D ATA S H E E T

PlannerPlus
Automated capacity management for
optimized network designs

Faced with the need to build out optical network Features and Benefits

capacity in a world of ever-increasing demand for • Accelerates capacity

management workflow from
bandwidth? That is a good challenge to have. Ciena’s network utilization monitoring,
PlannerPlus network planning and design tool makes network planning, resource
commissioning, and service
network builds and augmentations quick and easy. provisioning via tight integration
with the MCP domain controller
PlannerPlus is fully integrated with Ciena’s Manage, Control and Plan (MCP) domain
controller, which provides comprehensive visibility and software control of Ciena • Offers on-line planning based
optical networks. MCP’s live view of the network state provides an accurate starting on live network topology, fiber
point for laying out and connecting new sites—as well as overlaying services—to characterization, and utilization
meet future bandwidth, performance, and reliability requirements. The PlannerPlus data for accurate designs, which
user-friendly interface facilitates analysis of what-if scenarios to determine optimal consolidates planning inputs in
equipment configurations and placement of services. Once the network design is one place and eliminates the need
finalized, a bill of materials (BOM) is created, and commissioning scripts are generated to refer to out-of-date records
automatically so that MCP can enact the plan as soon as the equipment is in place. • Facilitates what-if failure
With PlannerPlus, network designs optimize utilization of optical network assets, scenario simulations to ensure
maximizing return on investment (ROI). validation of network survivability
under multiple simultaneous
failures

• Features an intuitive Graphical

User Interface (GUI) to easily
visualize network layout and
design with planned, reserved,
and deployed views

• Optimizes utilization of optical

network assets with forecast-
tolerant designs, ready for
future growth

• Saves time and manual effort,

reducing the planning horizon and
enabling dynamic planning to adapt
to changing market conditions
Figure 1. The PlannerPlus easy-to-use GUI facilitates network buildouts
 Fiber Route Planning (Greenfield) Capacity Planning (Brownfield)

Real-time
Commissioning and Network Sync
Zero Touch Commissioning
Projects Provisioning (ZTP) Files Projects and ZTP Files
MCP
Notifications of
Customer High Utilization
Planner PlannerPlus MCP Programmable PlannerPlus MCP Service Programmable
infrastructure Activation infrastructure
Reserved Network
Equipment Utilization

Ciena Trend Reports

SE support BOMs, Visio Diagrams, Customer
Fiber Run Lists Planner
Network
Trends

Network Installer Internal Bandwidth Demand

Figure 2. PlannerPlus capabilities are fully integrated with Ciena’s MCP

domain controller, accelerating equipment turn-up and capacity management

Integrated on-line planning appropriate time. MCP offers centralized, comprehensive

Typically, fiber route planning and services capacity planning visibility of network elements and services across multiple
are time-consuming tasks that require a lot number crunching views: deployed, planned, and scheduled (for services with
and manual effort due to off-line stale data, and hence are a future activation date).
performed infrequently for a long-range time horizon. With
PlannerPlus, time and effort are greatly reduced to enable
incremental network build outs and to avoid spending capital
dollars today for capacity that will be underutilized for months
to come.

PlannerPlus software works seamlessly with MCP so that

new network designs are easily deployable via pre-generated
commission files, and network buildouts are accurately based
on live network topology and utilization data of fiber, spectrum,
and Ethernet client services. An MCP network capture includes
all the photonic components, their position in shelves, their
part codes, and their serial numbers. The capture also includes
various fiber parameters such as per-span fiber loss and fiber
type, wavelength-specific parameters such as frequency,
Polarization Mode Dispersion (PMD), and modulation class.
This provides an accurate view of the as-built network for the
basis of network augments and service expansion, taking the
guesswork out of capacity management, reducing errors and
manual rework.

Figure 3. Network utilization of equipment and services is clearly

When a network design is completed in PlannerPlus, it is
visualized on MCP GUI
imported into MCP as a project, and new equipment appears
in a planned state to be automatically commissioned at the Photonic layer planning made simple
With PlannerPlus, network operators can design and validate
Dense Wavelength Division Multiplexing (DWDM) photonic
Ciena’s MCP domain controller networks using sophisticated link engineering—resulting
Learn more in designs that are guaranteed over the life of the system.
PlannerPlus offers a wide range of configurations for the

