Re: (ASCEND) DSL Terminator 100 - # PVC sessions/RADIUS support issue w.r.t.Pyramid Net

[Tony Ray <tony@turbonet.com>]

I was quite happy to see someone from the DSL Terminator line responding
to this issue.  However, the answer immediately raises a few more
questions that TACS seems unable to answer for me.

(1)  What triggers the Terminator to make an inquiry of the Radius
server?  The reason I ask is that I terminate DSL from GTE over T-1
frame relay lines.  No authentication requests are sent from the GTE
equipment, so what prompts the Terminator to request a profile from the
Radius server.  If it is a generic request of some sort, what are the
user name and password for a given pvc?

Most ISP's terminating GTE's frame relay are, like myself, using Cisco
equipment.  This allows us to use irb and the number of "profiles" that
can be set up in flash memory isn't a limiting factor.  The recommended
limit on the number of pvc's per T-1 on Cisco's high-end routers is 120
with no more than 480 total per router.  I've heard various explanations
for the 120 limit but they center on processing time for LMI packets and
the amount of IO memory on the interface cards.

(2)  How many pvc's per T-1 does the Terminator support.  All of the
equipment that I've seen for terminating frame relay has had some limit,
usually 120 or fewer.  Since DSL is sparsely used, US West's estimate
from their trial studies of 200 pvc's per T-1 seems reasonable and our
own data indicates that somewhere between 150 and 200 is possible
without noticeable loss in QoS.  Since net profit is a function of the
number of pvc's per T-1, this is the most important number for us in
determining whose equipment we will use.

(3)  When using BIR, which increases the load on the processor, how many
pvc's will the Terminator handle?  Lets assume that it is terminating 4
T-1's filled to 30% of capacity.  Ascend does not provide a MIB (to my
knowledge) that allows customers to monitor processor load on their
equipment, so it is hard to determine how well Ascend equipment is
handling it's current load and when a new unit needs to be added.  If
The unit could handle 600-700 pvc's, that would be adequate.  Has Ascend
tested this under varying loads?

Thanks in advance for any light you can shed on these issues.

Tony Ray
Cactus International, Inc.

 

Muthu.Logan@ascend.com wrote:
> 
> Dear Ascend Users:
> 
> I want to clarify certain issues raised by our customer Pyramid Net recently
> reg. the DSL terminator 100
> 
> It has been stated by the customer that the DSL Terminator 100 does not support
> more than 64 PVCs.
> 
> Here is the clarification:
> 
> The Terminator100 can support up to 1000 PVCs when connected to a RADIUS
> server. However, It supports   64 "built-in" profiles within the box itself
> (with no RADIUS)
> 
> Most of the parameters  can be configured even if the user is using some free
> RADIUS.  However, some of the parameters CAN ONLY BE CONFIGURED via RADIUS
> server that supports VSA attributes. THIS IS COMMON TO  Max6000, TNT, etc.
> Terminator works the same way.
> 
> Thanks for your patience and co-operation
> 
> Happy new year
> 
> Muthu Logan
> DSL Terminator Product Line Director
> Lucent Technologies
> 
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