SAN JOSE, Calif. -- June 1, 1998 -- Cisco Systems, Inc. today introduced four new products designed to enable the next generation of carrier-class, IP-based services through the seamless integration of IP and ATM technologies.
Service providers will be able to deploy IP+ATM services using Cisco's new integrated products that feature Cisco IOS. software and service management tools. Cisco integrates its IP and ATM technologies through Tag Switching, the industry's first end-to-end implementation of the emerging Multiprotocol Label Switching (MPLS) standard.
Cisco contributed Tag Switching to the Internet Engineering Task Force (IETF) as the basis for the emerging MPLS standard. Tag Switching tightly integrates IP and ATM technologies, giving service providers the privacy characteristics and quality of service (QoS) benefits of ATM along with the universal connectivity of IP.
Cisco's integrated edge and core products offer considerable savings in network infrastructure costs because they enable service providers to combine separate networking capabilities onto one network. Cisco's four new platforms are specifically designed to integrate ATM and advanced IP capabilities today and to enable the high-growth services of the future.
Cisco's IP+ATM solution brings the richness of Cisco IOS software to carrier-class ATM networks, ensuring end-to-end IP QoS, scalability, security, and management tools, without adding proprietary protocols internal to the IP+ATM network. By implementing Cisco's IP+ATM solutions, service providers will be able to provide seamless interoperability with enterprise customers' networks that are currently running Cisco IOS software.
New Platforms for Building the New World of Communications Services
The new switches, the Cisco BPX. 8650 IP+ATM switch; the Cisco MGX 8800 wide-area edge switch; the Cisco BPX 8680 universal service node; and the Cisco TGX 8750 optical core switch use Cisco IOS software to ensure end-to-end network interoperability within carrier-class ATM networks. With the introduction of these platforms, Cisco is providing the industry's widest range of building blocks for service providers to construct integrated IP+ATM network infrastructures.
Cisco's IP+ATM integrated edge products - the BPX 8650 IP+ATM switch, the MGX 8800 wide-area edge switch and the BPX 8680 universal service node - meet service providers' customers at the edge of the WAN, where they link seamlessly to enterprise networking environments.
Cisco is now shipping the BPX 8650 IP+ATM switch, a product that incorporates MPLS for dynamic IP switching over the ATM fabric. Using Cisco's upgrade package, service providers can upgrade their existing installed base of BPX 8600 series switches to incorporate MPLS for IP+ATM capabilities.
Cisco designed the MGX 8800 wide-area edge switch to meet the needs of small to large points of presence (PoPs) or central offices (COs), where service providers need to scale to 1,400 DS1 interfaces. For very large sites that need to handle up to 16,000 DS1 interfaces, Cisco designed the BPX 8680 universal service node.
The Cisco MGX 8800 wide-area edge switch represents the next generation in high-capacity edge switches. Featuring the industry's widest breadth of service interfaces, the MGX 8800 wide-area edge switch enables service providers to deliver a complete portfolio of differentiated service offerings while scaling from DS0 to OC-48c/STM-16 speeds. The MGX 8800 platform provides the lowest-cost edge infrastructure for volume services such as Frame Relay by reducing the entry cost and surpassing the port densities of competitive switches.
To meet the needs of today's WAN core, service providers require a standards-based IP+ATM solution that provides resilient edge-to-edge connectivity for integrated IP+ATM network edges. With the emergence of dense wave division multiplexing (DWDM) technologies, service providers also require the next generation of core switches to have the flexibility for connecting to an all-optical core using an OC-48c interface.
The Cisco TGX 8750 optical core switch meets these requirements, with integrated MPLS/Tag Switching capabilities and both OC-48 and OC-48c interfaces. The Cisco TGX 8750 optical core switch is the first product in its class to offer hierarchical Private Network-Network Interface (PNNI), which enables massive scalability for ATM networks.
Multivendor IP+ATM Power Tools for Service Management
Cisco is enabling the service management and provisioning of an integrated IP+ATM infrastructure with a comprehensive portfolio of service management tools. These tools provide robust management capabilities for the planning, provisioning, operating and billing of IP+ATM revenue-generating services. With these tools, Cisco is also providing a cost-effective migration path for service providers who operate a multivendor network and want to integrate the new Cisco switches while protecting their investments in existing systems.Integrated Services Deliver Compelling Business Case
Cisco's MPLS-based Tag Switching integrates IP and ATM within the same networking environment, enabling service providers to maximize their return on investment by leveraging multiple revenue streams from a single platform. Service providers also can deploy next-generation, IP-based services by introducing MPLS-capable switches to their existing ATM infrastructures. US WEST !NTERPRISE Networking plans to test the MGX 8800 wide-area switch later this summer."US WEST is very interested in the Cisco MGX 8800 wide-area switch; given its high speed architecture and the wide variety of interfaces supported," said Wayne Roiger, principal network architect for US WEST !NTERPRISE Networking. "We plan to test it as soon as possible."
With an integrated IP+ATM infrastructure, service providers can continue to deliver high-revenue services such as Frame Relay, SNA, leased-line and Internet dial access. Integrated IP+ATM infrastructures also futureproof service providers' networks by enabling advanced IP services such as virtual private networks (VPNs), managed intranet and extranet solutions, voice over IP (VoIP), intranet content hosting and electronic commerce applications.
"Cisco's service provider customers require the next-generation of carrier-class, edge and core ATM switches to provide integrated IP capabilities," said Joe Golden, vice president of Cisco's WAN Business Unit. "With this announcement, Cisco is delivering the only IP+ATM solution that seamlessly integrates with the vast majority of enterprise networks that are currently using Cisco IOS software."
Cisco will demonstrate the new IP+ATM solutions this week at the ATM Year '98 trade show in San Jose, Calif. and at Supercomm '98 in Atlanta, June 8 through 11.
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