Facebook Voyager Optical Interfaces

Facebook Voyager is a Broadcom Tomahawk-based switch with added Dense Wave Division Multiplexing (DWDM) ports that can connect to another switch thousands of kilometers away by adding transponders. DWDM allows many separate connections on one fiber pair by sending them over different wavelengths. Although the wavelengths are sent on the same physical fiber, they do not interact with each other, similar to VLANs on a trunk. Each wavelength can transport very high speeds over very long distances.

The Voyager Platform

The Voyager platform has 16 ports on the front of the switch:

• Twelve QSFP28 ethernet ports labeled 1 thru 12. These are standard 100G ports that you configure like ports on other platforms with a Tomahawk ASIC. The ports.conf file defines the breakout configuration and the /etc/network/interfaces file defines the other port parameters. When not broken out they are named swp1 thru swp12.
• Four duplex LC ports labeled L1 thru L4. L1 and L2 connect to AC400 module 2. L3 and L4 connect to AC400 module 1. Each AC400 module connects to four Tomahawk ASIC ports.

The fc designations on the Tomahawk stand for Falcon Core. Each AC400 module has four 100G interfaces connected to the Tomahawk and two interfaces connected to the front of the box.

Inside the AC400

The way in which the client ports are mapped to the network ports in an AC400 depends on the modulation format and coupling mode. Cumulus Linux supports five different modulation and coupling mode options on each AC400 module.

QPSK-Quadrature phase shift keying. When a network interface is using QPSK modulation, it carries 100Gbps and is therefore connected to only one client interface.

16-QAM-Quadrature amplitude modulation with 4 bits per symbol. When a network interface is using 16-QAM modulation, it carries 200Gbps and is therefore connected to two client interfaces. Each of the two client interfaces carried on a network interface is called a tributary. The AC400 adds extra information so that these tributaries can be sorted out at the far end and delivered to the appropriate client interface.

8-QAM-Quadrature amplitude modulation with 3 bits per symbol. When a network interface is using 8-QAM modulation, it carries 150Gbps. In this case, the two network interfaces in an AC400 module must be coupled, so that the total bandwidth carried by the two interfaces is 300Gbps. Three client interfaces are used with this modulation format. However, unlike other modulation formats that use independent mode, the coupled mode means that data from each client interface is carried on both of the network interfaces.

Client to Network Connection

For each of the five supported modulation configurations, the client interface to network interface connections are as follows:

Configuration	Connections
	In this configuration, two client interfaces, 0 and 2, are mapped to the two network interfaces. Client interfaces 1 and 3 are not used.
	In this configuration, two client interfaces are mapped to each network interface. Each network interface, therefore, has two tributaries.
	These configurations are combinations of the previous two. The network interface configured for QPSK connects to one client interface and the network interface configured for 16-QAM connects to two client interfaces.
	This configuration uses three client interfaces, for a total of 300Gbps; 150Gbps on each network interface. Because the network interfaces are coupled, they cannot be connected to different far-end systems. Each network interface carries three tributaries.

Configure the Voyager Ports

To configure the five modulation and coupling configurations described above, edit the /etc/cumulus/ports.conf file. The ports do not exist until you configure them.

The file has lines for the 12 QSPF28 ports. The four DWDM Line ports are labeled labeled L1 thru L4. To program the AC400 modulation and coupling into the five configurations, configure these ports as follows:

The following example /etc/cumulus/ports.conf file shows configuration for all of the modes.

1=1x    # Creates swp1
2=2x    # Creates swp2s0 and swp2s1
3=4x    # Creates four 25G ports: swp3s0, swp3s1, swp3s2, and swp3s3
4=1x40G # Creates swp4
5=4x10G # Creates four 10G ports: swp5s0, swp5s1, swp5s2, and swp5s3
6=1x
7=1x
8=1x
9=1x
10=1x
11=1x
12=1x
L1=2x   # Creates swpL1s0 and swpL1s1
L2=1x   # Creates swpL2
L3=3/2  # Creates swpL3s0, swpL3s1, and swpL3s2
L4=3/2  # Creates no "swpL4" ports since L4 is ganged with L3

Configure the Transponder Modules

The Voyager platform contains two AC400 transponder modules, which you configure with NCLU commands.

