Analysis of GMPLS architectures, topologies and algorithms

Generalized multiprotocol label switching (GMPLS) promises a unified control plane for a variety of switching technologies by separating the control plane from the forwarding plane. In this paper, a brief overview of the ongoing research on different aspects of GMPLS is first presented. Then a comparison is conducted between the network access layer (NAL) and the optical/physical layer in GMPLS, based on the restoration capabilities and the performance analysis of channel connectivity and the traffic aggregation in the two layers. Finally, the logical channel connections of the IP/NAL layer are compared to the physical channel connections of the optical/physical layer where the probability of blocking (P_b) is calculated, considering both wavelength conversion and nonwavelength conversion cases.