IP convergence: Traffic jam at the on ramp

 

Connecting state and local government leaders

Merging voice, video and audio into an IP network can be tricky when many partiesare involved.

It's not as easy as it sounds: Migrate applications and services to Internet protocol and reap the benefits of a single, unified network backbone. For one thing, your agency probably has legacy systems it's not ready to discard (or port to a new platform). And if it doesn't, chances are there's another agency you work closely with that does.Sometimes, it's this cross-organizational challenge that presents the biggest hindrance to effectively utilizing converged IP networks. The Defense Department knows this better than most, and the lessons it has learned could serve other agencies well.In May, the U.S. European Command got together in Germany with 40 of its allies for a two-week exercise testing the interoperability of systems used in humanitarian and peacekeeping operations.Combined Endeavor 2006, the 12th Partnership for Peace interoperability exercise, illustrates the military's global move toward a common IP infrastructure, a linchpin in its larger network-centric operations initiative.'We try to anticipate what is going to be required in the field,' said U.S. Army Lt. Col. Joseph Angyal, the exercise director. 'We're getting better at it.'What's required, those involved say, is the ability to tie together applications that more often ride on IP networks. Moving systems to IP is one thing; making them work together once there is another.'We are focused solely on testing and documenting the systems that are deployed or are about to be deployed,' Angyal said. 'We aren't experimenting. It covers the entire gamut'voice, video and data in all forms.'There still is plenty of legacy equipment that must be accommodated to enable intercommunication with joint multinational forces in the field. But more and more, the IP backbone is emerging as a standard element.'At the transmission layer, I think we are becoming more alike,' Angyal said. 'At the application layer, that's where the problems lie.'The disparity in applications is, in part, a legacy of the Cold War. In 1995, when the first Common Endeavor exercise was held, equipment either was Warsaw Pact-compatible or NATO-compatible. That distinction has not completely disappeared.'That's the reality of deployment nowadays,' Angyal said. 'It is traditional and nontraditional equipment.'The differences are also a function of tight budgets, said Tom Cooper, NATO defense initiatives manager for Cisco Systems Inc.'Things that are 30 years old and still work, they want to keep,' Cooper said.Cooper, a former Navy captain, has been involved with Common Endeavor since the exercises began in 1995. Because Cisco equipment is a common denominator of many of the systems tested in Common Endeavor, the company provided the backbone for the exercise.The purpose of Common Endeavor is simple, Cooper said. 'Bring equipment you have deployed to one location, we'll hook it together and see how it works.'When the exercises began, some organizations were still using hand-cranked telephone switches. The focus of the tests was on circuit-switched networks with time division multiplexing (TDM). This year, most of the equipment is IP, although the environment remains mixed.'Now we are up to the latest IP equipment, and we are still trying to make sure it will work with the legacy equipment,' Cooper said. 'Does it work together, or do we have to provide some kind of interface to make sure it will work?'Many of the thousand tests scheduled for this year focus on voice over IP, which Patrick M. Ryan, a 26-year Air Force veteran and Cisco's director of defense initiatives, called a disruptive technology. VOIP is often the poster child of converged IP network programs.Ryan said the time to market for VOIP has been less than anyone had expected. 'Even though it's been years,' he said, 'it's been quick for a technology change.'The military may actually be ahead of the curve in adopting VOIP. DOD's Joint Interoperability and Test Command has for years been running a certification program to help ensure VOIP products meet interoperability, performance and security requirements. But government's take on VOIP is likely different than the commercial sector's.A study of 390 U.S. businesses by the Parsippany, N.J.-based research firm Telecom Intelligence Group found that only 41 percent had begun implementing VOIP. The percentage was greater among larger organizations, 57 percent in companies with more than 500 employees compared with only 29 percent for smaller companies. But only 15 percent of the companies surveyed said they were implementing IP telephony applications to take full advantage of VOIP.'There is a significant gap between the percent of U.S businesses that believe IP telephony can change the way they do business and the percent that are actually achieving business value from IP telephony,' the study concluded.The move to VOIP is now seen as inevitable, said Terry White, the senior program director for the Telecom Intelligence Group.'It reached the point several years ago of becoming 'when,' not 'if,' ' White said.The delay in adopting IP telephony (as opposed to just VOIP) can't be pinned on reliability or voice quality issues any longer. 'Those issues have been resolved,' White said. 'Ultimately, it's about a more robust set of applications.'IP telephony applications such as unified messaging, multimedia conferencing and collaboration, presence management and teleworking are seen as boosting productivity. Businesses consider productivity a 'soft benefit' and are more likely to deploy applications that can produce hard savings.But better productivity is exactly what military organizations'and many government agencies'are looking for in IP applications. Low budgets make fewer forces available, and IP networks are seen as a force multiplier. And DOD wants them sooner rather than later, meaning large-scale interoperability testing is mandatory for a smooth move to IP.'Ease of deployment is critical,' said Ryan. 'The timeline for moving information is more critical than it has ever been.'Voice, once the primary means of military communications over radio channels, is now only one option in the communications toolbox, along with video, graphics, e-mail, text chat and data files.'You can now plug in voice as a tool in the equation, as appropriate,' Ryan said.Earlier this year, the Defense Information Systems Agency turned to AT&T Government Solutions Inc. and Northrop Grumman Mission Systems to build an IP-based network that could carry videoconferencing applications as well as voice services across multiple continents. The network was originally intended for administrative communications, but as technology has evolved, it morphed into a command and control system.IMGCAP(2)Still, DOD and others will tell you that moving to IP depends on various factors, not the least of which is the sensitivity of information that will travel over the network. Another crucial factor remains cost.NATO is working toward a single, all-IP network. But neither NATO nor any individual country is fielding a unified, all-IP infrastructure, and the move to IP communications is being done piecemeal.'Most nations' militaries are budget-limited and can't do wholesale change-outs,' Ryan said.Financial constraints also are putting a premium on off-the-shelf technology.'No one has the budget to build everything they want, so when possible, they are buying it rather than building it,' Ryan said.'All of the nations continue to build IP capability,' Angyal said. 'Some are really taking leaps forward in the technology they possess and the ability to use it. Estonia completely skipped a generation.'But policy does not always keep up with operations.'The operational world is doing a fantastic job of using IP to its best capabilities,' Ryan said. But acquisition rules and procedures have not kept up. 'There is a natural resistance to change.'Angyal agrees about the challenges in moving military forces to new infrastructures.'From a technology perspective, the pieces are there to do that,' he said. 'The impediment is in the policy. And policy is harder to influence, because it's made at a much higher level.'The expense of tying all of this equipment together makes exercises such as Common Endeavor critical to successful deployment.'The primary cost is integrating systems, not buying and using them,' Ryan said. 'The key is to do it from an enterprise environment.'The exercise is producing a valuable database on how to integrate the equipment used by the Partnership for Freedom forces.'We have about 12,000 after-action comments now,' Angyal said. 'We'll add another 1,200 this year.'No matter how far the partnership moves toward standardizing on off-the-shelf IT technology, integration with legacy equipment will remain a challenge.'There will always be a valid concern for the survivability of your systems,' Ryan said. 'You don't want all of your eggs in one basket. I don't think that TDM will ever go away completely.'

