Open Fiber’s FTTHFTTH “Fiber to the Home” is the technology that connects POPs, located in exchanges, to end users’ property units with fibre optics. access networkNetwork In computer language, the term network defines a set of hardware and software devices which, when linked together, enable the exchange and sharing of resources, data or information. In a computer network, the devices that generate, route and terminate data are called network nodes. is built according to the PONPON PON stands for Passive Optical Network, which describes all types of optical networks that have no active equipment between the start and end point. One of these is the network used to bring the fibre-optic link to the end-user by means of point-to-multipoint architecture in which a single fibre is used to reach several recipients via non-powered optical splitters. (Passive Optical Network) standard, respecting its evolutionary roadmap to guarantee the best connection ever.

Open Fiber’s network infrastructure uses GPONGPON An acronym for Gigabit Passive Optical Network, an active access technology for providing connectivity over PON FTTH infrastructure. It is defined as active because it is implemented using active network elements such as OLTs, in the central office, and ONTs, in users’ homes. However, the underlying network infrastructure is passive (Passive Optical Network) because it exclusively uses elements that do not require power, such as splitters that allow the optical fibre to be separated into multiple links that branch off to different buildings, reducing the amount of optical fibre and network equipment required. GPON technology provides unprecedented bandwidth (up to 2.5 Gbps downstream and 1.25 Gbps upstream) and greater distance from the exchange, allowing service providers to enable bandwidth-intensive applications. fixed access technology, the most robust on PON networks to date. GPON technology has recently seen the addition of more advanced technologies: XGS PON (a fibre-optic link that can transmit and receive data at a maximum speed of 10 Gbit/s) and the subsequent NG-PON evolution (a telecommunications network standard capable of reaching a total surfing speed of 40 Gbit/s) to achieve higher performance in terms of transmission capacity.

Comparing PON and AON technology

Passive Optical Network (PON) technology enables the creation of fibre-optic FTTH network infrastructure in point-to-multipoint mode, using only fibre and passive components, such as optical splitters and couplers, which, installed along the entire transmission route, do not need to be powered by the electricity grid. The need for direct supply is therefore limited to the exchange/POPPOP The POP, ‘Point of Presence’, is located at Enel’s Primary Cabins, but not exclusively; it also acts as a meet-me-room for Operators. It contains each Operator’s OLT equipment, as well as the OTDR monitoring system. level. These aspects are one of the major advantages of the technology, reducing costs and the possibility of failure, in contrast to copper networks.

As an alternative to the passive optical network, an end-user connection can be made using an Active Optical Network (AON). This configuration involves point-to-point architecture, i.e. Featuring dedicated fibre with the use of active equipment (switches, routers). Although the Active Optical Network system is mature and functioning, the resulting implementation cost is higher than that of the passive optical network (PON).

Open Fiber’s architecture 

Open Fiber’s FTTH access network is a passive multi-operator network that supports the use of ‘point-to-multipoint’ and ‘point-to-point’ technologies.

Open Fiber’s ‘point-to-multipoint’ architecture is based on the creation of a network in which the optical concentration resources (PON trees) are shared by the different actors, while the final connection to the user is created with a single dedicated fibre.

To enable the efficient gathering of users, a network element was introduced, consisting of a permutation box (coinciding with the PFSPFS The PFS is the node at which the second level of splitting and permutations of customer lines on the various Operators take place. node), which allows each customer to be flexibly connected to the optical resources of the Operator with which they have subscribed to the service.

OF GPON architecture

Future-proofFuture-proof Fibre optics is referred to as ‘future-proof’ because it is the only solution that can evolve and support increasing transmission capacities, which in the future may reach up to 40 Gbps, supporting the most advanced services and the potential of new technologies that will arrive in the coming years. technology

The evolutionary trajectory of PON optical access network technologies envisages a progressive increase in the available bandwidth per customer.

The evolution of GPON technology is a key development for the telecommunications industry. Open Fiber’s FTTH access network can support it, enabling a range of new services with increasingly stringent bandwidth requirements.

The services provided on the PON network are aimed at residential and business users with connectivity services in symmetric and asymmetric configurations. With the evolution of PON technology, high-capacity backhauling and fronthauling links for advanced mobile radio systems will also be supported.

The technologies envisaged in the PON network evolution roadmap are as follows:

● GPON (2.5 Gbps/1.25 Gbps)

● XG-PONXG-PON An acronym for 10 Gigabit Passive Optical Network technology for the provision of ultra-broadband services over PON FTTH infrastructure, supporting access speeds of up to 10 Gigabits per second downstream (as indicated by the first two letters ‘XG’) and up to 2.5 Gigabits per second upstream. This is an evolution of GPON technology, which is currently the most widespread and robust access technology on PON FTTH networks. A later development is the XGS-PON technology, which allows identical maximum speeds both downstream and upstream, i.e. up to 10 Gigabits per second (as specified by the ‘S’ for Symmetric). (10 Gbps/2.5 Gbps)

● XGS-PONXGS-PON An acronym for 10 Gigabit Symmetric Passive Optical Network, the evolution of GPON technology that enables connection speeds of up to 10 Gigabits per second in both downstream and upstream, as specified by the ‘S’ for Symmetric. This is the main evolutionary step of GPON after XG-PON, which allows a maximum speed of 2.5 Gbps upstream and a maximum speed of only 10 Gbps downstream. The increase in maximum supported upload capacity is one of the most important features of XGS-PON, which is set to become the mainstream technology of the coming years. (10 Gbps/10 Gbps)

● NG-PON2 (min 4×10 Gbps/2.5 Gbps)

The maximum downstream and upstream speeds are indicated in brackets.

