{"id":182,"date":"2024-04-22T12:09:29","date_gmt":"2024-04-22T00:09:29","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.agilenetworks.co.nz\/?p=182"},"modified":"2024-04-22T12:26:47","modified_gmt":"2024-04-22T00:26:47","slug":"protected-microwave-links-white-paper","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.agilenetworks.co.nz\/protected-microwave-links-white-paper\/","title":{"rendered":"Protected Microwave Links \u2013 White Paper"},"content":{"rendered":"
The basic radio protection scheme is the 1+1. Most radio units offer this option at the\u00a0radio level. 1+1 in the radio world translates into radio redundancy: Two identical radio\u00a0units, creating a single radio link with a single leased spectrum. The reason for that is in\u00a0addition to the net time it takes to repair or replace the faulty unit, one needs to take\u00a0into account travel time to the site with the correct spare parts and the time it takes a\u00a0qualified technician to climb and perform the replacement at height. Hence, recovery\u00a0time may be quite lengthy. In addition, legacy radios suffered from relatively low MTBF.\u00a0In case of radio unit failure, the hot standby radio kicks in instantly and maintains the\u00a0service to the site. This should happen within 50Msec to be as non service affecting, as\u00a0possible. Switchover may also be managed remotely in case of suspected link\u00a0malfunction, or for routine maintenance procedures. When climbing is logistically\u00a0complex, costly or time limited, radio planners tend to choose an all-indoor 1+1\u00a0configuration to easily reach availability targets.<\/p>\n
Traditional 1+1 radio configuration does not include equipment and facility protection,\u00a0while Ceragon\u2019s product line offers this component. Ceragon system-on-a-chip based\u00a0radio units with no wire-bonding, enjoy excellent MTBF levels. This level of hardware\u00a0reliability is comparable to the reliability of indoor units; therefore exceeding availability\u00a0goals meaning operators can aim for complete indoor unit and line protection\u00a0capabilities as well. The line protection is achieved by having two ports on two separate\u00a0indoor units, located either in a single rack or on two different rack units.
\nTo alleviate single point of failure at hubs or aggregation sites, the operators split the\u00a0connection to the network elements, traditionally to an ADM (Add Drop Multiplexer) in\u00a0TDM networks or to an Ethernet Bridge\/switch\/Router for packet networks. This is\u00a0performed either by using a \u2018Y\u2019 cable to split the signal from a single port on the external\u00a0network element towards the two ports on the indoor unit, or by applying a protection\u00a0mechanism on the network element such as APS 1+1 or LAG. Thus two cables connect\u00a0the two assigned ports on the indoor radio with the two assigned ports of the network\u00a0element. Obviously this simplifies maintenance work allowing unit and cable\u00a0replacements without affecting traffic.<\/p>\n
The shift from TDM to Ethernet at cell sites brings multiple Ethernet ports at a cell site\u00a0or any other access nodes where microwave is used for the backhaul. Operators would\u00a0like to use a simple and low cost Ethernet switch or cell site gateway for local traffic\u00a0aggregation and service handover. This network element may also handle traffic arriving\u00a0from other network nodes in a radio chain or ring. In these cases the Ethernet switch\u00a0becomes a single point of failure. The alternative is to deploy a costly, fully protected\u00a0Ethernet switch. Ethernet is also more vulnerable to network disruptions as some of the\u00a0protocols require a relatively long time to converge thus increasing the need for\u00a0protection.\u00a0This is exactly where the FibeAir IP-10 integrated and protected networking functions\u00a0become useful as its 1+1 configuration may also include a license for an integrated\u00a0Ethernet service protection.<\/p>\n
Download full article PDF: Ceragon-1-1-Resilient-Microwave-Links-Technical-Brief<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Traditional 1+1 radio protection The basic radio protection scheme is the 1+1. Most radio units offer this option at the\u00a0radio… Read more »<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":88,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[6,8],"tags":[],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\n