Digital Signal Hierarchy

There are two hierarchical structures that exist for digital networks:

 Plesiochronous hierarchies

 Synchronous hierarchies

To further complicated things, North American” hierarchy is standard in the USA, Canada, Taiwan, Korea and
Japan, all other countries use the European CEPT( Conference of European Posts & telecommunications)
TDM Basics

Digital voice signal - called Digital Signal 0 or the infamous DS0 for short is 64Kbps

The digital voice signal is encoded using PCM (Pulse Code Modulation) and TDM (Time Division
Multiplexing).

To digitize narrowband speech (voice) you take a 4KHz spectrum (actually 3.1K).

Normal sampling techniques only give

reasonable resolution if sampled at Common
E1 T1
twice the frequency (which gives Characteristic
2 x 4K(ish) = 8K samples per second). Sampling Frequency 8KHz  
No. Of Samples/Voice
signal 8000/Sec  
Each sample is 8 bits which gives length of PCM frame 1/8000= 125uSec  
8K x 8 = 64K bits per second. No. of bits in each Code 8  
8bits*8000/sec=64K
Voice Channel bit rate
bps  
Encoding/Decoding
segments A law=13 u Law 15
No. time slots per PCM
Frame 32 24
No. Of bits in PCM Frame 32*8= 256 24*8+1=193
125*8/193=5.2u
Length of 8 bits time slot
125*8/256=3.9uSec Sec
8000*256=2048Kbp 8000*193=1544
bit rate of TDM frame
s Kbps
North American Digital Signal Hierarchy

The North American signal hierarchy was created by the old US 'Bell system' (AT&T) in the early 1960's and
was the world's first digital voice system.
It is based on multiples of the DS0 signal.

The signal hierarchy defines the levels of multiplexing,

that is, the first level of the hierarchy multiplexes (combines) a number of DS0s into a single digital signal (with
a DSx designator) which is then placed on a carrier (with a T-x designator) where "x" is the Digital Signal level
within the hierarchy

(e.g. T1 refers to the DS1 rate of 1.544 MBPS). Up to the DS3 rate, these signals are usually delivered from
the provider on Twisted-Pair or Coaxial cables .

The DSx defines an abstract signal or speed and the T-x defines a physical 'pipe' or format. The DSx and T-x
series specs and most other telecom related specifications are standardized by the ANSI.

Hierarchy Speed Digital Signal Carrier DS0's

First Level 1.544 Mbit/s DS1 T-1 24

Intermediate
3.152 Mbit/s DS1C - 48
Level
Second Level 6.312 Mbit/s DS2 T-2 96
Third Level 44.736 Mbit/s DS3 T-3 672
Intermediate
139.264 Mbit/s DS4NA ? 2016
Level
Fourth Level 274.176 Mbit/s DS4 T-4 4032
Fifth Level 400.352 Mbit/s DS5 T-5 5760
TDM North American Hierarchy

PDH - Plesiochronous Digital Hierarchy

Designati No. Of DS1 Bit Rate Voice Channel

on Signal (KBits/s) Line Code Equivalent
DS0 24 = DS1 64 AMI 1

DS1 1 1544 AMI/B8ZS 24

DS2 4 6312 B6ZS 96
DS3 28 44736 B3ZS 672

AMI, B8ZS, B6ZS, & B3ZS codes are bipolar. Cable types: 100/110 Ohm Twisted Pair, 75 ohm
Coax

Ref: ITU-T G.703, G.704;

North American PCM Analog-Digital Quantizing Code is µ-Law

CEPT Digital Signal Hierarchy

CEPT ( Conference of European Posts & Telecommunications )Hierarchy is the international TDM digital
standard everywhere except North America ( USA, Canada ), Taiwan, Korea and Japan.

Based on DS0

Hierarchy Speed Carrier DS0's

First Level 2.048 Mbit/s E-1 32

Second Level 8.448 Mbit/s E-2 128

Third Level 34.368 Mbit/s E-3 512

Fourth Level 139.264 Mbit/s E-4 2048

Fifth Level 565.148 Mbit/s E-5 8192

CEPT PDH Hierarchy

PDH - Plesiochronous Digital Hierarchy

CEPT PCM Analog-Digital PCM Quantizing Code is A-Law

Designa No. Of E1 Bit Rate Line Voice Channel

tion Trunk (KBits/s) Code Equivalent
E0 30/31 = 1E1 64 AMI 1
E1 1 2048 HDB3 30
E2 4 8448 HDB3 120
E3 16 34368 HDB3 480
E4 64/63* 139264 CMI 1920/1890*

*63 E1 ( 1890 VF ch ) are mapped in Synchronous Digital Hierarchy ( SDH)

AMI, HDB3, & CMI codes are bipolar.

