New CableOS™ End-to-End Offering Enables Groundbreaking Scalability, Agility and Cost Efficiency
Featuring the industry’s first software-based CMTS Core server and full-spectrum DOCSIS 3.1 Remote PHY systems, CableOS Core software runs on 1-RU COTS Intel® processor-based servers in a headend, hub or data center.
“As we continue to evolve our network and products to deliver leading-edge speed and performance to our customers, it’s exciting to see the continuing wave of innovation being driven by our valued partners,” said Tony Werner, president of technology and product for Comcast Cable. “Innovation in this space is particularly timely as our industry increasingly leverages software to deliver smart, simple and scalable infrastructure.”
A single CableOS Core server offers a quantum leap forward in its ability to support tens of gigs of capacity and multiple service groups in fewer rack units when compared with traditional hardware CMTS implementations. With CableOS, operators can cut space and power by up to 75 percent in a centralized CCAP deployment, or by more than 90 percent in a Remote PHY deployment.
“Cable delivery infrastructure has traditionally been based on purpose-built silicon platforms,” said Dan Rodriguez, general manager, Communication Infrastructure Division at Intel Corporation. “Scaling hardware-centric infrastructure to meet new services and IP demand growth leads to capacity, space and power challenges. The move to a software-based model that uses standard servers with Intel® processors offers cost and time-to-market advantages to cable operators by delivering more computing at the edge of the network to improve service agility and quality of experience.”
Beyond streamlining the migration to the new DOCSIS 3.1 specification over existing cable access infrastructure, the CableOS solution offers breakthrough RF port density for centralized architectures, affording operators dramatic cost savings over traditional cable access architectures.
“At SCTE, we believe that the trend toward network virtualization and moving cable access functionality onto software offers great benefits for cable operators,” said Chris Bastian, SCTE chief technology officer. “The ability to have a much smaller footprint in the headend while maintaining reliability, security and service levels is an important step forward in the industry, and Harmonic is taking a lead role in this endeavor.”
The CableOS software-based CCAP solution is currently in trials at multiple tier-1 cable MSOs in North America and Europe. The first commercial deployments are expected to commence in Q4 2016.
Further information about Harmonic and the company’s products is available at www.harmonicinc.com.