broadband 101, an intro to broadband technologies

Broadband 101, an Intro to Broadband Technologies

Prasad Calyam, Research Scientist, OARnet, OSCStan Ahalt, Executive Director, OSCPankaj Shah, Director, OARnet, OSCPaul Schopis, Director of Engineering, OARnet, OSC

Broadband Training28 February 2006 2

Topics of Discussion

What is Broadband? Who provides Broadband? What terminology needs to be understood for

buying Broadband? What can you now buy in the Broadband Market

that was not sold earlier? What are the major Broadband initiatives in Ohio

today? Conclusion

Sponsored by ODODPresented by OSC/OARnet, Whiteboard, and SZD


What is Broadband?

Broadband is usually used to reference “high speed” Internet connections High speed allows quick web surfing, voice and video

communications over the Internet Broadband connections are typically ON all the time

No hassles of “dialing” in to an Internet Service Provider But, you still need a Broadband Provider or Internet

Service Provider (ISP) who can assist you in setting up and maintaining a Broadband connection…



Who are Broadband Providers? Any one who owns “Fiber” or has access to lots

of it! Telcos, Cable Companies, Holding Companies

E.g. Time Warner, SBC Yahoo DSL, WOW, Qwest, MCI, many others…

Broadband Providers serve two types of services based on who the customer is - Residential User Services

Cable Modem, DSL Modem Business Organization Services

T-1, DS-3, OC-3, OC-12, …



Where to find Broadband Providers in your Area?

http://www.thelist.com

You can check your local Yellow Pages also… Sponsored by ODOD

Presented by OSC/OARnet, Whiteboard, and SZD


What terminology needs tobe understood for buying Broadband? Broadband Capacities Internet Architecture Stack (4 – Layers)

(Layer 4) End-Application (Layer 3) Internet Protocol (IP) (Layer 2) Local Area Network (LAN) (Layer 1) Physical

Miscellaneous Terms Last-Mile, Dark Fiber, IRUs, Right of Ways and

Municipal Access Agreements (MAA)


Layer 4End-Application Layer

Layer 3Internet Protocol Layer

Layer 2Local Area Network Layer

Layer 1Physical Layer


What terminology needs tobe understood for buying Broadband? Broadband Capacities

Units of Measure Optical Carrier Hierarchy Digital Signal Hierarchy

Internet Architecture Stack (4 – Layers) (Layer 4) End-Application (Layer 3) Internet Protocol (IP) (Layer 2) Local Area Network (LAN) (Layer 1) Physical

Miscellaneous Terms Last-Mile, Dark Fiber, IRUs, Right of Ways and Municipal

Access Agreements (MAA)






Terminology: Broadband Capacities


Broadband Capacities A Measure of “capacity of the pipe” available to you Expressed in Kbps, Mbps, Gbps, …(See Table -1)

‘bps’ stands for “bits per second” The International Telecommunications Union (ITU) has defined a

broadband connection as any rate higher than 1.5 Mbps (i.e. T-1 Line) Even more common method to describe Broadband capacity involves

Optical Carrier (OC) or Digital Signal (DS) hierarchy DS-3 (45 Mbps), OC-1 (52 Mbps), OC-3 (155 Mbps), OC-12 (622

Mbps), OC-48 (2.4 Gbps), OC-192 (10 Gbps), …

Table-1: Base-2 Number System Abbreviations and Sizes for bps prefixes




Data Quantity Vs Broadband Capacity How fast is 8 Gbps or 8,000 million bits per

second Broadband Capacity? Approximately 1 million one-page essays can be

transferred per second!Or

Approximately 1000 novels worth of data can be transferred per second!

