How You Can Benefit From Wavelength Services

By: John Shepler

What do you do when you have a need for high bandwidth, security and flexibility in your WAN connections? This may be the time to take a closer look at wavelength services.


What tradeoffs should you do to ensure that you’re getting the right bandwidth for your operation? Certainly, there is the protocol competition between the dedicated point to point line services provided by SONET/SDH and Ethernet over Fiber. Both will get your packets from point A to point B, but you may find that locations lit for EoF have access to much higher bandwidths for the same lease price or a cost savings if you don’t need a BW upgrade.

One important consideration is the protocol that you wish to transport. Ethernet is easiest to connect and most efficient over Ethernet WAN services. SONET/SDH is designed for TDM, but can also support packet switched networks. The waters have been muddied lately by the addition of Ethernet over SONET that gives you Ethernet services running on mature SONET fiber optic networks.

Another tradeoff worth doing is lit fiber vs dark fiber. Wavelengths are a lit fiber service. They are fully managed in the sense that the carrier provides the fiber path plus the terminal equipment that accepts and delivers your traffic. You don’t need to be concerned about the inner workings of the network because the carrier takes care of that for you.

The big advantages of dark fiber are improved security, since you are providing the terminal equipment at each end of the fiber, and the ability to create your own wavelengths. You’ll need to invest in the CWDM (Coarse Wavelength Division Multiplexing) or DWDM (Dense Wavelength Division Multiplexing) equipment. By doing that, you can have as many wavelengths as you wish, each running a different protocol. You can even multiplex wavelengths to create higher bandwidth pipes.

What is the right connectivity solution for your needs? Get expert recommendations on fiber optic wavelength services now.

From T1 to Ethernet

Your LAN is running smoothly, but now you need to connect to the outside world for dedicated Internet service, point to point data transfer, or VoIP call termination. A T1 line seems like a cost effective solution, but your network protocol is Ethernet, not T1 data. How do you make the conversion?

Relax. Pick the right T1 line carrier and they'll take care of it for you. Yes, there was a time when you had to deal with Channel Service Units, Data Service Units, router setups and interfacing everything together. The new way is to let the service provider handle all these issues with a managed router.

A T1 router is a level 3 device specifically designed to work with T1 lines. The T1 standard is very specific with regards to line coding, framing, signal levels, impedances and synchronization. Ethernet is equally specific with regard to packet organization. The CSU / DSU portion of the T1 router accepts the T1 line signal from the Smart Jack at the demarcation point and performs all the necessary functions to transmit and receive data. The Ethernet interface gives you an RJ45 jack that connects to your LAN. The magic in-between makes sure that packets and frames get properly matched.

Another advantage of managed routers is that they allow the T1 service provider to monitor the complete WAN or Wide Area Network from their facilities through your router. That makes maintenance and troubleshooting easier and faster. It's likely your carrier will also set up automatic monitoring of your link so they can swing into action if something goes wrong even after business hours.

The latest option in WAN options is end to end Ethernet. The entire circuit between facilities runs IP protocol, not TDM the protocol of T1 lines. Your connection can be a level 3 router or level 2 switch, depending on how the network is setup. In practice, your field offices and main offices can be on the same LAN even though they are hundreds or thousands of miles apart rather than a few feet.

This service is also called Carrier Ethernet. It is provisioned directly onto an IP-based fiber optic carrier, so there are no awkward protocol conversions involved. It's also the most cost-effective WAN bandwidth you can get, especially for 10 Mbps, 100 Mbps and Gigabit Ethernet connections. You'll need to be in or near a building that is lit for fiber optic Carrier Ethernet. Such a facility might be closer than you think. Check to see if your building is lit for Ethernet.

Not very near an Ethernet carrier point of presence? One common solution is to relocate your servers to a colocation facility, where lower cost bandwidth is readily available. Another is to use T1 lines, alone or in multiples, to create the bandwidth connections you need. Call the toll free number or enter a quick online search now to see what service is available for your location.