IETF ADOPTS ENHANCED BRIDGE CONTROL PROTOCOL.

Anritsu, Richardson, Texas, has announced that the Bridge Control Protocol (BCP) that it co-authored with Cisco Systems, Inc., has been adopted as an industry-wide standards track document. Designated by the Internet Engineering Task Force (IETF) as RFC2878, the enhanced protocol makes it significantly easier to implement BCP in the high-speed hardware logic that assures wire-speed operation of today's Layer 2/3/4 switches. The new protocol allows switches to support modern LAN standards such as Virtual LANs (VLANs) and Link Aggregation efficiently over MAN (Metropolitan Area Network) and WAN links.

BCP is a key part of the Point-to-Point Protocol (PPP) that is used to transport Ethernet traffic over optical MAN and WAN links. The old BCP definition, RFC1638, failed to keep up with the new IEEE standards for Ethernet such as VLANs (known as 802.1Q), Layer 2 priority (known as 802.1p), and Link Aggregation (802.3ad). With the proliferation of Ethernet into the metro and wide area and the increased demand for high-speed links over longer distances, it became essential for the BCP to support today's Ethernet standards.

Anritsu recognized early that Ethernet was shifting beyond traditional LAN boundaries. It's ONE Technology(TM), which enables high-speed switched optical connections at greater speeds and distances than existing LAN schemes, incorporates the PPP protocol. This BCP update supports the latest Ethernet improvements for security, redundancy, and performance that are essential to enterprises as well as metro area service providers. Anritsu's MultiFlow 5000 Layer 2/3/4 switches use the BCP and PPP to provide unique backbone LAN extension over OC-48 MAN links in accordance with industry standards, supporting native Ethernet traffic and VLANs as well as IP and other routed protocols.

"Standards are critical to assure customers that today's expanding technology will meet industry requirements while protecting their IT investments," said Jack Landau, director of marketing for Anritsu networking products. "We co-authored the protocol because we wanted to ensure that the BCP and PPP and our MultiFlow 5000 multilayer switches will properly handle all types of modern Ethernet traffic in metro area optical networking applications."

About Anritsu Corporation

Founded more than 100 years ago, Anritsu Corporation is a worldwide leader in the development of router and SONET technology as well as communications, network, and test and measurement products. Anritsu Corporation is a global manufacturer of products in four primary segments: Information and Communication Systems, Measuring Instruments, Components and Devices, and Industrial Automation.

For more information, visit http://www.us.anritsu.com or call 408-776-8356.