A modern transport network

Open Fiber is developing modern national transport infrastructure that will collect traffic from the FTTH access network and deliver it to operators, ensuring equal access and service conditions regardless of the point of delivery, whether local or remote.

In this sense, the network enables the provision of a comprehensive portfolio of services to meet the needs of an increasingly diverse market, from end-to-end connectivity with guaranteed bandwidth and controlled latencyLatency This term indicates the time lapse between the stimulation of a system and the observation of the resulting effect. In telecommunications, by extension, it refers to the time it takes for a data packet to travel from the source computer to the destination computer. to the future provision of a network and computing infrastructure to host third-party physical and virtual functions; all aimed at enhancing customers’ Quality of Experience, supporting the delivery of high-resolution video content, offering security solutions and platforms for InternetInternet The word comes from the fusion of the English terms international and net, i.e. international network. This term refers to the worldwide computer network that users all over the world can access via a computer to transmit and share data and information. of Things (IoTIoT The ‘Internet of things’ is the idea of networking any device with a power button. Paradoxically, this can be anything, from mobile phones to coffee machines, washing machines, refrigerators, vacuum cleaners, headphones, lamps, and wearable devices. This also applies to internal machine components, such as sensors in a car. This immense network of connected objects could improve many aspects of our lives: imagine a refrigerator which, by reading the barcodes of the products it stores, could tell us what is about to expire and what has run out, allowing it to suggest a shopping list. A coffee machine that switches on at the right time knowing the alarm time set on your smartphone, a car that suggests the best route to take based on traffic information sent by other cars.).

Open Fiber has a transport network with open, carrier-grade architecture, which is programmable, high-performance and scalable in capacity, enabling Operators to deliver innovative ultra-broadbandBroadband The term broadband, in telecommunications, generally refers to the transmission and reception of information data at a connection speed of over 144 kb/s. Broadband organises different channels, conveying different content in the form of data, such as Internet radio, animation, audio files and high-definition video. services, simplifying configuration and management tasks.

For the configuration and management of transport services, Open Fiber uses innovative Network Automation techniques that implement automated workflows, which take the work order from the CRM and activate it in the network, speeding up the time for the release of new services and reducing the possibility of errors, thereby improving the Quality of Experience perceived by customers.

Open Fiber’s Transport Network consists of just two levels:

● a national core or backboneBackbone This term refers to a very high-speed network that connects other networks. For example, the Open Fiber backbone connects the cities covered by the service. Another example are Internet backbones that connect national networks and allow users in each country to see any site located in another part of the world. network

● an aggregation network (primary and secondary)

The design of the national backbone is based on two domains: an optical domain (OTN/WDM) to handle transmission with the most efficient and least costly techniques and an electrical domain (IP/MPLS) for processing and routing packet traffic. It ensures optimal utilisation of valuable transmission resources, quality of service implemented across the entire chain, flexibility and process automation to quickly deliver traditional and innovative services.

National PoPs are distributed in a way that ensures full coverage of the entire country and features very high-capacity optical links (coherent 100/200G lambda).

The backbone network is created using an intelligent, high-capacity, scalable DWDM (Dense Wavelength Division Multiplexing) EON (Elastic Optical Network). ROADM-FLEX (Reconfigurable Optical Add and Drop Multiplexer) multi-degree and GMPLS/WSON (CD – Colourless, Directionless) technologies are used, with which several optical channels can be simultaneously aggregated on a single fibre and therefore handle more and more customers and services, making it possible to fully utilise the very high transmission bandwidth of the fibre, in the Terabit range (1,000,000 Megabits). This capacity, which was unimaginable until a few years ago, will support the ultra-broadband applications that will be developed in the coming years (high-resolution video, virtual reality, augmented realityAugmented reality A form of virtual reality in which computer-generated information elements are superimposed on the real scene perceived by a viewer. Applications based on augmented reality require the use of special glasses or devices with a camera such as a smartphone, so that images of reality can be overlaid with pictures, captions, and diagrams. Examples include applications that draw the outline of constellations by framing the stars in the night sky, games that immerse characters in an everyday environment, furniture simulators to display furniture inside empty houses, etc., haptic Internet, real-time gaming, autonomous driving) and in general the innovative services of future 5G networks. The aggregation network, formed of Edge’s PoPs and with high-capacity optical links, offers Layer 2 functionality as well as MPLS protocol support where necessary, to deliver the wholesaleWholesale Open Fiber is a ‘wholesale only’ operator, i.e. it operates exclusively in the wholesale market, offering access on fair and non-discriminatory terms to all interested Market Operators. services required by Operators.