The invention relates to a method for realizing inter-disc STM-1 interface automatic protection switching in a gigabit-capable passive optical network (GPON) system. The method comprises the following steps that: 1, an inter-disc optical line automatic protection switching function is initiated, and two STM-1 interface discs are appointed as master and backup discs respectively; 2, E1 service links are set up in the two STM-1 interface discs, wherein only the master disc carries corresponding E1 services; 3, the master and backup discs directly send Ethernet double-layered packets to each other to intercommunicate about respective states; 4, when the master disc fails, a switching operation instruction is sent in the form of the Ethernet double-layered packets to the backup disc, and the backup disc is switched into the master disc to carry the corresponding E1 services; and 5, the master and backup discs report the changed states to a network manager. According to the method of the invention, the master and backup states of the STM-1 interface discs are switched by directly sending the double-layered packets, so that the operation efficiency of the system is improved, the time delay in switching is reduced, furthermore, the high real-time requirement on time division multiplex (TDM) services is met, and the reliability of equipment and the degree of satisfaction of telecommunication operators and users are improved.