The Metro Ethernet Forum (MEF) has expanded its
certification programme to include quality of service parameters in
network kit.
The MEF 14 standard describes how network hardware suppliers can
help meet the quality of service goals for carriers that need to
establish service level agreements with customers.
The quality of service specification is based on traffic
management parameters described in the previous MEF 10
specification.
MEF 14 covers service performance and bandwidth profile rate
enforcement, including individual Ethernet circuit analysis.
The MEF is an industry body supported by switch suppliers,
telcos and network services companies. The organisation promotes
the integration of Ethernet switches and routers into carrier and
enterprise networks.
Ethernet offers an alternative to more expensive and less
flexible Asynchronous Transfer Mode, Frame Relay and SDH-based
network hardware commonly found in carrier and enterprise wide area
networks.
Worldwide purchases of metro Ethernet equipment were worth
£2.2bn in 2004, and this figure is predicted to double to about
£4.4bn by 2008, according to analyst firm Infonetics Research.