Many commands include the <trans-port> parameter. This is the network interface of the transponder or the port, as printed on the front of the system; L1, L2, L3, or L4.

Set the Transponder State

Each transponder module has a state, which is set to ready by default. The available transponder states are listed below.

To change the state of the module, run the net add interface <trans-port> state (reset|low-power|tx-off|ready) command. For example, to change the state of the transponder module to low power for L2, run the following command:

cumulus@switch:~$ net add interface L2 state low-power
cumulus@switch:~$ net pending
cumulus@switch:~$ net commit

This command creates the following configuration snippet in the /etc/cumulus/transponders.ini file:

cumulus@switch:~$ cat /etc/cumulus/transponders.ini
...
[AC400_2]
Location = 2
NetworkMode = independent
NetworkInterfaces = L1, L2
HostInterfaces = Host4, Host5, Host6, Host7
OperStatus = low_power
...

Disable the Transmitter

You can disable or enable the transmitter of an individual network interface.

To disable the transmitter of a network interface, run the net add interface <trans-port> transmit-disable command. The following example command disables the L1 transmitter:

cumulus@switch:~$ net add interface L1 transmit-disable
cumulus@switch:~$ net pending
cumulus@switch:~$ net commit

This command creates the following configuration snippet in the /etc/cumulus/transponders.ini file:

cumulus@switch:~$ cat /etc/cumulus/transponders.ini
...
[L1]
Location = 0
TxEnable = false
...

To enable the transmitter of an individual network interface, run the net del interface <trans-port> transmit-disable command. The following example command enables the L1 transmitter:

cumulus@switch:~$ net del interface L1 transmit-disable
cumulus@switch:~$ net pending
cumulus@switch:~$ net commit

This command creates the following configuration snippet in the /etc/cumulus/transponders.ini file:

cumulus@switch:~$ cat /etc/cumulus/transponders.ini
...
[L1]
Location = 0
TxEnable = true
...

Change the Grid Spacing

You can set grid spacing between two adjacent channels (the distance between channel frequencies) to 12.5GHz or 50GHz. The default spacing is 50 GHz.

To change the grid spacing, run the n``et add interface <trans-port> grid-spacing (12.5|50) command. The following command sets the grid spacing on L2 to 12.5GHz:

cumulus@switch:~$ net add interface L2 grid-spacing 12.5
cumulus@switch:~$ net pending
cumulus@switch:~$ net commit

This command creates the following configuration snippet in the /etc/cumulus/transponders.ini file:

cumulus@switch:~$ cat /etc/cumulus/transponders.ini
...
[L2]
Location = 1
TxEnable = true
TxGridSpacing = 12.5ghz
...

Set the Channel Frequency

To set the frequency used by the network interface, run the net add interface <trans-port> frequency <trans-frequency> command.

<trans-frequency> is a floating point number in THz. The transponders support 100 channels, from 191.15 THz to 196.10 THz. Tab-completion is supported on this command and shows the available frequencies, together with the corresponding channel number and wavelength.

The following example command sets the frequency used by L2 to 195.30:

cumulus@switch:~$ net add interface L2 frequency 195.30
cumulus@switch:~$ net pending
cumulus@switch:~$ net commit

This command creates the following configuration snippet in the /etc/cumulus/transponders.ini file:

cumulus@switch:~$ cat /etc/cumulus/transponders.ini
...
[L2]
Location = 1
TxEnable = true
TxGridSpacing = 50ghz
TxChannel = 84
...

The following example shows the command with the output when using tab completion:

cumulus@switch:~$ net add interface L1 frequency 195.<tab>
195.00 THz : Channel 78, Wavelength 1537.40 nm
195.05 THz : Channel 79, Wavelength 1537.00 nm
195.10 THz : Channel 80, Wavelength 1536.61 nm
195.15 THz : Channel 81, Wavelength 1536.22 nm
195.20 THz : Channel 82, Wavelength 1535.82 nm
195.25 THz : Channel 83, Wavelength 1535.43 nm
195.30 THz : Channel 84, Wavelength 1535.04 nm
195.35 THz : Channel 85, Wavelength 1534.64 nm
195.40 THz : Channel 86, Wavelength 1534.25 nm
195.45 THz : Channel 87, Wavelength 1533.86 nm
195.50 THz : Channel 88, Wavelength 1533.47 nm
195.55 THz : Channel 89, Wavelength 1533.07 nm
195.60 THz : Channel 90, Wavelength 1532.68 nm
195.65 THz : Channel 91, Wavelength 1532.29 nm
195.70 THz : Channel 92, Wavelength 1531.90 nm
195.75 THz : Channel 93, Wavelength 1531.51 nm
195.80 THz : Channel 94, Wavelength 1531.12 nm
195.85 THz : Channel 95, Wavelength 1530.72 nm
195.90 THz : Channel 96, Wavelength 1530.33 nm
195.95 THz : Channel 97, Wavelength 1529.94 nm

