IEEE-1588 and Synchronous Ethernet in Telecom

Abstract

Service providers are moving from voice services to bundled services, delivering voice, data, video and wireless (quad-play). TDM services continue to represent significant revenue for carriers, and must be supported in this new model. As the network moves to a packet switched infrastructure, there are still applications that require synchronization, e.g.; traditional TDM services, cellular base stations. Timing synchronization is key to distributed networks and it is critical for today's network environments. As the network services continue to increase, the challenges involved with providing accurate time to systems and applications also increase. This paper addresses the use of IEEE1588TM in conjunction with synchronous Ethernet to deliver accurate synchronization for the telecom network.