Morgan Hill, CA – April 1, 2025 – Anritsu Corporation is set to showcase the control and communication quality verification of a data center interconnection built in compliance with the OpenROADM MSA [*1] at the 2025 Optical Fiber Communication Conference and Exhibition (OFC 2025, San Francisco, USA), the world's largest optical communications exhibition (March 30 – April 3, 2025). Anritsu’s exhibition is being presented in collaboration with the OpenLab at the University of Texas at Dallas (UT Dallas).

As the importance of data centers increases due to the growing use of artificial intelligence (AI) and the spread of cloud services, ensuring the interoperability of the networks connecting data centers is becoming more important than ever. Therefore, the OpenROADM MSA is promoting the establishment of unified technical specifications to enable these networks built by multiple vendors to be interconnected and interoperated. Furthermore, interoperability verification is being addressed at the OpenLab established at the UT Dallas. Anritsu is an active member of the OpenROADM MSA and the OpenLab@UT Dallas.

In this exhibition, Anritsu is demonstrating end-to-end communications quality verification for a ROADM network built with equipment from multiple vendors that complies with the OpenROADM standard, using the Anritsu Network Master Pro MT1040A (400G tester) equipped with the QSFP-DD, a high-density and high-bandwidth optical transceiver standard and the OpenROADM standard compliant. This network and the MT1040A are controlled by the OpenROADM YANG model [*2] defined by OpenROADM and the OpenConfig YANG model [*3] defined by OpenConfig as a vendor-independent network control. Both are managed by an orchestration system operated by the OpenLab@UT Dallas. Connecting the MT1040A to this orchestration system enables efficient testing and monitoring of networks built by multiple vendors.

On the other hand, since connecting actual measuring instruments to servers is not possible in the data center, it has become increasingly difficult to quantitatively evaluate the end-to-end communication quality in the data center network, including the servers. To address this issue, this exhibition also presents a concept that enables the verification of communication quality close to actual data center services by installing virtual measurement functions within the servers.

Anritsu will continue to contribute to solving the issues of data center interconnection through its activities in the OpenROADM MSA and the OpenLab@UT Dallas.

The ROADM network for this exhibition is installed at the OpenROADM Demo booth and is connected through OFCnet to the MT1040A installed at the Anritsu booth and the OIF (Optical Internetworking Forum) booth.

Booth locations:
OpenROADM Demo: #5128
OIF: #5745
Anritsu: #3118

Technical Terms

[*1] OpenROADM MSA
Specifies the interconnection specifications for optical transmission devices (ROADM: Reconfigurable Optical Add-Drop Multiplexer), optical transponders, removable optical components, etc., as well as YANG data model specifications, and defines the interface for achieving interconnection and interoperability between each functional part of an optical transmission network in a multi-vendor environment. Anritsu has been a member since May 2024.

[*2] YANG model
YANG stands for Yet Another Next Generation. It is a data modeling language that defines the format and rules for the settings and status of network devices.

[*3] OpenConfig
An open framework and project for standardizing the configuration, operation, and management of multi-vendor network devices. 

About Anritsu

Anritsu is a provider of innovative communications test and measurement solutions. Anritsu engages customers as true partners to help develop wireless, optical, microwave/RF, and digital solutions for R&D, manufacturing, installation, and maintenance applications, as well as multidimensional service assurance solutions for network monitoring and optimization. Anritsu also provides precision microwave/RF components, optical devices, and high-speed electrical devices for communication products and systems. The company develops advanced solutions for emerging and legacy wireline and wireless technologies used in commercial, private, military/aerospace, government, and other markets.

To learn more visit www.anritsu.com and follow Anritsu on Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter, and YouTube.