To see a complete list of the frequencies, channels, and wavelengths, run the net show transponder frequency-map command (described in Display Available Frequencies).

Set the Transmit Power

To set the amount of transmit power for a network interface, run the net add interface <trans-port> power <trans-dBm> command.

<trans-dBm> is the power as a floating point number in units of dBm. This value can range from -35.0 to 10.0. The following example command sets the transmit power for L1 to 10.0 dBm.

cumulus@switch:~$ net add interface L1 power 10.0
cumulus@switch:~$ net pending
cumulus@switch:~$ net commit

This command creates the following configuration snippet in the /etc/cumulus/transponders.ini file:

cumulus@switch:~$ cat /etc/cumulus/transponders.ini
...
[L1]
Location = 0
TxEnable = true
TxGridSpacing = 50ghz
TxChannel = 52
OutputPower = 10.0
...

Change the Modulation

To change the modulation technique used on a network interface, run the net add interface <trans-port> modulation (16-qam|8-qam|pm-qpsk) command. The available modulation options are 16-qam, 8-qam, and pm-qpsk. The following example command changes the modulation on L1 to 8-qam:

cumulus@switch:~$ net add interface L1 modulation 8-qam
cumulus@switch:~$ net pending
cumulus@switch:~$ net commit

Changing the modulation also changes the Linux interfaces available in the system, removing existing interfaces and adding the new ones. Therefore, you must remove network interfaces with the net del interface swpLx... command before you change the modulation. The network interfaces created for each modulation are as follows (L1 is used as an example):

Because 8-qam modulation requires both network interfaces on a module to operate together, changing the modulation on one interface also changes it on the other. Also, the network mode of the module changes automatically to coupled when changing to 8-qam and reverts to independent when leaving 8-qam modulation.

The only modulation format that allows the 15%_ac100 FEC mode is pm-qpsk. Attempting to change the modulation from pm-qpsk while 15%_ac100 FEC is configured is not allowed. First change the FEC mode to something other than 15%_ac100 and then the modulation.

Set the Differential Encoding

To select non-differential encoding on the network interface, run the net add interface <trans-port> non-differential command. To revert to differential encoding (the default), run the net del interface <trans-port> non-differential command. The following example command selects non-differential encoding for L1:

cumulus@switch:~$ net add interface L1 non-differential
cumulus@switch:~$ net pending
cumulus@switch:~$ net commit

This command creates the following configuration snippet in the /etc/cumulus/transponders.ini file:

cumulus@switch:~$ cat /etc/cumulus/transponders.ini
...
[L1]
Location = 0
TxEnable = true
TxGridSpacing = 50ghz
TxChannel = 52
OutputPower = 10.0
TxFineTuneFrequency = 0
MasterEnable = true
ModulationFormat = 16-qam
DifferentialEncoding = false
...

The following example command reverts to differential encoding (the default) for L1:

cumulus@switch:~$ net del interface L1 non-differential
cumulus@switch:~$ net pending
cumulus@switch:~$ net commit

This command creates the following configuration snippet in the /etc/cumulus/transponders.ini file:

cumulus@switch:~$ cat /etc/cumulus/transponders.ini
...
[L1]
Location = 0
TxEnable = true
TxGridSpacing = 50ghz
TxChannel = 52
OutputPower = 10.0
TxFineTuneFrequency = 0
MasterEnable = true
ModulationFormat = 16-qam
DifferentialEncoding = true
...

