Does Metro Ethernet coexist with traditional WAN services?

Many enterprises now have their own Metro Ethernet services. Here we will give you an analysis of the coexistence of Metro Ethernet and traditional WAN services, South Korea's Enterprise Networks Company (formerly GNG Networks) an Optical Transport MAN (MAN) is being built along the subway lines in six major South Korean cities (including Seoul) and plans to provide Metro Ethernet services for enterprises. Enterprise Networks uses the Cisco 15454 Optical Transport Platform.

It is equipped with a 4-port Gigabit Ethernet Card and supports dense wavelength division multiplexing (DWDM) Man. Cisco Catalyst 6506 and 6509 series Ethernet switches will be installed in POP and connected to Catalyst 3500 and 3550 series switches in adjacent enterprises, this provides high-bandwidth IP Virtual Private Network (ip vpn) and IP-based storage services on low-cost Ethernet networks. In Sweden, B2 Bredband AB (B2), one of Sweden's leading service providers, has built a Metro Ethernet with MDU as its target customer.

To expand its Core IP network and WAN, B2 rented network capacity from its local transmission service provider to support POP in 36 cities. It is still using Cisco's ETTx solution to connect residential buildings. After a building is connected, B2 can provide users with a network card, a connection cable, and an automatic installation software. Each user can get a two-way 10 Mb/s Ethernet connection at about $30 per month. B2-based competitors can only provide DSL or wired cable-based 0.5 kb/s (about Mb/s) network connections at the same price. According to a survey conducted by Internet World magazine in Sweden, users are very satisfied with the services provided by B2. 83% of respondents said they were satisfied or very satisfied with the service. Users regard high speed and reliability, low installation fees and monthly fees, and no need to use a modem as key success factors.

Metro Ethernet and traditional WAN services coexist

For customers who are still using frame relay or ATM services, Metro Ethernet Switching can also be combined with traditional WAN services. For example, many customer branches and regional offices have met most of their needs through time-division multiplexing (TDM), frame relay, and ATM services at a speed no higher than T1/E1, however, the WAN connection to the Headquarters still faces certain bandwidth restrictions. Upgrading these Headquarters connections from T1/E1 to T3/E3 or from T3/E3 to OC-3/STM-1 would be a very expensive and time-consuming process.

Multi-Protocol Label exchange-based arbitrary transfer (AToM) is a solution Cisco designed to transmit Layer 2 packets on an IP/Multi-Protocol Label Exchange (IP/MPLS) backbone network. AToM allows enterprise customers to upgrade their enterprise WAN routers to Ethernet connections while protecting their investment in ATM or frame relay in their branches. In addition, this solution allows service providers to protect their investment in existing WAN technologies while providing enhanced bandwidth services.

These improvements mean that service providers can protect their investment in and income from these infrastructures by seamlessly connecting their existing ATM, frame relay, and TDM infrastructure with Metro Ethernet services. By using the same platform to provide Metro Ethernet services and traditional services, service providers can greatly improve the efficiency of device management, setup, and service assurance.