Ascend acquired ATM switch maker Cascade Communications 3 years ago. A high-speed optical interconnect connects the shelves together. The switch also features full mesh redundancy between the processor and core switch shelves, and the core switch shelf and the service shelf. The switch will also support IP service shelf cards from the GX 550, and will have access to Lucent's SpringTide IP service switch intelligence, company officials say. The MSC 25000 will also support Generalized MPLS for signaling the optical core to provide or tear down bandwidth.
Lucent officials are confident they can stave off any potential threat from the aggressive start-up.
Our deployments prove that out. At the edge, Lucent is also facing a feisty multiservice start-up in WaveSmith Networks. WaveSmith's differentiator is a so-called Open Call Model, which employs several signaling techniques to set up connections. Lucent officials would not comment specifically on WaveSmith or its Open Call Model. The MSC 25000 will enter beta tests in September and will ship by the end of the year.