Change Forward Error Correction

To select Forward Error Correction (FEC) mode, run the net add interface <trans-port> fec (15%|15%_ac100|25%) command. The available modes are 15% (15% overhead SDFEC), 15%_ac100 (15% overhead SDFEC compatible with AC100), and 25% ( 25% overhead SDFEC). The following example command sets FEC mode on L1 to 15%:

cumulus@switch:~$ net add interface L1 fec 15%
cumulus@switch:~$ net pending
cumulus@switch:~$ net commit

This command creates the following configuration snippet in the /etc/cumulus/transponders.ini file:

cumulus@switch:~$ cat /etc/cumulus/transponders.ini
...
[L1]
Location = 0
TxEnable = true
TxGridSpacing = 50ghz
TxChannel = 52
OutputPower = 10.0
TxFineTuneFrequency = 0
MasterEnable = true
ModulationFormat = 16-qam
DifferentialEncoding = true
FecMode = 15%
...

Configure a Line Side Loopback

Line side loopback mode enables you to send and receive data from the same network interface port to verify that the port is operational.

To enable line side loopback mode, run the net add interface <interface> facility-loopback command. You can enable line side loopback mode on one or multiple interfaces. The following example enables loopback mode on the L1, L2, L3, and L4 network interfaces:

cumulus@switch:~$ net add interface L1-4 facility-loopback
cumulus@switch:~$ net pending
cumulus@switch:~$ net commit

To disable loopback mode, run the net del interface <interface> facility-loopback command. The following example disables loopback mode on the L1, L2, L3, and L4 network interfaces:

cumulus@switch:~$ net del interface L1-4 facility-loopback
cumulus@switch:~$ net pending
cumulus@switch:~$ net commit

Display the Transponder Status

To display the current status of the transponder module, run the net show transponder command. The first two lines of command output displays the status of the module and the next section displays the status of the network interfaces. This is repeated for each module in the system.

cumulus@switch:~$ net show transponder
Module: 1 ready Acacia Comm Inc. AC400-004-330 S/N:170212599 53.88C 11.89V
    Laser: 191.15 THz - 196.10 THz, 6.00 GHz fine tune, independent lanes

                                            Network Interfaces
                                      L3                           L4
                        ---------------------------  ---------------------------  
            Modulation 16-qam                       16-qam
              Frequency 193.70 THz, Channel 52      193.70 THz, Channel 52
            Current BER 1.428e-04                   1.387e-05
          Current OSNR 84.90dBm                     84.80dBm
Current Chromatic Disp 13ps/nm                      9ps/nm
            TX/RX Power 0.99dBm/0.66dBm             1.00dBm/0.43dBm
              Encoding differential                 differential
              Alignment TX & RX                     TX & RX
          Grid Spacing 50ghz                        50ghz
              FEC Mode 25%                          25%
Uncorrectable FEC Errs 0                            0
          TX/RX Turn-up power_adjusted/locked       power_adjusted/locked

Module: 2 ready Acacia Comm Inc. AC400-004-330 S/N:170212585 55.00C 11.90V
    Laser: 191.15 THz - 196.10 THz, 6.00 GHz fine tune, independent lanes

                                            Network Interfaces
                                      L1                           L2
                        ---------------------------  ---------------------------  
                Modulation 16-qam                       16-qam
                 Frequency 193.70 THz, Channel 52       193.70 THz, Channel 52
               Current BER 7.039e-05                    7.404e-05
              Current OSNR 84.90dBm                     84.80dBm
    Current Chromatic Disp 13ps/nm                      9ps/nm
               TX/RX Power 0.98dBm/0.48dBm              0.99dBm/-0.78dBm
                  Encoding differential                 differential
                 Alignment TX & RX                      TX & RX
              Grid Spacing 50ghz                        50ghz
                  FEC Mode 25%                          25%
    Uncorrectable FEC Errs 0                            0
             TX/RX Turn-up power_adjusted/locked        power_adjusted/locked

To display only the status of a particular module, use the module <trans-module> option, which specifies the transponder module number. The following example command displays the status of transponder module 1:

cumulus@switch:~$ net show transponder module 1
Module: 1 ready Acacia Comm Inc. AC400-004-330 S/N:170212599 53.75C 11.89V
    Laser: 191.15 THz - 196.10 THz, 6.00 GHz fine tune, independent lanes

