Hammerhead Systems Joins Nortel Carrier Ecosystem Bringing Greater Choice to Service Providers That Want PBT and MPLS Coexistence
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HSX 6000 Featured in Nortel PBT Interoperability Demonstration at nXtcomm
CHICAGO, June 18 /-- nXtcomm -- Nortel Booth #2051 -- Hammerhead Systems, Inc., today announced the company has joined the Carrier Ethernet Ecosystem and Hammerhead's HSX 6000 has been selected as part of the Carrier Ethernet Ecosystem Interoperability Demonstration in the Nortel booth at nXtcomm. The demonstration will showcase the HSX 6000 performing PBT interoperability with the Nortel MERS 8600, as well as the HSX 6000 performing its PBT Service Gateway feature in which PBT is interworked with MPLS.
The Carrier Ethernet Ecosystem is focused on allowing carriers to meet the explosion in demand on metro area networks from video, VoIP and other real-time communications. By advancing the benefits of lower cost and simplicity for carrier Ethernet networks, the new ecosystem will serve as a partnering framework for the industry's best solution providers to adopt Ethernet as the preferred means of information transport in carrier networks.
"The industry has witnessed considerable debate on the merits of deploying PBT versus MPLS, and many service providers perceive that they are faced with a choice: MPLS or PBT. With Hammerhead's PBT Service Gateway(TM) software feature, service providers can have both technologies coexist in their network, with customer traffic and applications seamlessly interworked between them as necessary," said Peter P. Savage, Hammerhead Systems CEO. "We have heard a growing interest in PBT from our customers, and we are offering the PBT Service Gateway in direct response so they can utilize PBT technology as one of their network evolution options. We are proud to work with Nortel and the Carrier Ethernet Ecosystem to bridge between the PBT and the MPLS worlds"
"PBT was pioneered by Nortel and has been embraced by large carriers around the world for its support of real QoS, meaningful service level agreements, and cost efficiency," said Mike Adams, Vice President of Metro Ethernet Networks at Nortel. "Hammerhead brings a unique perspective to Nortel's Carrier Ethernet Ecosystem by helping bring about the efficient interaction between MPLS and PBT networks. We are demonstrating live traffic between our MERS 8600 and Hammerhead's HSX 6000, showing that PBT is interoperable in a multi-vendor environment."
PBT was pioneered by Nortel and is now progressing through IEEE standardization under the 802.1 Working Group. PBT provides Ethernet transport via a simple point-to-point tunnelling technology that adds determinism to Ethernet, enabling service providers to specify the path that an Ethernet service should take across the network with SONET/SDH-like reliability and management capabilities. PBT allows for QoS guarantees by reserving bandwidth for real-time services, and provides for sub-50 millisecond service recovery times should a connection fail -- allowing high-speed loss-sensitive, or time-critical applications to operate reliably. At the same time, it delivers the advantages of Ethernet's scalability, network simplicity and management capabilities thus maintaining its key attribute: cost-efficiency. The HSX 6000's PBT Service Gateway feature provides an on-ramp capability for service providers to introduce PBT in areas of their networks where MPLS or VPLS was previously deployed.
By coupling PBT with standards-based MPLS and VPLS capabilities in one system, the HSX 6000 is able to transparently interwork these disparate protocols using its Any-to-Any Service Interworking Engine(TM), which gives service providers the ability to gracefully insert PBT in a plug-and-play fashion with their existing MPLS/VPLS installed base.
The HSX 6000 is the only purpose-built Layer 2.5, single box solution available offering dense Ethernet aggregation for both E-Line and E-LAN Services combined with MPLS Pseudowire termination, VPLS, PBT, Leased Line IP Aggregation, Frame Relay, ATM/IMA support, and any-to-any service interworking to offer a rich and compelling services platform. The HSX 6000 uses its Bandwidth Pooling architecture to enable the industry's lowest TCO for edge aggregation, and a best-in-class hierarchical QoS implementation that enables unmatched levels of service segregation and SLA assurance, critical for robust aggregation of diverse data, video, and packet voice services feeding a common IP/MPLS core.
About Hammerhead Systems
Hammerhead Systems, Inc. is the market leader in Aggregation, Interworking, and Migration to accelerate the profitable delivery of new Ethernet and existing legacy services at a fraction of the cost and complexity of other solutions. The HSX 6000, the first purpose-built Layer 2.5 Aggregation Switch using MPLS Pseudowire technology, and the Pegador SOA Element Management System are poised for deployment in service provider networks worldwide. For more information about Hammerhead, visit http://www.hammerheadsystems.com/
Source: Hammerhead Systems, Inc.
CONTACT: Pam Dodge of Hammerhead Systems, Inc., +1-650-210-3393, pdodge@hammerheadsystems.com
Web site: http://www.hammerheadsystems.com/
