Christophe Alter of Orange Telecom presented to attendees of MPLS+SDN+NFV World in Paris in March 2017. He discussed the OIF's new certification program.

1. OIF Certification
Optical Control Plane UNI
MPLS+SDN+NFV World
March, 2017
christophe.alter@orange.com

2. Optical Networks Transformation
• Proprietary, vendor-specific silos
• Complex to operate across vendors and
technologies
Interoperable control plane
Interoperable data plane
End to end orchestration
OSS
Proprietary OS
Vendor X HW
Proprietary OS
Vendor Y HW
Proprietary OS
Vendor Z HW
from closed networks… …to open networks
OSS / Apps
Multi-vendor Multi-domain
Network
open
SW
open HW
open APIsVendor-specific
management
systems SDN Control Infrastructure

3. OIF certification program
Initial focus on optical control plane
• Benefits of an optical control plane
– Simplified provisioning
– Automated path selection
– Dynamic restoration
– Multi-layer optimization
• Combined with the benefits of multi-vendor interoperability
– Reduced costs
– Freedom to introduce new features or innovations
– Operational agility

4. Centralized and distributed control
Centralized and distributed controls are complementary and need to interwork with
each other, as to ensure end-to-end coordination across heterogeneous networks.
distributed control centralized and
distributed control
centralized control
Transport APIs
SDN control infrastructure

5. Optical Control Plane UNI
RSVP-TE
controller
OPTICAL
controller
OPTICAL
controller
OPTICAL
controller
RSVP-TE
controller
Client nodes
optical switch
(ROADM)
optical switch
(ROADM) Client nodes
UNI NNI NNI UNI
The optical control plane enables dynamic provisioning, restoration and optimization, across
optical networks. User Network Interfaces (UNI) extend these capabilities to client nodes. The UNI
control protocol is based on RSVP-TE.
Transponder
Transponder
RSVP-TE
controller
RSVP-TE
controller

6. Why Certification?
• Issue to be solved : Multi-vendor interoperability of the optical control
plane is still missing from commercial products, although various
demonstrations have proven it is feasible.
• Certification is a powerful tool to bridge the gap between technical
standards and commercial implementations: it will provide a unique
reference and a market advantage to compliant, interoperable products.
• In line with its mission is to enable global interoperability in optical
transmission networks, OIF surveyed the market and decided to create a
certification program for interoperable products – starting with the Optical
Control Plane UNI.

7. Initial Focus on Optical Control Plane UNI
• Focus on Control Plane UNI (black & white + colored interfaces)
– Mature: existing standards, existing products
– Timely: IP-optical interconnect and alien wavelength support are increasing
business requirements
– Very strong market drivers: interop has to happen sooner or later, for IP-optical
interactions and alien wavelength use cases.
– Standalone issue: not dependent on other work in progress
– OIF has the required skills and legitimacy
– Lowest hanging fruit (yet a serious piece of work)
• There is a real need from the market to open up optical networks
– Once this first OIF certification is launched on control plane UNI, it may be
followed by others, e.g., NNI, SDN API, data plane or management plane.

8. UNI Certification Deliverables and Timeline
Q2/16 Q3/16 Q4/16 Q1/17 Q2/17 Q3/17
Project approval
Selection
of test lab
Drafting of test specification Straw ballot
Beta testing 1st certified
products
Stakeholders
surveys
UNH labs open to vendors
products
Final spec

9. Value to the industry
• Means for operators to obtain and differentiate interoperable commercial
products
• Market advantage to manufacturers’ products which pass certification
• Reduced repetitive testing for vendors and operators. Time to market.
• Enhanced implementations, better competition, more innovation.
Operators: make sure to mandate the OIF certification in all your upcoming RFPs!
Vendors: get involved in the OIF program and be first to ship certified products!
To participate in the specification of the certification tests, contact: Andi Kosich, OIF (akosich2@oiforum.com)
To participate in beta testing and certify your products, contact: Timothy Winters, UNH-IOL (twinters@iol.unh.edu)