Or The entire “The Matrix” movie can be downloaded in less

than 40 seconds over such a link compared to taking 25 hours for the same movie to be downloaded over a DSL Modem connection (512Kbps) or 250 hours over Dial-up (56Kbps)





(Layer 4) End-Application Web FTP VoIP H.323 Videoconferencing

(Layer 3) Internet Protocol (IP) (Layer 2) Local Area Network (LAN) (Layer 1) Physical








Terminology: Internet Architecture StackLayer 4






End-Applications

Web Used to reference the computer infrastructure that allows

browsing information formatted using Hyper-Text Markup Language (HTML)

FTP Stands for “File Transfer Protocol” - It is a technology used for

transferring files over the Internet VoIP

Stands for “Voice over IP” - It is a technology used for transmitting voice signals like a telephone signal on the Internet

H.323 Videoconferencing It is a technology used for interactive conferencing using both

voice and video signals on the Internet









(Layer 4) End-Application Web, FTP, VoIP, H.323 Videoconferencing

(Layer 3) Internet Protocol (IP) Router PoP

(Layer 2) Local Area Network (LAN) (Layer 1) Physical














IP Network

(E.g. OARnet - Ohio, MERIT - Michigan,…)

(E.g. Time Warner, SBC Yahoo, WOW,…)

(E.g. Internet2 - USA, DANTE - Europe, CANARIE - Canada,…)








Point of Presence (PoP)

NOTES: 1. Router is a physical device in a network that directs packets to their intended destinations

2. PoP (Point of Presence) is a term used to reference a physical location where telecommunication lines meet








Types and Sizes of Routers

Home Networking Router

10s of $$

Routers for Small/Medium sized Networks

100s-1000s of $$

Router for Large Backbone Networks

> 10,000s of $$










(Layer 3) Internet Protocol (IP) Router, PoP

(Layer 2) Local Area Network (LAN) Wired (Ethernet)

Fast (FE) GigE

Wireless 802.11b 802.11g

(Layer 1) Physical Miscellaneous Terms

Last-Mile, Dark Fiber, IRUs, Right of Ways and Municipal Access Agreements (MAA)












Ethernet LAN

To Local ISP’s IP Network

FE (100Mbps) orGigE (1000Mbps)Co-axial Cables

Optical Fiber Cables

NOTE: 1. Ethernet is a data transfer protocol for Local Area Networks (LANs)

2. IP stands for “Internet Protocol”; This technology gives addresses to electronic packets of information







Wireless LAN

Devices (E.g. Printers, Computers) communicate with each other without using wires!

802.11 is an IEEE Standard used by Industry for wireless access 802.11 requires an “Access Point”

On one end it is connected to a wired network and on the other end it interfaces all information to and from the devices to be sent to the wired network

Popular 802.11 Versions: 802.11b (Wi-Fi): Provides 11 Mbps transmission in the 2.4 GHz radio

frequency band Used when relatively lesser number of devices access the wireless network over

shorter distances 802.11g: Provides 20+ Mbps transmission in the 2.4 GHz radio frequency

band Used when relatively large number of devices access the wireless network over

longer distances











(Layer 2) Local Area Network (LAN) Wired (Ethernet): Fast (FE), GigE Wireless: 802.11b, 802.11g

(Layer 1) Physical Fiber: Single-Mode, Multi-Mode Wireless: Satellite Link














Optical Fiber

Provides physical connectivity between two ends using light as a communication mechanism

Uses “Total Internal Reflection” principle to propagate light through the fiber

Composed of long and thin strands of pure glass about the diameter of human hair – arranged in bundles

Three significant components: Core – Glass center where light travels Cladding – Material that reflects light back into Core Buffer Coating – Plastic coating that protects

fiber from damage and moisture








Optical Fiber (2): Types

Single-Mode (Yellow Cable; expensive) They have small cores (about 3.5 x 10-4 inches or

9 microns in diameter) and transmit infrared laser light (wavelength = 1,300 to 1,550 nanometers)

Carrier owned fiber used for Wide Area Networks with relatively large distances (20 to 30 miles) before a regenerator is required to go further

Multi-Mode (Orange Cable; inexpensive) They have larger cores (about 2.5 x 10-3 inches or

62.5 microns in diameter) and transmit infrared light (wavelength = 850 to 1,300 nm) from Light-Emitting Diodes (LEDs)