Cable types: 120 Ohm Twisted Pair, 75 Ohm Coax
( Length/type assigned for 6 dB maximum loss )
Plesiochronous Digital Hierarchy

This multiplexing hierarchy is known as the Plesiochronous Digital Hierarchy (PDH).

Plesiochronous, meaning “almost synchronous,” relates to the inputs that can be of slightly varying speeds
relative to each other and the system’s ability to cope with the differences.

The PDH system effectively develops the idea of primary multiplexing using time division multiplexing
(TDM) to generate faster signals.

This is done in stages by first combining (multiplexing) E1 or T1 links into what are known as E2 or T2
links, and if required, going even further by combining (multiplexing) E2 or T2 links, etc.

These groups of signals can be transmitted as an electrical signal over a coaxial cable, as radio signals, or
optically via fiber-optic systems.

As such, PDH formed the backbone of early optical networks.

The E1 or 2.048 Mbit/s line is the basic component of the PDH system.

The 2.048 Mbit/s signal (bitstream) is achieved by multiplexing 32 individual 64 kbit/s bitstreams.
PDH

The E3 tributaries are faster than the E2 tributaries, E2 tributaries are faster than the E1 tributaries and so on.
These need to be synchronized with other tributaries, so extra bits are added called Justification bits.
These tell the multiplexers which bits are data and which are spare.
Multiplexers on the same level of the hierarchy remove the spare bits and are synchronized with each other at
that level only.

Multiplexers on one level operate on a

different timing from multiplexers on another level.
For instance, the timing between Primary Rate
Muxes (combines 30 x 64Kb/s channels into
2.048Mb/s E1) will be different from the timing
between 8Mbit muxes (combines up to 4 x 2Mb/s
into 8Mb/s).

PDH Hierarchy
SONET/SDH (Synchronous) basics

The basis of Synchronous Digital Hierarchy (SDH) is synchronous multiplexing - data from multiple tributary
sources is byte interleaved.

In SDH the multiplexed channels are in fixed locations relative to the framing byte.

Demultiplexing is achieved by gating out the required bytes from the digital stream.

This allows a single channel to be ‘dropped’ from the data stream without demultiplexing intermediate rates as
is required in PDH.

SDH is a transport hierarchy based on multiples of 155.52 Mbit/s

 The basic unit of SDH is STM-1:

 STM-1 = 155.52 Mbit/s
 STM-4 = 622.08 Mbit/s
 STM-16 = 2588.32 Mbit/s
 STM-64 = 9953.28 Mbit/s =10Gbits/s

Each rate is an exact multiple of the lower rate therefore the hierarchy is synchronous.

SONET Synchronous Optical Network defines optical carrier (OC) levels and electrically equivalent synchronous
transport signals (STSs) for the fiber-optic based transmission hierarchy. 
Next-Generation SONET/SDH (NGS)

Carrier Ethernet unlocks many potential revenue-generating services that telecommunications service providers,
known as Carriers, must deploy to maintain their competitive position.

However, most Carriers are not ready to convert to a pure Ethernet network because Ethernet lacks native
support for link monitoring, fault isolation, and diagnostic testing.

These three attributes, which enhance service quality, are native to the Plesiochronous Digital Hierarchy (PDH)
and synchronous SONET/SDH networks. Consequently over decades, Carriers came to trust PDH and SONET/SDH
networks as dependable platforms for delivering critical services to demanding customers.

The transparent and efficient transport of native Ethernet frames from network edge to network edge is
challenging.

In the past, overcoming these challenges was costly. Near the end of the 1990s, many Carriers fork lifted some
portion of their networks and replaced them with what was then called "Next-Generation" SONET/SDH (NGS)
equipment.

That next-generation equipment efficiently transported Ethernet and TDM services when the infrastructure
approached 100% utilization.

