article page |
1 |
2 |
3
The only options for OSS software that interacts directly with the network require an architecture of independently deployable agents that can interact and collect information from a wide variety of network devices simultaneously and can be independently deployed in the regions and not embedded on the network elements themselves.
Another difference stems from the fact that the traditional MSO HFC or access network contains many network elements that do not interact extensively with OSS systems, since many elements are passive resulting in a very large dependency on GIS systems to track and capture physical network attributes. Any reconciliation against that system is strictly manual.
|
|
OSS solutions need to be just as agile to keep pace with a constantly changing network. |
|
Some OSS solutions in the Discovery area are simply not designed to keep up with the network changes. They have been designed for a much less active network where new markets are not quickly added or deleted, where customers are not changing their services very often, and where it might be acceptable to synchronize the network through discovery every few days.
With network elements being more active, the need for centralized secure access to network elements by operations staff is crucial. A multivendor, single sign-on system
|
|
|
|
The new Fiber-oriented, Ethernet backhaul networks are far more active, and now capable of having OSS systems monitor network status, performance, and obtain network topology as well as the physical and logical inventory of the network. The discovery of the physical and logical inventory as well as the topology and reconciliation of live discovered data from the network against a planning inventory system is a new concept to MSOs simply because older HFC and access network simply did not have discovery capabilities.
MSOs have always had actively changing networks(much more so than telcos) and this most likely stems from a consumer oriented network where changes to the HFC plant for traditional cable subscribers or CMTS changes for Cable Modem subscribers are constantly changing. This flexibility and agility has translated into commercial Ethernet and Cell Tower backhaul applications. As a result, OSS solutions need to be just as agile to keep pace with a constantly changing network.
|
|
that can monitor and record all access to the network and provide a centralized methodology for security personnel to control and audit this new network gear provides a key operational advantage. In addition, this security function will alleviate the chore of the operations staff to remember the plethora of independent vendor specific passwords or shared passwords that might be configured without such a single sign-on system in place.
It will become important with the deployment of large numbers of small devices (like Ethernet NIDs) that OSS solutions can audit network parameters and highlight discrepancies from "Gold Standard" settings which ensure network integrity. Without a network integrity solution, operations staff would be expected to manually log into every network element and "stare and compare" individual parameter settings on each and every device which is obviously time-consuming, tedious and error-prone (and completely unmanageable in a network of size!).
|
|