10. SDN Transport API Demo
Executive Readout

11. The OIF and Transport SDN
Goal: accelerate commercial deployment by defining, testing and assuring
interoperability of key network functions and interfaces
Work to date:
Use cases and reference architecture
Carrier requirements and framework
2014 interop demo – partnered with ONF, tested pre-standard ONF
OpenFlow extensions and APIs, led to ONF T-API specs
2016: OIF SDN Transport API Interoperability Demo
• Validate specs in multi-layer, multi-domain environments in carrier labs
• Communicate findings – whitepaper, read-out events, liaisons
• Next: T-API (2.0) work items, certification?
It’s all about interoperability

12. OIF 2016 SDN Transport API
Interoperability Demonstration

13. Demo Findings
Testing successfully demonstrated that T-API enables real-time
orchestration of on-demand connectivity set-up, control and monitoring
across multi-layer, multi-vendor and multi-carrier networks
Some functional and protocol issues and gaps were identified
The experiences of the testing will be shared across the industry to help
develop critical implementation agreements and specifications
Detailed findings are reported in the technical white paper

14. SDN Transport API Interop Demo
Resources
• Press release, 14 February, 2017
• Technical white paper – download at www.oiforum.com
• Light Reading webinar, 15 March: OIF SDN T-API Interop Demonstration Results
– Executive summary paper available to webinar registrants
• Public read-out: OIF Interop – The Key to Unlocking the Benefits of SDN
– OFC, Los Angeles Tuesday, 21 March

15. Conclusion
• Interoperability is technically feasible, as demonstrated, but still needs to get into commercial
products
• The OIF helps the industry unlock the benefits of SDN for optical networks, through three
interrelated programs:
– Implementation Agreements, that document the use of industry standards;
– Interop demonstrations, hosted by participating operators leveraging key interfaces such as the
Transport API to bind together multi-layer and multi-domain carrier networks;
– Certification, to address the gap between paper specification or early implementation and products
that carriers can deploy.

16. Thank You!
www.oiforum.com

17. UNI on black & white interfaces
Multi-layer interactions using black & white client interfaces
• Client nodes may include IP/MPLS routers, L2 switches, OTN cross-connects
• Transponders reside in WDM/ROADM transmission network element (not in client node)
• Control plane interactions take place at black & white Ethernet/OTN interfaces
Interoperability of the optical control plane for a black & white UNI is the most basic and the most
urgent issue to address:
• Existing set of IETF RFCs and OIF IAs
• Existing product implementations
• Interoperability is a must-have for deploying IP-optical interconnect with multi-layer interactions.
Optical network
Packet node Packet node
Db Db
DWDM
Network element
colored
interface
DWDM
Network element
colored
interface

18. Multi-layer interactions using colored client interfaces (a.k.a. Alien wavelength)
• Client nodes may include IP/MPLS routers, L2 switches, OTN cross-connects
• Transponders are moved into the client nodes (out of WDM/ROADM transmission network elements)
• Control plane interactions take place at a colored client interface
Optical Network
Packet Node
Colored
Interface
Colored
Interface
Colored
Interface
Colored
Interface
DWDM
Network Element
Packet Node DWDM
Network Element
UNI on colored interfaces
Interoperability of GMPLS control plane for a colored UNI is slightly more complex, but an
increasingly urgent issue to address:
• Existing set of IETF RFCs
• Existing product implementations
• Interoperability is a must-have for the support of “alien wavelength” deployments,
where transponders are made independent from ROADMs.

19. Supportive quotes
Vendor #1: “A universal set of requirements and certifications gives us the ability for interop of
components where certifications in the past used best guesses as to what parameters or metrics
were important and which ones were actually tested.”
Vendor #2: “OIF certification can help broaden and accelerate the market for optical products by
assuring multi-vendor/-product interoperability and thereby reducing the time to get products
qualified and accepted. This reduces the sales cycle for system vendors and lessens the testing and
qualification burden on service providers.”
Carrier #1: “The OIF certification will greatly facilitate integrating our IP and optical networks
together. We need a control plane open to multiple vendors and multiple layers. The OIF
certification will avoid the fear of vendors lock-in. On the longer term, the advent of interoperability in
optical networks will increase agility and innovation, at lower costs, for the benefits of the entire
industry.”
Carrier #2: “An OIF certification will enable us to guarantee the devices we buy are compatible with
the latest Multi-layer interoperability features. We believe that a correct management of GMPLS-UNI
interaction is the key to transport SDN at its maximum level.”