Finnish Army Staff Sgt. Jouni Hussoto reviews a telephone connection plan.

Airman 1st class Josie Kemp

Irish Defense Force's Signalman Karl Deegan and CPL Dermot Doran test Internet Protocol over fiber optics during Combined Endeavor 2006.

Airman 1st class Josie Kemp



































Focus on VOIP























More than just voice





















Resistance to change


















X
This website uses cookies to enhance user experience and to analyze performance and traffic on our website. We also share information about your use of our site with our social media, advertising and analytics partners. Learn More / Do Not Sell My Personal Information
Accept Cookies
X
Cookie Preferences Cookie List

Do Not Sell My Personal Information

When you visit our website, we store cookies on your browser to collect information. The information collected might relate to you, your preferences or your device, and is mostly used to make the site work as you expect it to and to provide a more personalized web experience. However, you can choose not to allow certain types of cookies, which may impact your experience of the site and the services we are able to offer. Click on the different category headings to find out more and change our default settings according to your preference. You cannot opt-out of our First Party Strictly Necessary Cookies as they are deployed in order to ensure the proper functioning of our website (such as prompting the cookie banner and remembering your settings, to log into your account, to redirect you when you log out, etc.). For more information about the First and Third Party Cookies used please follow this link.

Allow All Cookies

Manage Consent Preferences

Strictly Necessary Cookies - Always Active

We do not allow you to opt-out of our certain cookies, as they are necessary to ensure the proper functioning of our website (such as prompting our cookie banner and remembering your privacy choices) and/or to monitor site performance. These cookies are not used in a way that constitutes a “sale” of your data under the CCPA. You can set your browser to block or alert you about these cookies, but some parts of the site will not work as intended if you do so. You can usually find these settings in the Options or Preferences menu of your browser. Visit www.allaboutcookies.org to learn more.