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planning of photonic lines over fiber routes, supporting selectively placed and configured, and paths are validated for
10G and 800G wavelengths, as well as the planning of forecast tolerance prior to creating optical channels.
client services over those wavelengths.
Spectrum viewer – PlannerPlus provides the user with an
PlannerPlus simplifies the essential steps of network design, intuitive graphical representation of how spectrum is utilized
whether starting greenfield or augmenting an existing network: and planned for optical channels as wavelengths with center
1. Set up profiles initially frequencies, along with associated channel guard-bands and
including add and drop structures. Users gain a clear picture
2. O
 ptionally, import MCP network capture, then enter topology
of what frequencies remain available.
information including sites and fibers
3. Enter capacity demands on wavelengths and/or client services Optical path protection – PlannerPlus supports mesh-
4. Run link engineering for fiber route planning, and path restorable network designs via photonic control plane or
viability for services capacity planning explicit Designated Transit List (DTL) sets. Additionally, Optical
Protection Switch (OPS) placement is a critical part of the
5. Review the BOM
planning process and is incorporated into the workflow.
6. Create a quote
7. Generate deployment packages Photonic flows – Users can simulate client traffic demands
by creating photonic flows to ensure the network will support
8. C
 omplete the project for upload to MCP for commissioning
future growth. PlannerPlus can analyze and validate photonic
and lifecycle management
flow viability of selected DWDM interfaces across paths based
on shortest path, five shortest paths, or explicit selection.
Feature breadth enables customized designs
Flexible user workflows – Users can define customized Shelf, Wavelength and client services routing – PlannerPlus routes
Node, Site, and Design Settings profiles to bring consistency wavelengths and client services in the most efficient way,
across multiple planning cycles. PlannerPlus offers a choice dimensions the links required to support the forecast traffic
of workflows: demands, and identifies the equipment required to terminate
• Guided workflow for auto-placement of photonic components these links. Restoration routes are also computed for optical
and automatic link engineering, with the ability to review multiple survivability. When imported into MCP, the necessary spectrum
scenarios prior to accepting the design and creating the BOM. for the planned wavelengths is reserved, eliminating the need
for any manual tracking methods.
• Direct edit workflow for full user control at every step of the
planning process, including manual placement of photonic Automated failure analysis – PlannerPlus can simulate
components and selection of photonic degrees, which is simultaneous failure scenarios, predict restoration times,
especially useful for brownfield network planning. optimize the network for low latency, and identify additional
bandwidth required to support various restoration scenarios.
Fiber types – A wide variety of fiber types are supported and
A simulation of possible points of failure can be executed
can be selected during the fiber route design process, such
automatically. A detailed report is generated that shows the
as Non-Dispersion Shifted Fiber (NDSF), Enhanced Large
effects of a simulated failure of each node, line, protection
Effective Area Fiber (ELEAF), and TrueWave Reduced Slope
bundle, or line module on the network.
(TWRS) fiber types. Spans and domains can contain mixes
of the supported fiber types. Additionally, TrueWave Classic Planning Tool Calibrator – Fiber loss estimates are critical for
(TWC), DSF, LS, Tera, and TW Reach are also supported for optical planning. The Planning Tool Calibrator Liquid Spectrum™
specific applications. app is embedded within MCP and collects, consolidates, and
displays the actual fiber loss measurements for every fiber in
Automatic Link Engineering (ALE) – Using sophisticated
comparison to the initial planned loss from PlannerPlus. The
design algorithms, photonic components such as Wavelength
planned loss can be reconciled with the actual measurements
Selective Switch (WSS), Channel Mux/Demux (CMD), pads, and
in order to refine fiber loss margins for the next planning cycle
amplifiers can be optimized to meet end-of-life performance
and optimize asset utilization.
targets based on predefined aging margins. Components are

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Optical parameters reports – Reports include information on Technical specifications
the wavelength route, Optical Signal Noise Ratio (OSNR), OSNR PlannerPlus supports network designs for the following
margin, power margin, dispersion, and calculation of latency for Ciena products. For planning of other products not on this list,
each optical path present in the analyzed design. Information is or more details, please contact your Ciena Account Manager:
available as on-screen summaries as well as exportable reports.
• 6500 Family

APIs for automated operations – PlannerPlus capabilities are • 6500 Reconfigurable Line System (RLS)
also available via open APIs for automated retrieval of relevant • WaveLogic™ 5 Extreme support and all WaveLogic modems
planning data by back-end Operational Support Systems (OSS).
• Waveserver ® Family

Quick time-to-value with Ciena’s MCP Services Full PlannerPlus functionality is available through the
Ciena’s MCP Services deliver single-point-of-service MCP Plus license.
management for ease of deployment of the PlannerPlus
solution. Services help bridge gaps in technical or resource PlannerPlus is deployable on premises or is accessible via the
availability—enabling the realization of the benefits of the Cloud as Software as a Service (SaaS). PlannerPlus software is
solution as quickly as possible. With deep expertise and supported on Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) 7.x, Oracle Linux
domain knowledge in management and operations systems, 7.x, or CentOS 7.x servers, and accessible via HTML 5 web
Ciena’s MCP Services can help throughout all stages of the client using a Chrome Web browser.
rollout: learn, deploy, migrate, customize, adopt, and operate.

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