations, based on the ITU-T, OIF
and MEF standards could prove very useful for carriers. The UNI standards should enable operators to have
packet switching devices that can signal the agile optical network, and request wavelength services for
certain duration over a specific path and with a defined level of protection. E-NNI implementations will
enable Wavelength Networks to share topology and availability information in a way to facilitate service
deployment across multi-vendor (and possibly even multi-carrier networks) in an end-to-end manner.
Open Issues Even as advancements in packet-optical integration continue to be made, challenges remain
before a fully agile optical network is a reality. An important consideration is providing the control plane
with knowledge of the optical impairments, and enabling routing transparently between vendors. Similarly,
5. handling increasing customer application rates, say 1, 10 or 40 Gb/s on 100 Gb/s infrastructure, will require
the use of OTN (G.709) multiplexing and electrical switching, plus control plane support. Finally,
modularity of the system makes the challenge of integration for an operator much easier. This modularity
comes in multiple forms, as universal switch fabrics and the ability to mix-andmatch linecards (from all
TDM to all packets and everything in between), or as modularity of the associated software with the ability
to selectively turn on or off specific features.
This article was written by Vishal Sharma, Principal Technologist & Consultant, Metanoia, Inc. (Mountain
View, CA), and Mark Allen, Ph.D., Director of Systems Engineering, Infinera Corporation (Sunnyvale,
CA). For more information, contact Mr. Sharma at vsharma@metanoia-inc.com, Dr. Allen at
mark.allen@infinera.com, or visit http://info.hotims.com/34451-201.
6. References
[1] Michael Kennedy, “Sizing-Up The Approaches,†Presentation, Network Strategy Partners,
Fierce Telecom: Packet- Optical Networking Platforms Webinar, July 14, 2010.
[2] Steven Gringeri, Bert Basch, Vishnu Shukla et al, “Flexible Architectures for Optical Transport
Nodes and Networks,†IEEE Comm. Mag., Vol. 48, Issue 9, July 2010, pp. 40-50.
[3] Matt Rossi, “Enterprise Bandwidth Consumption,†Presentation, Zayo Enterprise Networks,
Fierce Telecom: Making the 100 Gb/s Connection Webinar, July 21, 2010. [4] Internet Engineering Task
Force IETF, “MPLS-TP Standard,†WikiPage, http://wiki.tools.ietf.org/misc/mpls-tp/wiki/drafts,
Accessed 12/29/2010. [5] Mark Allen, Chris Lou, Serge Melle, Vijay Vusirikala, “Digital Optical
Networks Using Photonic Integrated Circuits Address the Challenge of Reconfigurable Optical
Networks,†IEEE Comm. Mag. Vol. 44, Issue 12, Dec. 2007, pp. 2-11.