Sale of Personal Data, Targeting & Social Media Cookies

Under the California Consumer Privacy Act, you have the right to opt-out of the sale of your personal information to third parties. These cookies collect information for analytics and to personalize your experience with targeted ads. You may exercise your right to opt out of the sale of personal information by using this toggle switch. If you opt out we will not be able to offer you personalised ads and will not hand over your personal information to any third parties. Additionally, you may contact our legal department for further clarification about your rights as a California consumer by using this Exercise My Rights link

If you have enabled privacy controls on your browser (such as a plugin), we have to take that as a valid request to opt-out. Therefore we would not be able to track your activity through the web. This may affect our ability to personalize ads according to your preferences.

Targeting cookies may be set through our site by our advertising partners. They may be used by those companies to build a profile of your interests and show you relevant adverts on other sites. They do not store directly personal information, but are based on uniquely identifying your browser and internet device. If you do not allow these cookies, you will experience less targeted advertising.

Social media cookies are set by a range of social media services that we have added to the site to enable you to share our content with your friends and networks. They are capable of tracking your browser across other sites and building up a profile of your interests. This may impact the content and messages you see on other websites you visit. If you do not allow these cookies you may not be able to use or see these sharing tools.

If you want to opt out of all of our lead reports and lists, please submit a privacy request at our Do Not Sell page.

Save Settings
Cookie Preferences Cookie List

Cookie List

A cookie is a small piece of data (text file) that a website – when visited by a user – asks your browser to store on your device in order to remember information about you, such as your language preference or login information. Those cookies are set by us and called first-party cookies. We also use third-party cookies – which are cookies from a domain different than the domain of the website you are visiting – for our advertising and marketing efforts. More specifically, we use cookies and other tracking technologies for the following purposes:

Strictly Necessary Cookies

We do not allow you to opt-out of our certain cookies, as they are necessary to ensure the proper functioning of our website (such as prompting our cookie banner and remembering your privacy choices) and/or to monitor site performance. These cookies are not used in a way that constitutes a “sale” of your data under the CCPA. You can set your browser to block or alert you about these cookies, but some parts of the site will not work as intended if you do so. You can usually find these settings in the Options or Preferences menu of your browser. Visit www.allaboutcookies.org to learn more.

Functional Cookies

We do not allow you to opt-out of our certain cookies, as they are necessary to ensure the proper functioning of our website (such as prompting our cookie banner and remembering your privacy choices) and/or to monitor site performance. These cookies are not used in a way that constitutes a “sale” of your data under the CCPA. You can set your browser to block or alert you about these cookies, but some parts of the site will not work as intended if you do so. You can usually find these settings in the Options or Preferences menu of your browser. Visit www.allaboutcookies.org to learn more.

Performance Cookies

We do not allow you to opt-out of our certain cookies, as they are necessary to ensure the proper functioning of our website (such as prompting our cookie banner and remembering your privacy choices) and/or to monitor site performance. These cookies are not used in a way that constitutes a “sale” of your data under the CCPA. You can set your browser to block or alert you about these cookies, but some parts of the site will not work as intended if you do so. You can usually find these settings in the Options or Preferences menu of your browser. Visit www.allaboutcookies.org to learn more.

Sale of Personal Data

We also use cookies to personalize your experience on our websites, including by determining the most relevant content and advertisements to show you, and to monitor site traffic and performance, so that we may improve our websites and your experience. You may opt out of our use of such cookies (and the associated “sale” of your Personal Information) by using this toggle switch. You will still see some advertising, regardless of your selection. Because we do not track you across different devices, browsers and GEMG properties, your selection will take effect only on this browser, this device and this website.

Social Media Cookies

We also use cookies to personalize your experience on our websites, including by determining the most relevant content and advertisements to show you, and to monitor site traffic and performance, so that we may improve our websites and your experience. You may opt out of our use of such cookies (and the associated “sale” of your Personal Information) by using this toggle switch. You will still see some advertising, regardless of your selection. Because we do not track you across different devices, browsers and GEMG properties, your selection will take effect only on this browser, this device and this website.

Targeting Cookies

We also use cookies to personalize your experience on our websites, including by determining the most relevant content and advertisements to show you, and to monitor site traffic and performance, so that we may improve our websites and your experience. You may opt out of our use of such cookies (and the associated “sale” of your Personal Information) by using this toggle switch. You will still see some advertising, regardless of your selection. Because we do not track you across different devices, browsers and GEMG properties, your selection will take effect only on this browser, this device and this website.