OpenROADM is a collaborative effort aimed at developing an open, disaggregated optical networking ecosystem. Deploying a line system from a single vendor limits the benefits of OpenROADM in terms of openness, reduced vendor lock-in, and lower total cost of network ownership.
On the other hand, a line system from a single vendor can provide advantages such as faster initial setup, and easier integration. This approach may also be preferred if the network operator has specific requirements or constraints that align with a particular vendor’s equipment.
If a network operator chooses not to mix vendors in the L0, they can still benefit from using the open API to manage the network and/or mixing vendors on L1, leveraging the optical specifications and Open API models. By doing so, the network operator can reap some of the benefits of OpenROADM’s open approach while meeting their specific needs.
Open ROADM MSA supports both fully disaggregated and partially disaggregated ROADM solutions. Partially disaggregated single-vendor ROADM line system may provide better performance than fully disaggregated multi-vendor ROADM network; however, a ROADM network solution supporting fully disaggregated model with multi-vendor inter-op capability offers a resilient supply chain ecosystem and the potential for more graceful technology transitions.