Optical Line Terminal MA Configuration via VLAN Translation
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Solution Overview
Problem
In current communication technologies, different optical network units (ONUs) connected to an optical line terminal (OLT) often have different virtual local area network (VLAN) configurations for maintenance associations (MAs), making it difficult for multiple ONUs to share the same MA, which requires extensive configuration and management.
Innovation Solution
The method involves sending configuration messages from the OLT to ONUs with valid MEP VLAN values and invalid MA VLAN values, allowing ONUs to use the MA as a local MA and the MEP VLAN as a packet forwarding VLAN, thereby simplifying the configuration process and enabling multiple ONUs to share the same MA.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If multiple ONUs are configured with different VLANs for MAs, then each ONU can have its own local MA, but the configuration amount increases greatly
Solution Approach 1:
The patent makes the OLT's MA configuration universal by setting the MA VLAN to an invalid value (0), allowing the same MA configuration to be applied to multiple ONUs with different VLANs. The OLT then performs VLAN translation to map the invalid MA VLAN to each ONU's specific VLAN, enabling one MA configuration to serve multiple ONUs without requiring separate configurations for each.
2Adaptability or versatility
If VLAN translation is performed on ONU and/or OLT, then different ONUs can have different VLANs, but multiple ONUs cannot use the same MA as local MA
Solution Approach 1:
The patent introduces an intermediary mechanism where the OLT acts as a translator between the standardized MA configuration (with invalid VLAN value) and the ONU-specific VLAN requirements. The OLT receives the MA configuration with invalid VLAN, performs VLAN translation according to mapping relationships, and delivers the translated configuration to each ONU, thereby enabling MA sharing across ONUs with different VLANs.
3Reliability
If OLT configures multiple MAs and sends them to corresponding ONUs, then each ONU can use its own MA, but the configuration management becomes complex
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies preliminary action by pre-configuring the MA with an invalid VLAN value (0) at the OLT, which serves as a placeholder that can be later translated to any valid VLAN. This preliminary configuration with invalid value allows the MA to be defined once before being distributed to multiple ONUs, avoiding the need to pre-configure multiple different MAs for different ONUs.
Data Source
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AI summary
The present invention relates to a method for setting a maintenance association MA, an apparatus, and a system. A correspondence between an MA and a maintenance association end point MEP and a correspondence between the MEP and an optical network unitONUare set on an optical line terminal OLT, where the MA includes an MA virtual local area networkVLAN, the MEP includes an MEP VLAN; and the method for setting an MA includes: sending, by the OLT, a configuration message to the ONU to which an MEP belongs, where the configuration message carries an MEP whose MEP VLAN has a valid value and an MA whose MA VLAN has an invalid value, so that the ONU to which the MEP belongs uses the MA in the configuration message as a local MA, and uses the MEP VLAN in the configuration message as a packet forwarding VLAN.