Open and Disaggregated Optical Transport Networks for Data Center Interconnect

In this paper, we present Alibaba’s practices and views on open and disaggregated optical transport networks, with a focus on metro data center interconnects (DCIs). We first discuss technology developments that have enabled open optical transport networks, followed by a presentation of our open optical network architecture for DCI networks. We then describe an overall data center network architecture and the application scenario of open and disaggregated DCI technology. Details of the point-to-point DCI network architecture and the need for reconfigurable optical add–drop multiplexers (ROADMs) in DCI networks are then discussed. We present the data models of DCI equipment, including optical terminal transponders, point-to-point optical line systems, and ROADMs, developed based on OpenConfig YANG models. The detailed design and implementation of a home-grown control and management software platform for DCI networks are also presented. We conclude with a discussion of the real deployment of the technology in Alibaba’s networks.