What is MCP?

Network management has become more complex as telecommunications networks have grown in scale and technology to serve increasingly bandwidth-hungry connectivity applications. That complexity has spawned a related problem: fragmented legacy Network Management System (NMS) tools make operational processes error-prone and time-consuming. Typically, there is a proprietary tool for each type of device and each type of supported customer service. The manually intensive network operations of the past cannot handle the extreme scalability and performance requirements needed to deliver a high-quality customer experience today.

Ciena’s MCP provides the industry’s most advanced domain controller with multi-layer SDN control of infrastructure and services in combination with integrated online planning and optimization, within a ‘single pane of glass’.

As a result, service providers are looking to simplify, accelerate, and automate network operations and drive business agility with Software-Defined Networking (SDN) domain controllers. Ciena’s MCP provides the industry’s most advanced domain controller with multi-layer SDN control of infrastructure andservices in combination with integrated online planning and optimization, within a ‘single pane of glass’. Network operators do not need to learn and navigate disparate tools for separate technology layers of a network—MCP provides a unified view across optical, Optical Transport Network (OTN), Ethernet, and IP infrastructure. And MCP is designed on an open, cloud-native, micro-services platform that is easy to deploy and integrate within an operational environment. So end-to-end operational workflows can be completed extremely efficiently.

Figure 1: MCP provides unified software control and automation of multi-layer, multi-vendor networks

At any point in time, MCP offers a real-time, accurate view of the network and service topology and associated capacity, utilization, and performance metrics. This enables users to perform planning and optimization of multi-layer networks, whenever needed, to meet dynamic capacity and performance demands. Ciena’s MCP domain controller provides a solid foundation for advanced analytics apps that extract insights from the wealth of metrics generated by the network. These insights drive well-informed operational actions that help optimize network performance. All told, the fully integrated suite of MCP Applications deliver intelligent network control to the network operations user.

Ciena has a commitment to openness. MCP’s open REST APIs simplify integration with service providers’ existing Operational Support Systems (OSSs) and processes. In addition, MCP supports:

• N+1 clustering and load balancing for ultra-high availability and elastic scale
• Multi-layer online service and bandwidth planning with scheduled service activation option
• Microservices, container-based platform supporting rapid enhancements, modularity, and scale
• Secure and rapid on-premise deployment, or in customer-procured cloud or as hosted service

With MCP, service providers can realize the following advantages:

Lower operating expenditures

• A single system and user interface for managing, controlling, and planning Ciena’s optical and routing and switching infrastructure, as well as third party routers, foreign line systems, or foreign transponders
• Integrated, streamlined workflows throughout the lifecycle of network and service operations
• A simplified user experience with auto-assist or full automation

Lower capital expenditure

• Effective deployment of L0-3 infrastructure capacity, with shortened planning lead times
• Optimal utilization of optical, packet, and IP resources

Increased revenues and ROI

• Ability to fulfill customer services rapidly, such as enterprise Virtual Private Networks (VPNs)
• Rapid turn-up of data center connectivity and interconnect
• Mining of latent capacity to add new services or protect existing high-value services
• Quick troubleshooting of network and service issues, increasing customer satisfaction