                                           Network Interfaces
                                     L3                           L4
                       ---------------------------  ---------------------------
            Modulation 16-qam                       16-qam
             Frequency 193.70 THz, Channel 52       193.70 THz, Channel 52
           Current BER 1.626e-04                    1.343e-05
          Current OSNR 84.90dBm                     84.80dBm
Current Chromatic Disp 13ps/nm                      9ps/nm
           TX/RX Power 1.00dBm/0.67dBm              0.99dBm/0.42dBm
              Encoding differential                 differential
             Alignment TX & RX                      TX & RX
          Grid Spacing 50ghz                        50ghz
              FEC Mode 25%                          25%
Uncorrectable FEC Errs 0                            0
         TX/RX Turn-up power_adjusted/locked        power_adjusted/locked

To display more information, including the host interfaces, use the verbose option. The following example command displays more information about the transponder module:

cumulus@switch:~$ net show transponder module 1 verbose

To display all status information in JSON format, use the json option. The following example command displays all status information in JSON format:

cumulus@switch:~$ net show transponder json
{
    "modules" : [
        {
            "location" : "1",
            "vendor_name" : "Acacia Comm Inc.",
            "part_num" : "AC400-004-330",
            "serial_num" : "170212599",
            "fw_version_a" : 17.100000,
            "fw_version_b" : 17.100000,
            "min_laser_freq" : 191150000000000,
            "max_laser_freq" : 196100000000000,
            "fine_tune_freq" : 6000000000,
            "grid_support" : [ "50ghz", "12.5ghz" ],
            "max_channels" : 100,
            "oper_status" : "ready",
            "internal_temp" : 53.625000,
            "supply_voltage" : 11.903000,
            "num_host_ifs" : 4,
            "num_net_ifs" : 2,
            "net_mode" : "independent",
            "host_interfaces" : [
                {
                    "index" : 0,
                    "lane_fault_status" : [
                        [ "no_faults" ],
                        [ "no_faults" ],
                        [ "no_faults" ],
                        [ "no_faults" ]
                    ],
                    "tx_align_status" : [ "aligned" ],
                    "rate" : "100ge",
                    "enabled" : true,
                    "fec_decoding" : false,
                    "fec_encoding" : false,
                    "tx_reset" : false,
                    "rx_reset" : false,
                    "deserializer" : [ 1, 18, 0 ],
                    "serializer" : [ 3, 3, 6, 12, 6 ],
                    "indep_tributary" : 0,
                    "coupled_tributary" : 0,
                    "loopback" : false
                },
...

Display Available Channel Frequencies

To display a map of available channel frequencies, numbers, and wavelengths, run the net show transponder frequency-map [json] command.

The following example command displays a map of available channel frequencies, numbers, and wavelengths.

cumulus@switch:~$ net show transponder frequency-map
Frequency   Channel   Wavelength
  (THz)       (#)        (nm)
---------   -------   ----------
 191.15        1       1568.36  
 191.20        2       1567.95  
 191.25        3       1567.54  
 191.30        4       1567.13  
 191.35        5       1566.72  
 191.40        6       1566.31  
 191.45        7       1565.90  
 191.50        8       1565.50  
 191.55        9       1565.09  
 191.60       10       1564.68  
 191.65       11       1564.27  
 191.70       12       1563.86  
 191.75       13       1563.45  
 191.80       14       1563.05  
 191.85       15       1562.64
...

The following example command displays a map of available channel frequencies, numbers, and wavelengths in JSON format.

cumulus@switch:~$ net show transponder frequency-map json
[
    [
        1,
        191.15,
        1568.36
    ],
    [
        2,
        191.2,
        1567.95
    ],
    [
        3,
        191.25,
        1567.54
    ],
    [
        4,
        191.3,
        1567.13
    ],
...

Display the Current Transponder Configuration

To display the current configuration state of the transponders, run the following command:

cumulus@switch:~$ net show configuration transponders
 
transponders

  AC400_1

    Location
      1

    NetworkMode
      independent

    L3

      Location
        0

      TxEnable
        true

      TxGridSpacing
        50ghz

      TxChannel
        52

      OutputPower
        1

      TxFineTuneFrequency
        0

      MasterEnable
        true

      ModulationFormat
        16-qam

      DifferentialEncoding
        true

      FecMode
        25%

      Loopback
        false

      TxTributaryIndependent
        0
        1

      TxTributaryCoupled
        0
        1
        2
        15
...

