[c-nsp] carrier router models comparison

[Emanuel Popa]

hi there,

due to the increase in traffic volume in the last couple of years we
need to really think about the future of the network. we have deployed
and we are managing a 50GE multi-ring topology network with Cisco 7600
routers. i don't want to get into more details about ring topology
restrictions, platform limitations regarding wire speed, huge problems
with ether-channels or unpredictable load balancing behaviour. we've
been using these chassis since 2004 starting with STM-16 lines and the
PQ ratio looks pretty good so far.

coming back to nowadays, 40GE or 100GE is not available yet, and even
if it was, the price would be probably unaffordable. and now the
question pops: what is the next step? the best answer is of course a
mix of multiple 10GE lines with traffic engineering and partial mesh
topology and 100GE ready chassis. first thing that comes to mind is
the CRS-1 platform, but it is really expensive: from under 15K per
10GE port with the Cisco 7600 you have to pay more than 75K per 10GE
port with the CRS-1. so we have to take into consideration what are
the alternatives. i will try a short comparison:

- Cisco CRS-1 16 Slot
--- max 64 x 10GE
--- max 32 links in a bundle
--- 40Gbps per slot
--- 100GE ready
--- multi-chassis ready
--- 10.920W max power
--- 723kg max weight
--- full rack space
--- $5.115.000,00/chassis
--- $79.921,88/10GE

- Juniper T1600
--- max 64 x 10GE
--- max 16 links in a bundle
--- 100Gbps per slot
--- 100GE ready
--- multi-chassis ready
--- 8.352W max power
--- 274,88kg max weight
--- 1/2 rack space
--- $6.547.000,00/chassis
--- $102.296,88/10GE

- Brocade/ Foundry NetIron XMR 16000
--- max 64 x 10GE
--- max 32 links in a bundle
--- 50Gbps per slot
--- 100GE ready (* only full slots)
--- single-chassis
--- 5.572W max power
--- 107,00kg max weight
--- 1/3 rack space
--- $567.515,00/chassis
--- $8.867,42/10GE

I've also been looking at Huawei, Alcatel and HP gear but haven't been
able to find a device to support more than 24 x 10GE ports in a single
chassis.

Here's what I'm trying to figure out:

1. are there any other devices on the market with same hardware capabilities?

2. why the huge difference between foundry and cisco/juniper?

3. if foundry is so cheap why hasn't it gathered more market share?
instead it was bought by brocade a while ago...

4. is the netiron really a carrier router more than a carrier switch?
anybody experienced it?

5. how does the software perform when comparing with IOS XR and JunOS?

Please, any comments are welcomed.

Best regards,
Manu