1904_WG - Access Networks Working Group

Glen Kramer

COM/AccessCore-SC - Access and Core Networks Standards Committee

This standard describes the system-level requirements needed to ensure service-level, multi-vendor interoperability of Ethernet Passive Optical Network (EPON) equipment. The specifications complement the existing IEEE 802.3 and IEEE 802.1 standards, which ensure the interoperability at the Physical Layer (PHY) and Data Link Layer. Specifically included in this specification are - EPON system-level interoperability specifications covering equipment functionality, traffic engineering, and service-level quality of service/class of service (QoS/CoS) mechanisms; - Management specifications covering equipment management, service management, and EPON power-saving mechanism.

This standard describes control mechanisms and management methods necessary to enable creation and operation of virtual links in Ethernet-based subscriber access networks. The key characteristics of the Virtual Link Control (VLC) mechanisms are: - The ability to transit Layer 2 bridges in a single IEEE 802 Media Access Control (MAC) domain to allow remote device management; - Extensibility to accommodate new protocols and new types of devices; - The ability to simultaneously send messages to multiple VLC-aware stations using broadcast or multicast addressing. The standard describes the message format, as well as processing operations at the stations participating in the VLC protocol.