But NGS equipment had its own weakness: it did not interface with legacy systems.

Each node that terminated or handed off a service needed to be replaced with a new system. While
this replacement and update burden stimulated business for equipment makers, replacing legacy nodes was an
inefficient use of Carriers' capital.

Today, however, new protocols allow the re-use of legacy equipment. The importance of these new protocols is
significant, as they minimize the overall cost of delivering new Carrier Ethernet services .
Next-Generation SONET/SDH (NGS)

NGS solutions place Generic Framing Protocol (GFP) encapsulated Ethernet frames directly into variable-
bandwidth concatenated SONET/SDH virtual containers.

This exchange is done primarily using the methods defined by the International Telecommunications Union's
ITU-T G.707.

By allowing a very fine bandwidth granularity for each service on a NGS network, this transport scheme
promises to provide optimal bandwidth usage in an SONET/SDH link that is running at nearly full capacity.

Many Carriers regarded this class of equipment as the ideal technological solution of the time.

When terminating or handing off a service, however, these concatenated virtual containers must be resolved
into a physical interface such as OC-3, STM-1, T1, E1, or DS3.

But NGS systems do not interoperate well with legacy systems because the concatenated virtual containers
originating at an NGS node cannot be resolved to a standardized physical interface by a legacy
SONET/SDH system.

With legacy SONET/SDH systems unable to perform this task, NGS equipment is required at these nodes.

Additionally, when a legacy network is used to transport a service that originates at an NGS node, typically
an entire legacy SONET/SDH container is allocated to the path, thus eliminating the fiber bandwidth
efficiency gained by using NGS.

In short, NGS systems ignore interoperability with the established transport methods and instead promise
bandwidth utilization that is rarely achieved.
Ethernet Services

Ethernet is the ubiquitous transport in LAN for computer networking.

All enterprise data traffic starts off and ends up as Ethernet.

It provides a cost-effective interface, generally inexpensive compared to other network interfaces. As a

broadcast-oriented medium, Ethernet is a good match for IP.

It can scale from 10 Mb/s to 10 Gb/s of bandwidth. Furthermore, it is geographically independent.

Ethernet can be the foundation for the Service Providers to develop a portfolio of new data services such as:

 LAN Interconnect or Transparent LAN services (TLS)

 Internet Access
 Ethernet Private Line
 Virtual Private LAN services (VPLS).

These primary data services can lead to other more sophisticated IP managed services for storage or security.
Ethernet Over PDH(EoPDH)

Ethernet over PDH (Plesiochronous Digital Hierarchy) is a method for carrying Ethernet traffic over PDH
network lines such as E1/T1 or E3/T3.

It is one of several technologies available to service providers who are looking to add new carrier-class Ethernet
services over existing legacy infrastructure.

It is covered by various industry guidelines and standards, including Ethernet Operation Administration and
Maintenance (OAM) and standard encapsulation based on Generic Framing Procedure (GFP) to ensure better
performance, carrier-class service compatibility and vendor equipment interoperability.
Ethernet
EoP is a standardized methodology for transporting native Ethernet frames over Frames
Plesiochronous Digital Hierarchy (PDH) links. GFP
VCATS/LCAT
S
The standardized technologies used in EoP include:
E1
EoP protocol stack
Generic Framing Procedure (GFP) into PDH as defined in G.8040 to encapsulate the packet data Virtual
Concatenation (VCAT) as defined in G.7043 to concatenate the required PDH links to meet the required
bandwidth

Link Capacity Adjustment Schemes (LCAS) as defined in G.7042 to dynamically add or remove PDH capacity to
adjust capacity needs and to quickly address error conditions on individual E1 lines

Management messaging as defined in Y.1731 and Y.1730 to communicate status, report failures, and test
connectivity between network nodes

Once the Ethernet is mapped into standard PDH links, it can be carried over those links or can be mapped to be
carried over SDH like any standard PDH link, enjoying all the benefits of a well- proven transport infrastructure.
Ethernet over SONET (EoS)

A number of significant enhancements have been made recently to better use the existing SONET/SDH transport
infrastructure for data services.

These include the Generic Framing Protocol (GFP), Virtual Concatenation (VCAT) and the Link Capacity
Adjustment (LCAS).

Ethernet over SONET/SDH by combining GFP, VCAT and LCAS provides improved bandwidth efficiently for data
transport while allowing the Service Provider to operate its SONET/SDH transport network.

