Telescent, a manufacturer of automated fiber optic cross-connects for data centers, and EXFO, an expert in the communications industry’s test, monitoring and analytics, announced their partnership, adding EXFO diagnostic capabilities to Telescent’s Gen 4 Network Topology Manager (G4 NTM), an automated interconnect system that provides monitoring of network infrastructure leveraging a remote-controlled, reconfigurable fiber optic patch panel.
The combination of EXFO’s remote fiber testing and monitoring capabilities with Telescent’s physical network layer automation transforms the way companies manage, operate and maintain metro and long-haul network infrastructure. This partnership brings future-proof capabilities to new network deployments while providing network upgrade solutions with a software-defined network (SDN) technology that transforms the way companies operate their network infrastructure, as exemplified by the November announcement with MOX Networks. In addition to network operators, data center operators are embracing Telescent’s capabilities by implementing a system of network topology managers to automate physical network configurations in data centers, as highlighted in Quantum Loophole’s announcement in October 2022.
“Combining EXFO’s market-leading technology solutions with Telescent’s industry-leading automatic connectivity platform empowers network operators to streamline operations with greater efficiency and accuracy for metro and long-haul connectivity,” said Mark Nixon, senior vice president of adaptive service assurance at EXFO. “We are committed to transforming the way companies deploy network infrastructure – empowering the future of software-defined network automation – wherever networks are deployed.”
Telescent CEO Anthony Kewitsch added, “With EXFO, Telescent is bringing even more network diagnostic solutions to our customers, further enhancing remote monitoring, and management and enabling automatic cross-connects to advance the way companies deploy and manage new network routes. It is exciting to be able to work with the best technology developers in the industry to bring the future of software-driven network management to our clients today.”
Telescent’s robotic patch panel system addresses the requirements for automating fiber management, while EXFO’s remote fiber testing system adds visibility of reconfigured optical circuits — closing the network automation loop and making diagnostics and proactive management easier. Telescent’s fiber-based system offers low loss, latched fiber connection that matches manual patch panel performance.
When an add, move or drop is requested, the Telescent robot grabs one end of the fiber and weaves it around the other fibers in the system to the requested port, avoiding any blocking or knotting. This preserves the ability of the system to make any connection request (i.e., non-blocking) while scaling to over 1,000 duplex ports per system.
Test equipment such as power meters, visible and infrared light sources and optical time domain reflectometry can be included with the Telescent system to allow certification and monitoring of any fiber when requested. The Telescent system meets the reliability requirements for data centers and has passed NEBS Level 3 certification as well as multiple customer trials and has over 1 billion port hours in operation.
For more information about EXFO, visit www.exfo.com.