Edit the transponders.ini File

As an alternative to using NCLU commands to configure the transponder modules (described above), you can edit the /etc/cumulus/transponders.ini file, then Initiate a hardware update.

The /etc/cumulus/transponders.ini file consists of groups of key-value pairs, interspersed with comments. Configuration groups start with a header line that contains the group name enclosed in square brackets ([ ]) and end implicitly by the start of the next group or the end of the file. Key-value pairs have the form key=value. Spaces before and after the = character are ignored. Lines beginning with # and blank lines are considered comments.

#
# Configuration file for Voyager transponder modules
#
[Modules]
Names=AC400_1,AC400_2
 
[AC400_1]
Location=1
NetworkMode=independent
NetworkInterfaces=L3,L4
HostInterfaces=Client0,Client1,Client2,Client3
OperStatus=ready
 
[AC400_2]
Location=2
NetworkMode=independent
NetworkInterfaces=L1,L2
HostInterfaces=Client4,Client5,Client6,Client7
OperStatus=ready
 
[L1]
Location=0
TxEnable=true
TxGridSpacing=50ghz
TxChannel=52
OutputPower=1
TxFineTuneFrequency=0
MasterEnable=true
ModulationFormat=16-qam
DifferentialEncoding=true
FecMode=25%
TxTributaryIndependent=0,1
TxTributaryCoupled=0,1,2,15
Loopback=false
 
[L2]
Location=1
TxEnable=true
TxGridSpacing=50ghz
TxChannel=52
OutputPower=1
TxFineTuneFrequency=0
MasterEnable=true
ModulationFormat=16-qam
DifferentialEncoding=true
FecMode=25%
TxTributaryIndependent=2,3
TxTributaryCoupled=0,1,2,15
Loopback=false
 
[L3]
Location=0
TxEnable=true
TxGridSpacing=50ghz
TxChannel=52
OutputPower=1
TxFineTuneFrequency=0
MasterEnable=true
ModulationFormat=16-qam
DifferentialEncoding=true
FecMode=25%
TxTributaryIndependent=0,1
TxTributaryCoupled=0,1,2,15
Loopback=false
 
[L4]
Location=1
TxEnable=true
TxGridSpacing=50ghz
TxChannel=52
OutputPower=1
TxFineTuneFrequency=0
MasterEnable=true
ModulationFormat=16-qam
DifferentialEncoding=true
FecMode=25%
TxTributaryIndependent=2,3
TxTributaryCoupled=0,1,2,15
Loopback=false
 
[Client0]
Location=0
Rate=100ge
Enable=true
FecDecoder=false
FecEncoder=false
DeserialLfCtleGain=1
DeserialCtleGain=18
DeserialDfeCoeff=0
SerialTap0Gain=3
SerialTap0Delay=3
SerialTap1Gain=6
SerialTap2Gain=12
SerialTap2Delay=6
RxTributaryIndependent=0
RxTributaryCoupled=0
Loopback=false
 
[Client1]
Location=1
Rate=100ge
Enable=true
FecDecoder=false
FecEncoder=false
DeserialLfCtleGain=1
DeserialCtleGain=18
DeserialDfeCoeff=0
SerialTap0Gain=3
SerialTap0Delay=3
SerialTap1Gain=6
SerialTap2Gain=12
SerialTap2Delay=6
RxTributaryIndependent=1
RxTributaryCoupled=1
Loopback=false
 
[Client2]
Location=2
Rate=100ge
Enable=true
FecDecoder=false
FecEncoder=false
DeserialLfCtleGain=1
DeserialCtleGain=18
DeserialDfeCoeff=0
SerialTap0Gain=3
SerialTap0Delay=3
SerialTap1Gain=6
SerialTap2Gain=12
SerialTap2Delay=6
RxTributaryIndependent=2
RxTributaryCoupled=2
Loopback=false
 
