Will FTTP ever replace Ethernet?
FTTP vs leased lines. Which is better and which is worse? Will FTTP really replace fibre leased lines? Let's explore!
Fibre to the Premises
Fibre to the Premises or FTTP has been around for some time. It's an access technology used all over the world, based on the ITU-T (International Telecommunication Union Telecommunication Standardization Sector) G.984 (and it's amendments) standard, more commonly referred to as a technology as 'GPON' (Gigabit Passive Optical Network).
FTTP marks the next step in network access for the home and business, decoupling the 100 year reliance on copper cabling for access to Internet services across the UK. Copper is used in the following methods of network access within the UK:
If you have a phone, it can be connected to the router directly, or not used at all. You must, however have a mobile phone and a way of calling the emergency services should you elect to use FTTP. It's a passive product and as such, can fail if there is a power outage (unlike a phone, which is powered by the PCP (Primary Connection Point) or the local exchange).
The bottom line is that FTTP is connecting homes as well as businesses, which makes it a broadband product. Regardless of the method of access being fibre optic, the basis of the technology is that 16+ subscribers share the same 2.5Gbps downstream access from the exchange OLT (Optical Line Terminal). You may not always get that 1Gbps you were told about by your ISP.
FTTP if there is a fault, can have a fix time of 6-7 hours, depending on the care pack taken out on the product. Standard consumer FTTP as I understand it, has a fix of around 24-48 hours.
Dedicated Fibre Leased Line
The 'yang' to this FTTP solution is Fibre Ethernet, a dedicated access method that costs a significantly higher amount of money than FTTP. So what do you get for your money with these methods of access? Fibre Leased Lines (LL) are dedicated and leased pieces of network access. They do not use GPON like FTTP does, nor do they connect to a local splitter. Fibre LL are dedicated to your consumption and by definition, we call this an uncontended service. The bandwidth available on the connection is dedicated for you. If you buy 100Mbps, you get 100Mbps day or night, rain or shine.
Fibre LL is also a symmetric service. This means that the bandwidth provided is the same in both directions. If you buy 100Mbps, you get 100Mbps in both directions, upstream and downstream.
Because Ethernet LL is not a broadband product, it does not have to be authenticated by a BRAS (Broadband Remote Access Server) or LNS (L2TP (Layer 2 Tunnelling Protocol) Network Server). Ethernet LL presentation is usually based on the following circuit presentations:
Bottom Line
For the moment FTTP is offering significant improvements in bandwidth beyond what VDSL or G.FAST could offer to deliver. The highest speed available on FTTP today is 1Gbps down and 200Mbps up. An asymmetric service.
Ethernet LL offers speeds of 10Gbps with higher bandwidths available using OSA (Optical Spectrum Access) and DWDM (Dense Wavelength Division Multiplexing). The costs are not comparable, FTTP is significantly cheaper but Ethernet provides a much more robust and predictable service.
I have FTTP at home (150Mbps down, 30Mbps up) and I still believe Fibre LL is a far superior product for business. As for consumers, Ethernet is out of reach anyway purely due to cost.
SC
Fibre to the Premises
Fibre to the Premises or FTTP has been around for some time. It's an access technology used all over the world, based on the ITU-T (International Telecommunication Union Telecommunication Standardization Sector) G.984 (and it's amendments) standard, more commonly referred to as a technology as 'GPON' (Gigabit Passive Optical Network).
FTTP marks the next step in network access for the home and business, decoupling the 100 year reliance on copper cabling for access to Internet services across the UK. Copper is used in the following methods of network access within the UK:
- Asymmetric Digital Subscriber Line (ADSL version 1, 2 and 2+)
- Very High Speed Digital Subscriber Line (VDSL version 1 and 2) - also called FTTC or Fibre to the Cabinet
- G.FAST (Probably the last standardised DSL technology that will be used in the UK, with a maximum currently available upstream bandwidth of 330Mbps)
- Ethernet in the First/Final Mile (EFM)
- Although pretty much deprecated in UK networks, E1 is still in use (2Mbps leased lines also called DS1, a family of network accesses using Digital Signal standards. T1s are used in North America, J1s are used in Japan and E1s are used in Europe)
Openreach engineer working on a splitter node splice tray in the street. Image credit:
The bottom line is that FTTP is connecting homes as well as businesses, which makes it a broadband product. Regardless of the method of access being fibre optic, the basis of the technology is that 16+ subscribers share the same 2.5Gbps downstream access from the exchange OLT (Optical Line Terminal). You may not always get that 1Gbps you were told about by your ISP.
FTTP if there is a fault, can have a fix time of 6-7 hours, depending on the care pack taken out on the product. Standard consumer FTTP as I understand it, has a fix of around 24-48 hours.
Dedicated Fibre Leased Line
The 'yang' to this FTTP solution is Fibre Ethernet, a dedicated access method that costs a significantly higher amount of money than FTTP. So what do you get for your money with these methods of access? Fibre Leased Lines (LL) are dedicated and leased pieces of network access. They do not use GPON like FTTP does, nor do they connect to a local splitter. Fibre LL are dedicated to your consumption and by definition, we call this an uncontended service. The bandwidth available on the connection is dedicated for you. If you buy 100Mbps, you get 100Mbps day or night, rain or shine.
Adva NTE (Network Termination Equipment) used in Ethernet LL deployments. Image credit:
Fibre LL is also a symmetric service. This means that the bandwidth provided is the same in both directions. If you buy 100Mbps, you get 100Mbps in both directions, upstream and downstream.
Because Ethernet LL is not a broadband product, it does not have to be authenticated by a BRAS (Broadband Remote Access Server) or LNS (L2TP (Layer 2 Tunnelling Protocol) Network Server). Ethernet LL presentation is usually based on the following circuit presentations:
- RJ45 on 100Mbps bearers
- SX or LX fibre optic on 1Gbps
- SR or LR fibre optic on 10Gbps bearers
- And so on...
Bottom Line
For the moment FTTP is offering significant improvements in bandwidth beyond what VDSL or G.FAST could offer to deliver. The highest speed available on FTTP today is 1Gbps down and 200Mbps up. An asymmetric service.
Ethernet LL offers speeds of 10Gbps with higher bandwidths available using OSA (Optical Spectrum Access) and DWDM (Dense Wavelength Division Multiplexing). The costs are not comparable, FTTP is significantly cheaper but Ethernet provides a much more robust and predictable service.
I have FTTP at home (150Mbps down, 30Mbps up) and I still believe Fibre LL is a far superior product for business. As for consumers, Ethernet is out of reach anyway purely due to cost.
SC
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