Latin America. The constant evolution of broadband services and the promises of 5G technology are forcing service providers to offer a mix of new services on their fixed and mobile networks.
In many cases this evolution will drive the need to bring access to different services closer to the edge of the network. As a result, operators are forced to incorporate the functionality of the data center within their headquarters, along with traditional telecommunications services.
"This convergence of data centers and telecommunications services will drive different groups of service providers to work together," said Eduardo A. Estella Lee, Product Management Director for Connectivity at CommScope. "But supporting low-latency applications and traditional telecom services on the same premises requires developing two different mindsets: Operators must support the typical data center 'decommissioning and replacement,' while supporting the changing needs of traditional head office infrastructure for a long lifespan."
Move data centers to the edge
As the network evolves, operators deploy multiple networks: fiber for the home (FTTH), fiber for business (FTTB), and fiber for wireless networks. There are different uses for these networks and one of the main ones is for low latency services. Latency depends on the number of electronic conversions performed, that is, the number of hops the signal must take to retrieve or transmit data. Each time a conversion is performed, latency is added. 5G network applications can't afford many conversions, so 5G is driving the need for edge data centers closer to users.
"For an operator, a data center will most likely be located in a central office, close to the edge of the network, where the operator will have the traditional services offered today (FTTH, voice and video) and will also host the functionality of the data center at the edge. Edge data centers connect to regional data centers: they will house applications that require the lowest latency, while some applications will target regional data centers. Regional data centers would house less popular video programs, email and SMS servers, plus other applications for which response time is not critical. Many edge data center applications will be related to user safety or user experience, such as multiplayer games, augmented reality or navigation information for autonomous cars," added Eduardo Estella.
Team Considerations
The architecture of the data center, the standards and methods of operation, are very different from the architecture and standards of the headquarters. Data centers have a short life cycle, between 3 and 5 years, and go through periodic "dismantling and replacement" phases, while headquarters work on a team life cycle of 10 to 20 years.
At the head office, operators will have to deal with a massive fiber network. The operator should have high-density fiber distribution cabinets that offer easy access, flexibility, and are extremely reliable over a span of 20 years and can support multiple network evolutions. Density and accessibility are critical, but so is long-term reliability.
Experience expansion
While a wealth of expertise in single-mode fiber management and connectivity has developed at headquarters, with the addition of data center functionality many more multimode fiber connections will be required. As a result, for Eduardo A. Estella Lee, Product Management Director for Connectivity at CommScope, it will be necessary to develop expertise in multimode fiber management and connectivity:
"To support data center-enabled services, virtualization expertise must also be developed. The days when numerous individual network elements were used to perform specific functions are long gone, so operators are optimizing CAPEX, virtualizing network functions with software on servers, and distributing applications among them in the form of workloads using technologies such as network function virtualization (NFV) and software-defined networking (SDN). Virtualization features are more cost-effective, use much less space and reduce costs," he said.
Planning for the future
Although it is not possible to look too much into the future, for Eduardo Estella there are three keys to future evolution and planning: flexibility, density and accessibility.
- Flexibility: Using multi-insertion connectors (MPOs) for fiber cabling and patch cables makes it much easier and more cost-effective to change configurations when needed. Panels that include modules that facilitate switching from LC to MPO and back to LC while using the same backbone cable are critical with the continued evolution of multimode optics used in data center switches and servers.
- Density: Operators should choose the highest density fiber platforms and patching equipment to facilitate the future growth of connectivity for service delivery. They should also consider using wavelength division multiplexing equipment to scale capacity in existing fiber networks.
- Accessibility: Operators should use fiber panels and cabinets that maximize access to fiber optic connections.
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