[Client3]
Location=3
Rate=100ge
Enable=true
FecDecoder=false
FecEncoder=false
DeserialLfCtleGain=1
DeserialCtleGain=18
DeserialDfeCoeff=0
SerialTap0Gain=3
SerialTap0Delay=3
SerialTap1Gain=6
SerialTap2Gain=12
SerialTap2Delay=6
RxTributaryIndependent=3
RxTributaryCoupled=65535
Loopback=false
 
[Client4]
Location=0
Rate=100ge
Enable=true
FecDecoder=false
FecEncoder=false
DeserialLfCtleGain=1
DeserialCtleGain=18
DeserialDfeCoeff=0
SerialTap0Gain=3
SerialTap0Delay=3
SerialTap1Gain=5
SerialTap2Gain=9
SerialTap2Delay=5
RxTributaryIndependent=0
RxTributaryCoupled=0
Loopback=false
 
[Client5]
Location=1
Rate=100ge
Enable=true
FecDecoder=false
FecEncoder=false
DeserialLfCtleGain=1
DeserialCtleGain=18
DeserialDfeCoeff=0
SerialTap0Gain=3
SerialTap0Delay=3
SerialTap1Gain=5
SerialTap2Gain=9
SerialTap2Delay=5
RxTributaryIndependent=1
RxTributaryCoupled=1
Loopback=false
 
[Client6]
Location=2
Rate=100ge
Enable=true
FecDecoder=false
FecEncoder=false
DeserialLfCtleGain=1
DeserialCtleGain=18
DeserialDfeCoeff=0
SerialTap0Gain=3
SerialTap0Delay=3
SerialTap1Gain=5
SerialTap2Gain=9
SerialTap2Delay=5
RxTributaryIndependent=2
RxTributaryCoupled=2
Loopback=false
 
[Client7]
Location=3
Rate=100ge
Enable=true
FecDecoder=false
FecEncoder=false
DeserialLfCtleGain=1
DeserialCtleGain=18
DeserialDfeCoeff=0
SerialTap0Gain=3
SerialTap0Delay=3
SerialTap1Gain=5
SerialTap2Gain=9
SerialTap2Delay=5
RxTributaryIndependent=3
RxTributaryCoupled=65535
Loopback=false

The file contains four configuration groups:

• The Modules group
• The module groups
• The network interface groups
• The client interface groups

Modules Group

The Modules group identifies the names of the other groups in the file. This is the root group from which all other groups are referenced; it must always be the first group in the file and must be named Modules.

There is only one key-value pair in this group. Each value in the list represents a transponder in the system. There must be a group within the file that has the same name as each value in the list.

The following example shows that there are two modules in the system named AC400_1 and AC400_2. The transponders.ini file must contain these two groups.

[Modules]
Names=AC400_1,AC400_2

Module Groups

The module groups are individual groups for each of the predefined modules and define the attributes of the transponders in the system. The name of a module group is defined in the values of the Names key in the Modules group (shown above).

The following table describes the key-value pairs in the module groups.

The following example provides the configuration for module 1. The network interfaces are configured to operate independently and are defined in the L3 and L4 groups in the file. The client interfaces are defined in the Client0, Client1, Client2, and Client3 groups in the file. The operational status of the module is ready.

[AC400_1]
Location=1
NetworkMode=independent
NetworkInterfaces=L3,L4
HostInterfaces=Client0,Client1,Client2,Client3
OperStatus=ready

Network Interface Groups

The network interface groups define the attributes of the network interfaces on the module. The name of a network interface group is defined in the values of the NetworkInterfaces key in the module groups.

The following table describes the key-value pairs in the network interface groups.

The following example shows a network interface at location 0, which has transmission enabled and 50ghz channel spacing. Communication occurs on channel 52 with 1dBm of power. The network interface becomes operational when leaving the low power state. 16-qam encoding is used (200G) with differential encoding and 25% overhead SDFEC. The tributary mappings of the client interfaces is left unchanged. Loopback mode is disabled.

[L1]
Location=0
TxEnable=true
TxGridSpacing=50ghz
TxChannel=52
OutputPower=1
TxFineTuneFrequency=0
MasterEnable=true
ModulationFormat=16-qam
DifferentialEncoding=true
FecMode=25%
TxTributaryIndependent=0,1
TxTributaryCoupled=0,1,2,15
Loopback=false

Client Interface Groups

The client interface groups define the attributes of the client interfaces on the module. The name of a client interface group is defined in the values of the HostInterfaces key of the module group.