Customer owned fiber used for Metropolitan Area Networks with relatively short distances between ends








Optical Fiber (3): DWDM Dense Wavelength Division Multiplexing (DWDM)

Recent technology in optical transmission that promises dramatic increases in the capacity of a fiber

DWDM technology splits (or combines) a beam of light into multiple colors, or wavelengths, each of which can operate at 10 Gbps

The technology is rapidly advancing with the number of possible wavelengths exceeding 100 per fiber








Optical Equipment

Used to “Relay” light signals between two geographic locations

Different kinds of optical equipment: Optical Transmitter - Produces and encodes the light

signals Encoding involves electrical to optical signal conversion

Optical Fiber - Conducts the light signals over a distance Optical Regenerator - May be necessary to boost the

light signal (for long distances) Optical Receiver - Receives and decodes the light signals

Encoding involves optical to electrical signal conversion




















Terminology: Miscellaneous Terms


Last Mile

Refers to the telecommunications technology that connects the customer's home or business office directly to an ISP or Broadband Provider E.g. T-1, Cable Modem, DSL Modem

Getting the “Last Mile” suitably connected is a challenge in rural communities A bad link at this level fails the entire “network

chain” for the end-user!




What can you now buy in the Broadband Market that was not sold earlier?

Dark Fiber! “Dark Fiber” term is used to reference unused fiber or fiber that has

not been “lit” to be used by end-applications Dark Fiber when “lit” is dedicated to a single customer

Typically, a number of organizations such as schools, hospitals, businesses and universities get together to fund and build a fiber network

Customer is responsible for attaching telecommunications equipment and lasers to “light” the fiber

Owns, Controls and Maintains the fiber Upfront costs are high to purchase dark fiber; but expected

payback in few months or few years if there is sufficient demand Each institution owns dark fiber based on 20 year IRU (Indefeasible

Right of Use) with Carriers




Right of Way and MunicipalAccess Agreements (MAAs)

Deploying Optical Fiber networks involves entering into legal contracts with both local municipality as well as owners of any existing support structures

Required for cabling space, utility poles, insurance, liability and safety issues

Ensures that your “right of way” is not sold to other party who wishes to place cables

Records and drawings of cable paths should be professionally done and provided to municipality

IRUs cover above issues and annual maintenance expenses

“Right of Way” cost accounts for approximately 5% of the capital cost
















Terminology: COMPLETED


What are the major Broadband initiatives in Ohio today? Third Frontier Network

A dedicated high-speed fiber-optic network linking Ohio colleges and universities with research facilities to promote research and economic development

Over 1,600 miles of fiber has been purchased to create the network backbone in Ohio to connect colleges and universities, K-12 schools, and communities together

Funded by the Ohio Board of Regents and operated by OARnet/Ohio Supercomputer Center

Other Rural Ohio Initiatives



Third Frontier Network


-TFN PoP -Regen Site -TFN Link - Leased - Proposed - K-12 (All Broadband) -eTech (All Broadband) -Higher Ed (Broadband) - Higher Ed (not Broadband)

TFN: All Sites Connected


Regional Optical Networks


Local Examples Galion

Created SCADA fiber network for the municipally owned electric Connects municipal facilities Potentially may:

Offer “free” fibers for economic development purposes Lease fiber pairs to local company for resale purposes to improve local service

offerings Marietta

Utilizing “Smart” traffic fiber system to provide connectivity to wireless radios on traffic poles to create city-wide Wi-Fi network

Currently in trail phase and pursuing additional funding Butler County

Partnered through an RFP to build 96 strand 110 mile fiber network Public/Private partnership Leases 12 strands to Miami University Cincinnati Bell provides maintenance and operations



References and Links

http://www.webopedia.com Search for Broadband terminology

http://www.howstuffworks.com Description of Routers, Optical Networks,… with

illustrations CANARIE’s FAQ about Dark Fiber These slides are available at -

http://www.osc.edu/research/networking/ppts/broadband101.ppt

http://www.osc.edu/research/networking/PDFs/broadband101.pdf



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