Before EoS, equipment vendors have used a number of proprietary encapsulation techniques to transport
IP/Ethernet over SONET/SDH.

The first method has been to use ATM AAL 5 over SONET/SDH. ATM is a very efficient switching and multiplexing
technology which speeds and feeds scale with SONET/SDH but requires a high overhead with the ATM “cell
tax” of 5 byte header and heavy software burden because mainly of its connection-oriented capability.

Other methods have been focused mainly on using PPP. The IP traffic coming to an Ethernet port is encapsulated
over a PPP link and multiple ports can be encapsulated over ML-PPP links. By using an HDLC framing, the
PPP traffic is transporting over the SONET/SDH payload.

These methods have been standardized within the IETF through RFC 1662, RFC 1990 and RFC 2615. The ITU-T
expanded this work by specifying the use of LAPS (very similar protocol to PPP/HDLC) and specifying IP over
LAPS in X.85/Y.1321 and Ethernet over LAPS in X.86/Y1323.
All these encapsulation mechanisms suffer from the inherent deficiencies of HDLC framing which introduces
variable packet sizes because of its trailer and suffers from limited protection from corruption of flag,
address etc…
Now to better optimize the transport of Ethernet and other data services over SONET, GFP has been
standardized taking into account both the pros and cons of ATM and PPP/HDLC and leveraging two new
emerging SONET/SDH capabilities: VCAT and LCAS.
Ethernet over PDH, over SONET/SDH (EoPoS)
Ethernet over PDH over SONET/SDH (EoPoS) is one of many techniques that provided Ethernet
connectivity over non-Ethernet networks.

EoPoS is a standardized method for transporting native Ethernet frames over the existing telecommunications
optical infrastructure by leveraging both the established PDH and SONET/SDH transport technologies.

EoPoS is a standardized method for transporting native Ethernet frames over a SONET/SDH network, by first
mapping into one or more PDH tributaries such as T1, E1, or DS3.

The tributaries can then be dropped from a legacy ADM, delivered to the customer premise, and the PDH links
resolved back to an Ethernet connection by a piece of equipment supporting EoPDH

The technologies used in EoPoS include GFP frame encapsulation, Ethernet Mapping, Virtual Concatenation, Link
Capacity Adjustment Scheme, and Management Messaging (OAM).

Common practices in EoPoS equipment also include the tagging of traffic for separation into virtual networks,
prioritization of user traffic
Ethernet over PDH, over SONET/SDH (EoPoS)

The new Ethernet over PDH over SONET/SDH (EoPoS) approach leverages, rather than deviates from,
traditional transport methods.

To grasp the importance of this approach, we must start with some fundamentals of legacy
SONET/SDH systems.

All telecommunications equipment depends on protocol processing in silicon and software to perform the bulk of
its duties.

The basic protocol stack of a legacy SONET/SDH Add-Drop Multiplexer (ADM) is shown in Stack A of Figure 1.

This protocol stack has been used for

many years to carry the PDH Time
Domain Multiplexed (TDM) services
such as leased T1, E1, and DS3 lines.

Figure 1. Protocol comparison of legacy SONET/SDH with Ethernet over PDH over Sonet (EoPoS).
Ethernet Over PDH(EoPDH)
These PDH services—T1, E1, and DS3—are well understood, globally deployed, and trusted. Therefore, it is
understandable that the ITU would adopt these PDH technologies as the transport layer for new Ethernet
services.

Recently, the ITU developed new recommendations for Ethernet transport over single and multiple PDH links.

The applicable standards are ITU-T G.7041, G.7042, and G.7043. Collectively, these recommendations are the
fundamental building blocks of Ethernet-over-PDH (EoPDH) technology.

EoPDH is a collection of technologies and new standards that allow Carriers to use extensive existing
telecommunications, copper infrastructure to provide new Ethernet-centric services.

EoPDH standards enable interoperability and the gradual migration of Carriers to pure Ethernet networks.

The standardized technologies used in EoPDH include frame encapsulation, mapping, link aggregation, link
capacity adjustment, and management messaging.

Common practices in EoPDH equipment also include: the tagging of traffic for separation into virtual
networks; prioritization of user traffic; and a broad range of higher layer applications.