The following table describes the key-value pairs in the client interface groups.

The following example shows a sample configuration for a client interface group.

[Client0]
Location=0
Rate=100ge
Enable=true
FecDecoder=false
FecEncoder=false
DeserialLfCtleGain=1
DeserialCtleGain=18
DeserialDfeCoeff=0
SerialTap0Gain=3
SerialTap0Delay=3
SerialTap1Gain=6
SerialTap2Gain=12
SerialTap2Delay=6
RxTributaryIndependent=0
RxTributaryCoupled=0
Loopback=false

Initiate a Hardware Update

After making a change to the transponders.ini file, you must program the change into the hardware by issuing a systemd reload command:

sudo systemctl reload taihost.service

Depending on the configuration changes, programming the change into the hardware can take a long time to complete (several minutes). The systemd reload command initiates the configuration update and returns immediately. To monitor the progress of the configuration changes, review the syslog messages. The following is an example of the syslog messages.

2018-04-24T18:18:49.847312+00:00 cumulus systemd[1]: Reloading TAI host daemon.
2018-04-24T18:18:49.859649+00:00 cumulus voyager_tai_adapter[5793]: SIGHUP received
2018-04-24T18:18:49.864101+00:00 cumulus voyager_tai_adapter[5793]: Setting TxChannel (5) to 52, was 48
2018-04-24T18:18:49.867615+00:00 cumulus voyager_tai_adapter[5793]: Setting OutputPower (6) to 1.000000, was 0.000000
2018-04-24T18:18:49.873785+00:00 cumulus voyager_tai_adapter[5793]: Setting FecMode (268435464) to 3, was 1
2018-04-24T18:18:49.890446+00:00 cumulus voyager_tai_adapter[5793]: Setting TxChannel (5) to 52, was 48
2018-04-24T18:18:49.893846+00:00 cumulus voyager_tai_adapter[5793]: Setting OutputPower (6) to 1.000000, was 0.000000
2018-04-24T18:18:49.900383+00:00 cumulus voyager_tai_adapter[5793]: Setting FecMode (268435464) to 3, was 1
2018-04-24T18:18:49.915172+00:00 cumulus voyager_tai_adapter[5793]: Setting Rate (268435456) to 1, was 0
2018-04-24T18:18:49.920618+00:00 cumulus voyager_tai_adapter[5793]: Setting FecDecoder (268435458) to false, was true
2018-04-24T18:18:49.924865+00:00 cumulus voyager_tai_adapter[5793]: Setting FecEncoder (268435459) to false, was true
2018-04-24T18:18:49.929181+00:00 cumulus voyager_tai_adapter[5793]: Setting DeserialLfCtleGain (268435462) to 1, was 5
2018-04-24T18:18:49.933236+00:00 cumulus voyager_tai_adapter[5793]: Setting DeserialCtleGain (268435463) to 18, was 19
2018-04-24T18:18:49.937091+00:00 cumulus systemd[1]: Reloaded TAI host daemon.
2018-04-24T18:18:49.941644+00:00 cumulus voyager_tai_adapter[5793]: Setting SerialTap0Delay (268435466) to 3, was 5
2018-04-24T18:18:49.946020+00:00 cumulus voyager_tai_adapter[5793]: Setting SerialTap1Gain (268435467) to 6, was 5
2018-04-24T18:18:49.948621+00:00 cumulus voyager_tai_adapter[5793]: Setting SerialTap2Gain (268435468) to 12, was 8
2018-04-24T18:18:49.952036+00:00 cumulus voyager_tai_adapter[5793]: Setting SerialTap2Delay (268435469) to 6, was 5
2018-04-24T18:18:49.957846+00:00 cumulus voyager_tai_adapter[5793]: Setting Rate (268435456) to 1, was 0
2018-04-24T18:18:49.962431+00:00 cumulus voyager_tai_adapter[5793]: Setting FecDecoder (268435458) to false, was true
2018-04-24T18:18:49.965701+00:00 cumulus voyager_tai_adapter[5793]: Setting FecEncoder (268435459) to false, was true
...
2018-04-24T18:21:24.164981+00:00 cumulus voyager_tai_adapter[5793]: Config has been reloaded