When extending the efficiencies of their Ethernet network to their TDM-based (time-division multiplexing) cellular backhaul infrastructure, service providers have to determine the parameters they need to test to ensure that they are delivering a circuit that is comparable in performance quality to a legacy TDM circuit. They know they must provide T1/E1 circuits to support voice applications and Ethernet circuits for data services, but are the circuit parameters the same as in a carrier Ethernet environment?
This article will cover the anatomy of a cellular backhaul network (also known as mobile backhaul), and the specific Ethernet and TDM tests required to certify its quality.