Although EoPDH was created for point-to-point delivery of Ethernet over physical PDH tributaries, when
combined with legacy SONET/SDH, EoPDH becomes an important element and cost-effective tool for
Ethernet service delivery.
Ethernet Services over Transport MPLS (T-MPLS)
Transport MPLS has been defined by ITU-T as an application of the MPLS technology for packet transport networks.

Ethernet services are defined irrespectively on the transport network technology that is used to support them

Transport MPLS is a packet-based transport network technology well suited to support Ethernet services

Transport MPLS networks can be used to implement the following services:

 Point-to-point EPL/EVPL based on MEF E-Line (point-to point EVC)

 Multipoint EVPLAN (Ethernet Virtual Private LAN) based on MEF E-LAN (multipoint EVC)

 Rooted multipoint Services based on MEF rooted multipoint EVC

The implementation of Ethernet services with TMPLS benefit from the Transport MPLS of being both a packet technology
(i.e. better fitting the nature of packet services like Ethernet)

a transport technology (i.e. a carrier-grade technology supporting OAM and protection switching capabilities).

Transport MPLS is a very promising carrier grade packet transport technology for supporting packet services over new
generation transport networks

This presentation has shown how T-MPLS networks can be used to support carrier grade Ethernet services
Point-to-point, multipoint as well as rooted multipoint Ethernet services can be Supported T-MPLS is designed to be a
scalable end-toend packet transport technology

T-MPLS supports network partitioning Network partitioning at the PW level is supported in line with the multi-segment
PW architecture (draft-ietf-pwe3-ms-pw-arch- 00.txt)

T-MPLS supports sub-layer hierarchy

Ethernet Services over Transport MPLS (T-MPLS)

Virtual Private LAN Service (VPLS):

A VPLS is a method of providing a fully meshed multipoint wide area Ethernet service using Pseudo Wire
tunneling technology.

VLPS is a Virtual Private Network (VPN) that enables all LANs on a customer’s premises connected to it are able
to communicate with each other.

A new carrier that has invested in an MPLS network rather than an SDH / SONET core network would
use VPLS to offer Ethernet VPNs to their customers.

The picture below shows a VPLS with LSP link containing multiple MPLS Pseudo-Wires tunnels.
Ethernet Services over Transport MPLS (T-MPLS)

MEF: The MEF defines several types of Virtual Private Wire Services (VPWS) services:

Ethernet Private Line (EPL). An EPL service supports a single Ethernet VC (EVC) between two customer
sites.

Ethernet Virtual Private Line (EVPL). An EVPL service supports multiple EVCs between two customer
sites.

Virtual Private Line Service (VPLS) or Ethernet LAN (E-LAN) service supports multiple EVCs between
multiple customer sites.

These MEF-created service definitions, which are not standards as such (indeed they are independent of
standards), enable equipment vendors and service providers to achieve 3rd certification for their
products.
Pseudowire Emulation Overview

Pseudowire emulation is essentially a mechanism that re-creates the characteristics of a Layer 1 or Layer
2 circuit service, such as time-division multiplexing (TDM) or Frame Relay, over a packet-switched
network (PSN).

Pseudowires are emulated circuits that carry service-specific protocol data units (PDU) from one customer
device to another through the service provider network.

To end customers and their devices, it is transparent that the circuit service is provided through
pseudowire emulation. In other words, if the transit network is migrated from a circuit-based legacy
network to a packet-based IP/MPLS network, end customers do not perceive any change in services
offered by the service provider.

The motivation for pseudowire emulation comes from the desire to have a converged network that
delivers multiple services that are currently provided by parallel or overlay networks.

Each of these parallel networks offers a specific service. Parallel networks are not only expensive in terms
of capital expense and operational costs, but they also make it difficult to expand and maintain network
infrastructure and services.

Because IP traffic has increasingly become the majority of the overall network communication, many
service providers realize the benefit of investing in packet-based core networks either by expanding the
existing PSNs or migrating from their legacy circuit-based networks.

Although aiming at providing new packet-based services such as voice over IP (VoIP) and video on
demand with this new network infrastructure, service providers also look for ways to migrate the existing
services to the new infrastructure to maximize the return on capital and operational investment without
impact to the existing revenue streams.
Pseudowire emulation makes it possible to achieve this objective.